Let’s begin this article with a simple definition of our main term “Proactive.” Being proactive means that you make things happen, instead of waiting for them to happen to you. Being active means “To do something.” The prefix pro means “before.” So, if you are being proactive, you are going to be ready before something happens….

As you all know it is always best to be prepared for all possibilities as often as possible and as best you can.  This is of course the motto of the Boy Scouts, something I had drilled into me thousands of times during my time in that organization as a child and teenager. At that time being prepared meant having all the right equipment for whatever we were doing, camping, cooking, hiking, and so on. I did learn good survival skills in the mountains, how to dress for the weather, how to make a fire with sticks and no matches, how to tell the time by the sun and shadows, and how to orient with a compass in order to not get lost among many other useful things. But of course we know that being prepared is way more than these skills, or at least it should be. Let us take a moment and consider what it actually means to be prepared or rather what it does not mean first.