Change: Smart and courageous

Albert Einstein (1879 – 1955), German-born theoretical physicist

Not to mention pretty sure footing.

To plant our foot and move in the opposite direction can be daunting, indeed. Especially if everyone else looks completely resolute in their trudging along with the crowd. It does take courage, if for no other reason than we risk getting run over by the crowd.

Before we go deeper into courage, though, let’s focus on the genius part of Al’s quote.

When we decide to buck the trend, genius comes down to equal parts instinct / intuition, risk management and timing. What is my gut telling me? How does my experience color my perspective, and what factors are different this time? What happens if I buck the trend? What happens if I don’t? Is now the right time? Am I late to the dance, or am I too early? None of those considerations, however, are black and white at all.

Thus the ratios. A “touch” of genius. A lot of courage.

Change is a complex matter, and we have to be both smart and bold to leverage it to our advantage.

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About the Author

As a 24-year veteran of financial services technology, Steve has served in a variety of sales and marketing leadership roles with Fiserv, Metavante / FIS, and Acxiom Corp., among others. At SHAZAM, he’s responsible for setting strategies and leading SHAZAM’s sales, client engagement, ... read entire bio