Leadership Principle #4: A Bias for Action
Martin E. Dempsey
18th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff | One of TIME's 100 Most Influential People | Bestselling Author
In one of many clever moments in Through the Looking Glass, Lewis Carroll depicts Alice running hard but remaining in the same spot. Alice is both exhausted and exasperated. The Red Queen, lounging under a nearby tree, is amused.
Alice looked round her in great surprise. “Why, I do believe we’ve been under this tree the whole time! Everything’s just as it was!”
“Of course it is,” said the Queen, “what would you have it?”
"Well, in our country," said Alice," still panting a little, "you'd generally get to somewhere else—if you ran very fast for a long time as we've been doing."
"A slow sort of country!" says the Queen. "Now, here, you see, it takes all the running you can do, to keep in the same place. If you want to get somewhere else, you must run at least twice as fast as that!"
The year was 1871, and in the Red Queen's Race, Lewis Carroll was alluding to an evolutionary theory of the time which proposed that organisms must constantly adapt and evolve to survive while pitted against ever-evolving opposing organisms in an ever-changing environment.
Sound familiar?
If the Red Queen was right about how fast we needed to adapt in the nineteenth century, what would she say today?
If you are a leader in today's environment, you may not find yourself responsible for the outcome of an ongoing evolutionary contest, but you will find yourself responsible for the outcome of a contest for the success, the trust, and the confidence of those who follow you in an ever-evolving, ever-changing environment.
And to prevail in that contest, you need to develop a bias for action.
A bias for action is a leadership instinct based on the belief that in order to decide, you have to learn, and in order to learn, you have to alter the status quo.
A bias for action is a leadership instinct that mitigates decision paralysis and helps you avoid the endless pursuit of that one exquisite piece of information which seems to be all that stands between you and clarity.
A bias for action is the recognition that, in our complex world, learning is active and iterative. We act, we assess, and we act again.
A bias for action is the recognition that facts are vulnerable and that speed matters in the Era of Digital Echoes.
A bias for action won’t solve all of your leadership challenges, but it will energize your organization, keep you alert for both vulnerabilities and opportunities, and illuminate the often-hidden cost of inaction.
In the military we have a saying: “Lead, follow, or get out of the way.” That’s a bias for action.
About the Author: After forty-one years in military service, General Martin Dempsey retired as the nation’s highest-ranking military officer. He now lives in North Carolina where he is faculty at Duke University, sits on two nonprofit boards, plays a leadership role in the NBA, serves as chairman of USA Basketball, and develops leaders with Starfish Leadership.
General Dempsey is the co-author of Radical Inclusion: What the Post-9/11 World Should Have Taught Us About Leadership with New York Times bestselling author Ori Brafman. The book is set for release on March 6, 2018.
I help aspiring recruits and military personnel with tailored mentoring to enhance their recruitment and career success.
5 年Sir, thanks for your article. You reminded me of a time when I had just joined the charity sector from the UK military. With my military inspired 'bias for action', when I put a regular team meeting invite in the calendar for a certain day and time each week... as far as I was concerned this is what was always going to happen - until the day I rescinded such an order... Imagine my surprise when my non-military millennial teammates are instead constantly questioning, 'is there a team meet this week?' Bit annoying! I'm not saying that's an incorrect approach, but it certainly cleared up in my mind that I have a 'bias for action', others may have a bias for inaction.... overall the well known lesson is - effective communication is key!!
Dean and Professor, West Virginia University School of Dentistry | Health Care Ethicist | Rear Admiral, U.S. Navy (Retired)
6 年"A Bias for Action" - absolutely critical to the success of the organization! ?You owe those you are privileged to lead, decisions and well thought out actions. ?Don't wait for the 100% solution - it rarely exists. ? Nothing frustrates initiative more than the proverbial "staffing do-loop". ?You will miss on occasion... it is easier to course-correct along the way... than not be on the way.?
Program Analyst at Humanity
7 年Act smartly, don't flail and spew.
Cyber Security Specialist
7 年Where 'a bias for action' fails is when there is an established plan and its contingencies are in place, Trust and patience need to be applied. Don't change things for the sake of change.
Director, Employee Development & Compliance Services, Title IX/ADA Coordinator, Investigator, SHRM-SCP, CCEP
7 年On target! It's the old adage: a plan 90% on time, is better than one a 100% late.