The Business Corner – Taking Initiative Without Hesitation

Taking initiative means that you do tasks/responsibilities without being told to do so or without being taught how to do it, therefore finding solutions and utilizing critical thinking. Those with initiative tend to be highly motivated individuals who are able to regulate their own emotions as well as recognize a potential issue and are proactive about preventing them.

Compliance or Proactivity?

Compliance in the workplace used to be a desirable trait considering that industrialization during the 19th century was majorly composed of machines in which specialization and procedures/protocols were needed and enforced. Nowadays, jobs are also looking for the ability to excel and become innovative in completing everyday tasks – searching for new ways to get an improved result.

Becoming proactive and taking initiative in creating higher-quality results and more efficient procedures to ultimately excel at your job is something that makes you a high-potential employee/leader which companies are always looking to foster and recruit.

Adopting a proactive mindset is essential to becoming an initiative individual which is something that is both beneficial to you as well as those around you.

Rejection and Uncertainty

Recognizing that your opinions, ideas, and input are valuable is the first step to combatting the fear of rejection and uncertainty in your responses. Approaching responses with confidence and articulation are ways that can help you overcome the fear of rejection.

Elena Sanz in the article “The Importance of Initiative in the Workplace and How to Develop It” writes, “To show initiative in the workplace, you must have the courage to propose, suggest, and participate.” and “…losing your fear of rejection will allow you to offer feedback to your company, suggesting ways that they may need to improve.” While it does take time to overcome the fear of rejection, it can be done with consistency, persistence and determination.

Demonstrating Enthusiasm and Valuing Your Work

Expressing enthusiasm and interest/putting yourself in a good disposition in the workplace can lead to greater opportunities within your company and outside of your company, this also allows for personal growth through experience. It’s important to value/to show that you value your work, projects and everything you do to contribute to the company because others around you will recognize that and most likely be inspired to mirror your actions: taking initiative, which will be beneficial to the overall work environment. Not taking initiative and caring about what you do could lead to dissatisfaction and frustration which will negatively impact your performance as well as the performance and mentality of those around you.

It is important to note there are right and wrong times/instances of being proactive and taking initiative. For example, taking on so many responsibilities and tasks to the point where of burning out. It’s important to know personal limits and take action accordingly.

It’s up to companies and leaders to foster initiative. It’s not just dependent on employees alone to make sure that they’re taking initiative and becoming an active/high-potential asset to the company, it’s also dependent on the company itself to foster employees/leaders to be initiative and motivated within the company.

Companies must encourage their teams by allowing the environment for their voices to be heard, taken into consideration, and valued. Promotions, rewards, or recognition are necessary for teams to feel motivated and willing to be productive.

Contribution to Personal Growth

Taking initiative contributes to self-confidence, creating more professional opportunities,

independence, and becoming a better collaborator.

In one of my classes a few weeks back, we were presented a podcast segment, “Unlocking Us with Brené Brown: Brené with Jason Reynolds on Masterpieces and Messes,” which described a situation with saving a fish. Students were told to not touch the class pet fish, if they did, they would be suspended.

This didn’t strike as a big deal to the students since no one would be putting their hands in the tank to touch the fish for any reason. As the year went on, the students would feed and take care of the fish. Near the end of the school year, the teacher threw the fish out of the tank and put it on the ground. Struggling to breathe, the fish flopped around. Students were horrified and stood in silence not wanting to face the consequences of getting suspended.

Two girls ended up going up to the fish, picked it up, and placed it back in the tank. Consequently, they both got suspended. Years later one of the girls ran into that teacher in a store. She courageously walked up to him and handed him a note. The note was the same suspension letter from years ago when she faced the consequence of picking up the fish. The girl told him “I saved the fish.” The lesson here is that sometimes doing the right thing has negative consequences.

Would you have saved the fish? Saving the fish. A concept so simple to read yet so complex to comprehend. Personally, I said that I probably wouldn’t have saved the fish due to the consequence of getting suspended. But after further reflection, taking that initiative is something that wasn’t easy to do but was necessary in order to save the fish’s life.

In retrospect, there will be times when we will need to save a fish, or we will be the fish that needs saving. Having initiative can change not only our lives but possibly someone else’s as well. In taking initiative, we can also be an advocate for ourselves, and those who can’t advocate for themselves.