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3 Lessons Plants Can Teach You About Taking Action

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What image comes to mind when you think of taking action? Newton’s laws? Gears in machines? Someone intently focused on a task?

How about plants? Yes, they seem simple and slow but action doesn’t need to be flashy to be effective.

Look at us humans, we’re more animated than plants but they’ve been around for millions of years before we arrived. Forms of life that have been around for that long are doing something right and there’s something we can learn from them. Many ancient philosophers studied nature and her creations to model their own lives.

Below we’ll look at three lessons nature can teach you on taking action:

1. A sunflower’s direction

The journey of a plant seed starts in the darkness below the ground surface. After tasting its first drops of water, it’s aided by a hormone called auxin to peek out the soil by moving in the direction of the sun, like a compass set on True North.

Some species, like the sunflower, will keep track of this True North by bending towards the sun until it sets. It will then turn eastwards so that it can catch the sun rise again the next day.  

The True North in our own lives is the direction which will bring the highest short-term and long-term gain in our pursuits. Plants can get by with a few goals in life: sunlight, water, minerals etc. But you on the other hand are pulled by a limitless number of competing desires, and by choosing one you cut off all the other options.

The solution is to create a long term life direction or goal which can guide you over long periods of time. This will give you something solid to base your decisions over the days, weeks, months, and years ahead, and help you create consistency to achieve long term-term goals.

“Sometimes the smallest step in the right direction ends up being the biggest step of your life.”

2. A roots stability

Plants gain stability from their roots. Some even stabilize soil and prevent erosion on steep gradients.

Depending on the species and the type of soil they’re in, plant roots vary in how wide and deep they’ll grow. Most only grow a few feet. But some tree researchers have discovered roots growing as far below as 174 feet (53 meters).

Plant roots are like the stability you feel in the environment you’re in – your competence in business, confidence in social life, or skill in keeping physically fit. This stability is affected by your level of certainty. And when your uncertainty rises it becomes harder to take action because we spend more time worrying about what can go wrong.  

The solution is to strip ignorance away by learning how the world works. Unlike plants which grow their roots slowly and automatically, you have power over the rate and depth at which you grow your understanding of the world. You can read more books, listen to more audios, and watch more videos in less time than you’re used to.

The more you understand how things work, the more stable and certain you become when taking action towards life goals.

 

3. A flytraps potential  

The venus flytrap is a patient plant. It waits and, like a capacitor, it builds potential energy in its convex-shaped lobes which have small, sensitive hairs that respond to touch. The plant is designed this way to release its built up energy to catch unsuspecting insects in under a second.    

Just like this plant, you grow potential energy over time, not by sitting around but by gaining knowledge.

But harnessing your potential is useless if it’s not converted. The reason flytraps build their energy is to survive. They take action when they sense an opportunity arising. The main reason to gather knowledge is to leverage it in achieving your goals to live a better life, not to become book smart.

Life is sprinkled with opportunities and many times you’ll need to have prepared yourself for them by gathering certain skills and knowledge. The next step is converting that potential into mechanical energy by acting on the opportunity. This is how we increase the returns of the knowledge we’ve gained.  

“To reach your greatest potential, you’ll have to fight your greatest fears.”

Besides satisfying our hunger or desire to see beauty in nature, plants can give us new perspectives to use in life. Creating direction and stability isn’t easy.

The same goes with spotting and acting on opportunities before they disappear. But with consistency, the natural long-term result is an overall improvement in all three.  

Of the three points above, which lesson relates most to a recent life experience of yours?  Please leave your thoughts in the comment section below!

Tom Lekhanya is a Ghostblogger – yes they exist – from WordExcursions.com. He’s driven to help small-to-medium sized businesses cut through the online noise with engaging blog posts aimed at reaching more people to benefit from their offers while building a long-term connection with them.

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Success Advice

Why One-Size-Fits-All Leadership Will Always Fail (and What Works Instead)

The surprising truth about leadership styles that can make or break your team’s success.

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Why one-size-fits-all leadership doesn’t work
Image Credit: Midjourney

Leadership has always been as much about people as it is about performance. Ken Blanchard, in his influential book, “The One Minute Manager”, put it simply: different strokes for different folks. (more…)

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Success Advice

What Every New CEO Must Do in Their First 100 Days (or Risk Failure)

Your first 100 days as CEO could define your entire legacy, here’s how to make every move count

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leadership tips for new CEO
Image Credit: Midjourney

When Tim Cook took over from Steve Jobs at Apple, the world watched with bated breath. Jobs wasn’t just a CEO; he was a visionary, an icon, and a legend of innovative leadership. (more…)

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Entrepreneurs

The Leadership Shift Every Company Needs in 2025

Struggling to keep your team engaged? Here’s how leaders can turn frustrated employees into loyal advocates.

