Just not getting it…

I came across a poster some time ago (I think on /.) that had an interesting signature. It read something along the lines of:

When someone says: Lead, follow or get out of the way, get in the way!

I remember thinking at the time that the poster could likely use some more experience in the real world and that (s)he suffered from a fundamental misunderstanding of how the world works. I was thinking that if you are ever in the above situation where something important is going on, or there is an emergency, getting in the way is the absolute last thing that you should do. I felt that situations like that are perfect times to apply the Universal Assumptionassume that they know something that you do not.

Now, it is a year or so later, and I have concluded… That I was exactly right. There is no reason why anyone in their right mind, when faced with a Lead, follow or get out of the way scenario, would assume that becoming an impediment would be the right thing to do.

Now, there are times when you should get in the way. But the prerequisite for that is actually knowing what is going on, knowing a better solution, and having a means to implement the solution. Otherwise, getting in the way is a sure way to get knocked on your ass.