Reacting, responding, and initiating. We all know how to react. Just key any one of a thousand triggers in our mind and KABOOM! We have a reaction! We are born to react, but we have to learn how to respond. If you kick a dog, he will either whimper and run away or he will bite you. Both of which are reactions. Now let’s assume that you lightly kicked the dog, because you wanted him to do something. Well that isn’t going to be very effective, because he won’t learn to respond the way you want. You have to train a dog to respond. He will want to learn, but you have to teach him in a manner that works for him. Treats are a great motivator. At some point, a dog can initiate behaviour in you. He nuzzles you for a treat or scratches at the door to be let out.

The key for you, of course, is to learn how to postpone or suppresses your reactions, and train yourself to respond. Because we have language, we can even be helped in this regard. In terms of our programming, we can create whole cultures based on learned cues and responses. In fact, we sometimes refer to this as civilization.

Learning how to respond, and being able to teach yourself how to respond, is very important, but is not a mountain-moving skill. No, the mountain-moving skill is the art of initiation (with follow through), for this is what leadership is all about. Leadership is not a top-down movement. Do not look around you for your leader. No, look within yourself and become the leader. Initiate leadership where you are and with what you are doing.

Let’s pretend that you are a nobody and have a nothing job, but at that job there is a coffee machine. You could become the leader of the coffee machine. You have the power, even as a nobody in a nothing job, to initiate something around the coffee machine. Just start, have faith, and do it! Now let’s pretend you are someone of some substance (you decide what that means to you), and you have a key role to play in your organization. Just don’t sit there waiting for freaking instructions! Do something! Come on! You have a key role. That means you must initiate and assume the mantle of leadership for your key role stuff. Wait … does that mean everyone in the organization can do this, should do this, is expected to do this? Does this mean that we could have multiple initiatives, with many leaders, all at the same time? Yes, yes, yes, yes! Now, are you starting to get it? Maybe not? But it is all up to you.

The true warrior is just a master initiator. The true warrior is always a humble leader, who initiates many things and follows through—while leading from the front, the side, and the rear—stepping out of the way when appropriate, and putting his or her shoulders to it when required. No undertaking is too big or too small for the true warrior.

You are warriors. You will make it happen. So it is written.