Have you ever been around someone who reads and researches a lot about an industry or the role they play at a company or about something they are passionate about, but they don’t seem to possess the skills to actually implement or act on those ideas? If you didn’t know better, you would be super impressed by their expansive knowledge, especially when they continually drop it based on whatever they are reading at the time. Wow – they really know their stuff.  But when you begin to take a more critical look, you begin question whether they really do know their stuff or are they full of hot air.

I worked with a guy like that at my last job – he was actually my boss. First impression was good. He was talking the talk – saying the right things. He seemed to be someone who “got it”. He didn’t come in like a bull in a china shop and try to dismantle or discount all the work we had done. He acknowledged the challenges and experiences the team had. I was hopeful that maybe, finally, the right kind of leader was at the helm. The right kind of leader – meaning someone who acknowledged the art and skill of content marketing and engagement. As months rolled by, I started to notice that during every meeting, whether it was a one on one or with a large group, he was always relating something he read into the discussion.  While being able to take what you read and apply it to a discussion or point takes talent and is a skill, so is the ability to take what you read, apply critical thinking skills to it, and figure out how to run with it. You need to be able to follow through past the concept/idea.  When you start to look at a great idea with a filter,   sometimes a sound theory or point doesn’t or can’t apply. He just didn’t seem to be able to do that — but yet expected the same outcome.

I learned quite a bit working there though under the piss poor leadership including  How to be Happy at Work When Everyone Else is Miserable.  Although in the end, as I have shared before, it became almost impossible for me to be productive and happy there. I hung in there far too long to my own detriment, but it was a valuable lesson for me about my own self worth.

I recently found his marketing blog. I found myself scoffing at some of his posts when I compared what he wrote to the reality of his leadership. Reflecting on the time under his leadership, my team didn’t accomplish much. It was such a toxic environment that talking the fancy stuff that everyone wanted to hear was what was rewarded. That experience reminded me how important it is to apply critical thinking to what you read and advice you are given. Just because someone shares their thoughts and insights, it’s up to you to apply your experience, knowledge and circumstances on top of it and decide if it’s going to work for you.

This holds true not only for the business world but it applies to our personal lives as well. There is no ‘one size fits all’ approach to wellness. Which fitness program, nutritional advice, mental health approach or journey to wellness that will work for you depends on YOU. Any and all advice, situation, news, research, article, fitness approach needs to have your personal filter laid upon it.

The bottom line is you have to do something, move beyond an idea or concept. Coming up with ideas or sharing concepts is great and all, developed with the best of intentions but to get from point A to B – that takes work. You have DO SOMETHING, be a do-er, in your own career, in your own wellness journey, in your life. We all need to work on becoming idea people who can do.