Proactive Employee above all
"Who needs permission? I just submitted a new product roadmap, adopted half of HR's backlog, and told Finance we're pivoting to crypto."
Only 1% of employees are truly proactive.
But these are the very best people.
If you are wondering if you are really proactive, here is a simple test:
The Proactive Employee Test
Do you manage your boss or does your boss manage you?
When you think of important things for the company to do: do you get them done or do you suggest that they get done?
Are you constantly crawling internal message boards and internal databases to learn more about the company or are you waiting for information to be sent to you?
When you miss deadlines: do you tell everyone about it ahead of time or do people sometimes tell you?
Do you actively find ways to improve processes, or do you simply complete tasks as assigned?
Do you default to "Yes, And" or "No, but"?
Are you constantly asking people in the org to move faster OR does anyone in the org ever ask you to move faster?
Do you take ownership of company-wide problems or do you assume they belong to someone else?
Are you opportunity-oriented or loss-avoiding?
Are you anticipating what leadership will ask for next or are you reacting to their requests?
What Truly Proactive Employees Do
The truly proactive crawl all the internal info about the company and find ways to make it better. They manage their boss -- their boss never manages them.
They push initiatives forward without waiting for permission and own problems as if they were the CEO.
They think beyond their role and contribute to long-term company success.
They spot patterns in company operations and prevent issues before they arise.
They take responsibility for results, not just effort.
The Reality Check
"Wait, you're telling me normal employees don't comb through every company Slack thread at 3AM to sniff out synergy? Sorry, can't relate. I'm too busy generating next quarter's pivot strategy."
"Are you even a 'proactive 1%er' if you haven't hijacked the company roadmap by Q2?"
"My boss tried to schedule a performance review—so I sent him a Google Calendar invite to my performance review of him"
"Pro tip: If you're not scouring your internal wiki like it's Reddit at 2AM, you'll never spot that next big pivot before your boss does."
"Missed a deadline? If you're truly proactive, you called it two weeks ago, posted a Gantt chart of fixes, and already moved on to the next project."
"Who needs permission? I just submitted a new product roadmap, adopted half of HR's backlog, and told Finance we're pivoting to crypto."
"Heads up: If you miss a deadline and someone else has to tell you, you might as well rename yourself 'Reactive Randy.'"
The Bottom Line
Proactive employees don't wait for permission. They don't wait for direction. They see what needs to be done and they do it. They anticipate problems before they happen and solutions before they're needed.
These are the employees who drive companies forward, who get promoted, who become indispensable. They're not just executing tasks—they're creating value.
The question isn't whether you should be proactive. The question is: what's stopping you from being proactive right now?