Happy New Year!

Many leaders tell me the same thing.

“My team is smart, capable, experienced… but they don’t take initiative.”

They wait for instructions.

They wait for permission.

They wait while problems stay unresolved. And eventually, the leader steps in again.

Here’s the uncomfortable truth:

Low initiative is rarely a people problem. It’s usually a leadership design problem.

Language like:

• “We should do something about this.”
• “Someone needs to take this.”
• “Who wants to handle it?”

Sounds collaborative. But it creates confusion, silence, and hesitation.

Over time, initiative fades, responsibility blurs, and leaders become the bottleneck they never wanted to be.

On January 13, I’m hosting a LIVE FREE session on this exact issue: The Initiative Gap. Why smart teams wait instead of acting.

In 45 minutes, we’ll unpack:

• Why initiative is a verb, and why leaders must initiate first
• How vague, consensus-driven language kills ownership
• Why rules and processes often block initiative instead of enabling it
• What to say and do differently if you want people to step up

This is especially relevant if you lead in tech, engineering, or knowledge-heavy teams.

And even more relevant if you often hear, “Someone should take this.”

Join me live. Ask questions. Apply it immediately.

👉Register here to join live on January 13:

https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/J0MawRb7T2a3YwginF7iPg

If you can’t make it live, register anyway to get access to the recording.

One small leadership shift can unlock initiative across your team.

Make it a fantastic day,

Florin