Sit Down or Stand Up

 

It seems to me that the central success factor in all areas of life is deciding when to sit down and when to stand up.

 

For example, communists and terrorists stood up when they should have sat down. Politicians too stand up far too often because they don't have the courage and intelligence to recognize that their intervention will fail. They stand up because they forget that the road to hell is paved with good intentions. In business it is important to know when to stand up and intervene and when to stay sat down and delegate. In relationships, you sometimes have to stand up and tell someone how you feel, otherwise an opportunity could pass you by.

 

The decision whether to stand up or sit down is not set in stone- there are no hard and fast rules- it all depends upon the context in which that decision is being made. You could for example stand up and shoot down a hijacked plane if it has a few civilians on but is aimed for a place of high population, but you might decide not to shoot down a plane in a similar situation if it is not in your airspace and full of civilians. So the decision to stand up or sit down is a dynamic one, to be made on a case by case basis, depending upon the costs and benefits trade off from that particular situation.

 

In business, success is determined by which battles you choose to fight and which customers you choose to work with. When you stand up to build a customer relationship or partnership it needs to be a profitable one. When you make a stand and go to court it needs to be because the case is winnable and worth fighting on a matter of principle. Choose your battles wisely as you must choose all things. The truth is out there for those who have the wisdom and courage to see their destiny and stand up to accept it.

 

Having said that there is no hard and fast rules about when to stand up and when to sit down, a general principle does apply- if in doubt, sit down (or stay seated). There is a tendency amongst all of us to make a stand for reasons of ego or bravado or obstruction or history.

 

All democracy and civilization depends on making the right decisions to stand up or sit down, so choose wisely, otherwise you may find yourself exposed standing up when you should be sitting down, or left sat on the shelf when you should have stood up.

 

 

Author: Simon Buckingham

What do you think?

To make a comment to the author, send e-mail to simon@unorgan.com