I find myself repeating this to leaders again and again. In my workshops and coaching sessions, I hear statements like, “We never get to work on technical debt,” or “I never find the time to work on my priorities,” or “We’ve got such a slooooow build process.” When I hear statements like these examples, I ask some questions and discover that the leader expects someone else to take action, make a decision or give them direction. We end up with some variation of the question, “If you don’t do it, who do you expect will?”

One of my favourite definitions of leadership is “the act of leading a group of people.” It’s not about titles. It’s not about permission. It’s about taking action. It’s natural that leaders sometimes get stuck and see invisible boundaries. They tell themselves, “I am not allowed to do that,” or “Someone else is responsible,” or “Someone else will fix that.” When spotting future leaders, I often look for agency, or “the ability to take action or to choose what action to take.” Good leaders cannot afford to wait, hoping that someone else will take action.

Your challenge for this week is to look for an opportunity to show leadership by taking a small action to improve something or solve a small problem that helps your team or organisation. Don’t wait, hoping someone else will take care of it. If you don’t do it, who will?

Stay safe out there 💙💛. If you enjoy this week’s newsletter, please pass it on to a friend or colleague who might benefit.

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