My dad, famous for dishing out pithy sayings as part of his parental responsibilities, used to look at me when I’d do something stupid or bone headed, and he’d have a quirky half smile on his face, and he’d say “Son, one day you’ll pay. It may not be today. It may not be tomorrow, but ooooh son, someday you’ll pay.
I’ve been thinking about that lately because almost daily people, especially leaders, are faced with pay now or pay later situations.
Challenges where you know there is a right way and an acceptable way to get something done – and you chose the acceptable way because it costs less today.
Sometimes these situations are one and done. You go cheap. Get er done and it’s done. Sometimes these situations are deferred payments scenarios.
Like that Jeep you can’t afford.
$500 can get you in a Jeep today, but it’s $500 a month for the next 8 years of your life!
There’s a chance you’re still going to be paying for that Jeep long after it’s in the scrapyard!
The classic pay now or pay later for a “c suite” leader is doing something yourself instead of delegating it to a supporting team member.
Or a strategic influencer, is to do something by yourself and in isolation, instead of recruiting and bringing a team member with you.
The strongest leaders work themselves to the place where they only do what only they can do.
Great influencers demonstrate and delegate everything they can cause demonstrating and delegating is developing.
Even when there is no one on the team equipped to do that thing that needs to be done, the strongest leaders recruit, equip, and release empowered team members even though it takes 3x longer than doing it themselves. Cause they know. In the long term that investment will pay them!
3x feels way more expensive now.
But that investment pays you back for years.
Today you are going to face a decision where you are going to be tempted… – you are honestly going to think, “I’ve got too much going on today. I can push that off till tomorrow, maybe next week, or next year (if you’re lucky, you’ll think, that problem will go away all on its own…)”
Son, one day, you’ll pay. It may not be today, it may not be tomorrow, but ooooh son. You’re gonna pay.
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