The story of the four frogs

Here’s a simple question for you:

On a hot sunny day, four frogs are sitting on a log.

One decides to jump back into the cool refreshing water.

How many frogs are now sitting on the log?

…?

…?

…?

…?

…?

…?

…?

…?

…?

The answer is four.

Because deciding to jump is not the same as jumping.

This is why Inner Leadership is not only about learning to stay calm and focused in a crisis, see the situation more clearly, find more options to move forward, and then decide your best way forward — it’s also about building the inspiration that will enable you and the people around you to take the first step. And then maintain and build that inspiration as you move forward.

Because the decision is not truly made until you take action.

Inspiration is what enables us to take that action. Inspiration is what keeps us going until we get to where we want to be. Inspiration is what makes us antifragile.

Do you know someone who says they’ve decided to do something but hasn’t taken action? What would happen if they felt more inspired about their ‘decision’?


Adapted from Inner Leadership: a framework and tools for building inspiration in times of change.

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(And remember: you can’t learn to swim just by reading about swimming, you also need to do the practice.)


Photo By Stig Nygaard via StockPholio.com

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