Have you ever noticed how easy problems are to solve for people who aren’t involved?
I think anyone who is in a position of leadership has experienced this frustration.
Here you are, you’re grinding away, dealing with the daily mess, pushing forward the best you know how, leading a team…
And along comes someone to tell you everything you’re doing is wrong.
How come that project isn’t done yet? The city is run by a bunch of morons. I would have had that done three years ago…
Every Critic Ever
We’re going to pull our kid out of this school because we just don’t want to be bothered with these problems anymore.
Parent of the Perfect Child
I’ve lived in this neighborhood for years. And I’ve never seen so much trash on the streets as I do now…
Very Busy Neighbor
Do you know what I think?
Do. you. know. what. I. think?
The Magic Wand
It’s as if the uninvolved found a magic wand. They walk through life with it fixing every problem they encounter.
Construction delay BE GONE!
Classroom management problems BE GONE!
Garbage on the streets BE GONE!
Life for them is so dang simple. They just point out a problem, wave their wand, and magically the problem is solved in their eyes.
And when things don’t just magically happen? They get so angry… as if the world awaits their orders.
It’s peak entitlement.
And it’s peak frustrating for those of us working on real world problems.
Work Boots
Here’s my open invitation, on behalf of people who actually do things in this world.
Get involved.
If something is bothering you… put your boots on and get involved. You might find that by getting involved you really are able to get things done. But, more likely, you’ll find out that it’s not as easy as waving your magic wand because oftentimes things are more complicated than you think they are.
That’s true of our past two presidents… sure seemed easy to close Gitmo until you got involved, right?
And it’s true in my neighborhood… sure seemed easy to get stuff done at the park… until I learned I had to spend 6 months joining a committee and get in line for funding and work through endless bureaucratic layers.
And it’s true for you… in fact, I’ve found, that the people who are the most bothered by something become the very best people to involve.
So trade in that magic wand and get yourself some comfy work boots.
You’ll be glad you did.
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