Are you “Proactive”?

Not to be confused with a popular acne medication… being proactive is a mindset we are all capable of (and most of us already have). Unfortunately, some of our upbringings steered us away – more toward being “reactive”. I know that for a good chunk of my life, I was reactive in every sense of the word. Not only did I always “go with the flow” – I waited and waited to be told what to do and what was going on. I was always being acted upon… and I was “ok” with it. Living with my family was the way to go - as long as I got what I wanted: toys, video games, food, I didn’t complain. However, when we are children, don’t we all want to grow up to “be” something? I doubt any of us daydreamed of letting everyone tell us what to do – it’s not in our nature. We all have dreams, the inner light of taking initiative, of wanting to BE someone – and ultimately being in control of our lives.

Habit #1 of the “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” is exactly that: to Be Proactive. The word “Be” has a large part to do with it. Beyond reacting to stimuli, we need to realize that we have a choice in every aspect of our lives.