Proactive vs. Reactive
Proactive-Acting in advance to deal with an
expected change or difficulty
Proactivity - Being proactive is about being
anticipatory and taking charge of situations.
proactively - In a proactive manner; so as to
look or plan ahead
Reacting- tending to react to events and
situations rather than initiating or instigating
them
Reactive- that reacts or responds to a stimulus;
that readily takes part in reactions;
Characterized by induction rather than
capacitance; Reacting to the past rather than
anticipating the future, not predictive
Reactive leaders/employees- make choices
based on impulse. They are like a can of
soda pop. If work or life shakes them up a
bit, the pressure builds and they suddenly
explode. They react to something. Always
waits to be led.
Proactive leaders/employees- make
choices based on values. They think before
they act. Unlike reactive leaders full of
carbonation, proactive people are like
water shake all you want , remove the top.
Nothing ,no fizzing, no bubbling, no
pressure. They are calm, cool and in
control. Always lead.
Proactive people
Reactive people
• Are not easily offended
• Take responsibility for their
choices
• Think before they act
• Bounce back when
something bad happens
• Always find a way to make it
happen
• Focus on things they can do
something about, and don’t
worry about things they
can’t
• Are easily offended
• Blame others
• Get angry and say things they
later regret
• Whine and complain
• Wait for things to happen to
them
• Change only when they have
to
Proactive people make choices based on principle. Reactive
people make choices based on feelings, their moods,
emotions and impulse.
Proactive choices
• I am the force
• I am the captain of my life
• I can choose my attitude
• I'm responsible for my own
happiness
• Take initiative to make it
happen
• Think about solutions and
options
• Act
Reactive choices
• Others control me
• Situations determine my
day
• Others alter my moods
• Wait for something to
happen to them
• Think about problems and
barriers
• Are acted upon
Reactive Language
Proactive Language
•
•
•
•
•
•
I’ll do it
I can do better than that
Lets look at all our options
I choose to
There’s gotta be a way
I'm not going to let your bad
mood rub off on me
•
•
•
•
•
•
I’ll try
That’s just the way I am
There’s nothing I can do
I have to
I can’t
You ruined my day
• Being proactive puts the remote • Being reactive is like giving
control to your life in your hands,
someone else the remote control
you choose which channel you
to your life ”Here, change my
want to be on
mood anytime you wish
Thermostat
verses
Thermometer
Do you know the difference between a thermostat and a
thermometer? Both have something to do with
temperature but they are fundamentally different. Inside
the house, a thermostat is something we set that dictates
the temperature in a room. A thermometer simply tells us
what the room temperature is. People are either
thermostats or thermometers. You either gauge the
temperature (thermometer) and gripe about the
temperature, or you do something about it (thermostat).
Most people are like thermometers. They tend to reflect
the culture around them. They buy things that others buy,
say things that others say, wear things that others wear,
and value things that others value. Most people don’t set
the “climate for the world they live in; they just mirror
back that climate, and then complain about it. Leaders
need to be thermostats. Leaders set the climate for the
world around them. We need to set the social
professional climate, the social climate, and the attitude
climate for the world we work in, and the job we attend.
Leaders that are thermostats have developed values and
principles they live by. Thermometers NEVER change the
climate, they only gauge it...and COMPLAIN about it.
Which are you?