“We’re a DO tank, not a THINK tank.”

I had the great fortune to attend a small gathering hosted by Adam Harrell to discuss voter registration with Stacey Abrams. PLEASE support her organization, Fair Fight Action. Regardless of what side of the aisle you are on politically, fighting for free and fair elections is something I hope we can all agree on.

By the way, if you weren’t aware that I attended that meeting, then we likely aren’t connected on Instagram…I’m using Instagram as a view into the things I’m involved in, be it the daily happenings at Dragon Army, updates on 48in48 and Ripples of Hope, and other various activities I find myself in the middle of. Kind of a daily, live blog kinda thing.

During the meeting, Stacey made this comment about her organization: “We’re a DO tank, not a THINK tank.” She quickly clarified that yes, they do in fact “think”, but they spend most of their time in action, because that is the only way to make progress.

This really resonated with me in terms of how we’re intentionally building Dragon Army. I mostly write on this blog about the planning of the company. How we focus on our Purpose above everything else. The books my leadership team is reading. How our acquisition strategy fits into our plans. Etc.

But 95% of what goes on at the company is the doing. It’s the hard work of building a company. Of delivering for our clients. Of constantly improving the culture (we’re super focused right now on solving the “work-life” balance issues that are inherently difficult in an agency.) Of almost-obsessively focusing on our financial metrics to ensure we’re building a stable, thriving business.

I’ve learned over time that more than anything else, you just have to do the work. Get moving, take action, begin the begin…be a DO tank.