Reactive vs Proactive

Hello GBMA!

I was browsing old notes today and

came across an entry from 06/08/2010 and wanted to

share it! It’s brief but I think has some nice ways of

framing how we think of Reactive and Proactive!

Reactive:

Relies on chance too often

Proactive:

Leaves as little to chance as possible, always prepared, and minimizes surprises

Reactive:

Avoids responsibility for outcome of own performance

Proactive:

Learns from personal mistakes; gets credit for personal success, responsibility feels good

Reactive:

Instead of training others, does work someone else could do

Proactive:

Constantly trying to work out of a job to accomplish more

Reactive:

Feels comfortable with routines and sticks to them

Proactive:

Uses routines to accomplish clearly defined goals but keeps looking for ways to improve environment with better routines

Reactive:

Measures effectiveness and is rewarded by number of hours put in

Proactive:

Measures effectiveness by predetermined goals that were attained or not

Reactive:

Treats all tasks alike rather than organizing in order of priority

Proactive:

Establishes priorities of what should be done and what can be left undone.

Short and to the point, as promised! Not at all the final word on any sort of discussion on the topic, but a helpful conversation starter!

At the bottom of the page of notes, is what I’ll end this blog post with. It is something I have heard so often from coaches, sensei and mentors throughout my martial arts career and is a take on the famous Franklin quote:

“The best cure is prevention!”

Until next time,

Kanpai!

John Gaddis