Before Steve Jobs, former president of Apple, Inc., passed away he told Tim Cook, the new president, “Never ask the question, ‘What would Steve Jobs have done?’ Just do the right thing.”
This powerful message delivered to the new president of Apple freed Tim Cook from having to worry about his predecessor. It freed Cook from having to make decisions in the future based on trends, opinions and leadership styles that were cemented in the past. In essence, this one statement empowered Cook to take Apple boldly into the future, to deal with whatever presented itself and to work 100% to make Apple the best it could be at that point in time.
Many times in our life and in our business we find our self tied to something from our past. It could be past ideas, beliefs or ways of conducting business. Our past is filled with many success stories. It is possible to draw from those experiences to create a rewarding future but we don’t want those experiences to be an anchor.
Looking forward you should drive yourself to expand your thinking. Ask yourself challenging questions like:
How can I think differently?
How can I make better decisions?
What have I missed in the past that I can take advantage of in the future?
What is the right decision based on today’s business situations?
What new approach must I embrace in order to increase competitiveness in the future?
Does my organizational culture actually reward people for being tied to the past?
Challenge everyone on your team to cut their ties. Develop an organizational culture that rewards forward thinking and forward movement. When you are constantly challenging yourself to grow, expand and deliver more value and you release yourself from past anchors you will find yourself making more accountable decisions and creating the positive results you seek.
