Key points

It's too late when we realize we missed a window for preventing a problem or seizing an opportunity.

Of course we should've been more proactive, but the lesson is lost on us the next time we need it.

Proactivity—initiating and accomplishing self-chosen changes—is risky but highly benefitical over time.

We usually know when we've missed a crucial window to prevent a problem or seize an opportunity. Sadly, it’s too late. The standard regret—that we should've been more proactive—offers a valuable but quickly forgotten lesson.

Starting a task or changing direction sooner rather than later is the minimum standard for being proactive. Deeper, full-fledged proactivity is far more profound: It is the unique class of forward-looking behaviors that create the futures we need and wa

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