Have you ever worked for someone who could see the future?

As young managers, most of us had the privilege of being mentored by an old sage in our organizations.  I remember working with one such person who always seemed to know the future.  He seemed to have the power to see around blind corners and to know what was coming.  I often would ask him, “How did you know that was going to happen?”  Mind you this was way before using “The Force” and “Star Wars” was popular!

How does this work?  It is the difference between a reactive or proactive leader.  A proactive leader will anticipate various scenarios the company or organization may encounter around that blind corner.  They are proactively developing contingency plans (strategies) for each of the probable scenarios.  They have those various strategies in their “back pockets”, at-the-ready to employ when the threat or opportunity presents itself.  When the time is right, the proactive leader simply chooses the best solution and takes full advantage of the situation.

To the rank and file employees, it looks like the leader knew exactly what was going to happen.  This ability to seemingly be able to see the future gives the organization confidence in the leader and could save the organization from spending unnecessary resources.  This proactive leader sets aside time to work “on their business” creating strategies and developing a leadership style that often allows an organization to take advantage of opportunities before their competition can react.

As the great leader, Yoda once said, “Do or do not, there is no try!”  Seeing the future is possible, even without “The Force”, if you “Do” decide to be that proactive leader.