61. Reactivity, proactivity, and creativity

There are three ways we can act towards the future:

• Being reactive: acting after the event has occurred, which means doing so when the rules of the game have already been set by others (or by the environment itself).
• Being proactive: acting before the event, set by others or the environment, occurs.
• Being creative: creating the rules of the game in which others will act.

There is no fourth way. Everything boils down to one of these three scenarios.

It’s not always necessary to be creative, but being reactive (or even proactive) when we should be creative is often when we lose ground, whether as professionals, teams, or organizations.

Similarly, there are times when being reactive is a smart decision where we save effort and resources to focus them where they truly matter.

As always, understanding the environment we are in and the rules of the game we must play by is key to our performance.