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Bridging the gap between employees and employers
Image Credit: Midjourney

In workplaces around the world, there’s a growing gap between employers and employees and between superiors and their teams. It’s a common refrain: “People don’t leave companies, they leave bad bosses.”

While there are, of course, cases where management could do better, this isn’t just a “bad boss” problem. The relationship between leaders and employees is complex. Instead of assigning blame, we should explore practical solutions to build stronger, healthier workplaces where everyone thrives.

Why This Gap Exists

Every workplace needs someone to guide, supervise, and provide feedback. That’s essential for productivity and performance. But because there are usually far more employees than managers, dissatisfaction, fair or not, spreads quickly.

What if, instead of focusing on blame, we focused on building trust, empathy, and communication? This is where modern leadership and human-centered management can make a difference.

Tools and Techniques to Bridge the Gap

Here are proven strategies leaders and employees can use to foster stronger relationships and create a workplace where people actually want to stay.

1. Practice Mutual Empathy

Both managers and employees need to recognize they are ultimately on the same team. Leaders have to balance people and performance, and often face intense pressure to hit targets. Employees who understand this reality are more likely to cooperate and problem-solve collaboratively.

2. Maintain Professional Boundaries

Superiors should separate personal issues from professional decision-making. Consistency, fairness, and integrity build trust, and trust is the foundation of a motivated team.

3. Follow the Golden Rule

Treat people how you would like to be treated. This simple principle encourages compassion and respect, two qualities every effective leader must demonstrate.

4. Avoid Micromanagement

Micromanaging stifles creativity and damages morale. Great leaders see themselves as partners, not just bosses, and treat their teams as collaborators working toward a shared goal.

5. Empower Employees to Grow

Empowerment means giving employees responsibility that matches their capacity, and then trusting them to deliver. Encourage them to take calculated risks, learn from mistakes, and problem-solve independently. If something goes wrong, turn it into a learning opportunity, not a reprimand.

6. Communicate in All Directions

Communication shouldn’t just be top-down. Invite feedback, create open channels for suggestions, and genuinely listen to what your people have to say. Healthy upward communication closes gaps before they become conflicts.

7. Overcome Insecurities

Many leaders secretly fear being outshone by younger, more tech-savvy employees. Instead of resisting, embrace the chance to learn from them. Humility earns respect and helps the team innovate faster.

8. Invest in Coaching and Mentorship

True leaders grow other leaders. Provide mentorship, career guidance, and stretch opportunities so employees can develop new skills. Leadership is learned through experience, but guided experience is even more powerful.

9. Eliminate Favoritism

Avoid cliques and office politics. Decisions should be based on facts and fairness, not gossip. Objective, transparent decision-making builds credibility.

10. Recognize Efforts Promptly

Recognition often matters more than rewards. Publicly appreciate employees’ contributions and do so consistently and fairly. A timely “thank you” can be more motivating than a quarterly bonus.

11. Conduct Thoughtful Exit Interviews

When employees leave, treat it as an opportunity to learn. Keep interviews confidential and use the insights to improve management practices and culture.

12. Provide Leadership Development

Train managers to lead, not just supervise. Leadership development programs help shift mindsets from “command and control” to “coach and empower.” This transformation has a direct impact on morale and retention.

13. Adopt Soft Leadership Principles

Today’s workforce, largely millennials and Gen Z, value collaboration over hierarchy. Soft leadership focuses on partnership, mutual respect, and shared purpose, rather than rigid top-down control.

The Bigger Picture: HR’s Role

Mercer’s global research highlights five key priorities for organizations:

  • Build diverse talent pipelines

  • Embrace flexible work models

  • Design compelling career paths

  • Simplify HR processes

  • Redefine the value HR brings

The challenge? Employers and employees often view these priorities differently. Bridging that perception gap is just as important as bridging the relational gap between leaders and staff.

Treat Employees Like Associates, Not Just Staff

When you treat employees like partners, they bring their best selves to work. HR leaders must develop strategies to keep talent engaged, empowered, and prepared for the future.

Organizational success starts with people, always. Build the relationship with your team first, and the results will follow.

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Entrepreneurs

What Makes an Entrepreneurial Leader? Traits of the World’s Best Innovators

Inside the mindset of entrepreneurial leaders who transform risk, passion, and vision into world-changing results.

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entrepreneurial leadership skills and traits
Image Credit: Midjourney

When you think of Richard Branson (Virgin Group), Bill Gates (Microsoft), Steve Jobs (Apple), Rupert Murdoch (News Corporation), and Ted Turner (CNN), one thing becomes clear: they are not just entrepreneurs, they are entrepreneurial leaders. (more…)

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