Do You Employ a Reactive or Management Approach
to Business?

“In order to maintain appreciation for the freedom of owning your own business, an eye should always be turned to the future. To illustrate, I often use my experience of learning how to fly a plane. When taking flying lessons, my instructor introduced me to the idea of “flying ahead of the airplane.” He explained that when you first begin to fly, the plane seems to be in control and may take you in a direction different from what you may have desired. This was to be avoided, of course. Not only was it dangerous, but very uncomfortable. No enjoyment came from reacting to the plane. He then said that with experience you will be able to fly with the plane. Instead of reacting to the plane, you will begin to control its movements and direction. But then, he said, this is a not the most desirable position to be in if an emergency arises. When an emergency does occur, it may be too late to react.

To truly enjoy flying, he continued, you must fly ahead of the plane. Once you have gained enough experience and understanding of the aircraft, you can predict its reactions to your control inputs and ensure it gets you to the place you wanted it to go. And to top it all off, you may actually enjoy flying! Manage the plane, he said, don’t let it manage you. It is remarkable how many similarities exist between flying a plane and managing your own business…”