Take action…

Take action...

"The greatest wisdom not applied to action and behavior is meaningless data." - Peter Drucker

This is my favorite quote about data. As I always tell my clients, "Don't collect data you're not going to use." And by "use," I really mean "take action on." Putting the data into a report and saying "Isn't that interesting?" is not really using it.

So I was pleased to see this quote come across my transom:

"Life rewards action, not intelligence." - James Clear

This is a great rephrase of Drucker. You can be super-smart (i.e., have all the data) but if you don't take action, there is no reward.

So whether it's the data in your association database or the data of your life, are you acting on it? Or are you just "collecting interesting information"?

Wes's Wednesday Wisdom Archives

Do we have access to that data?

October 22, 2025

Do we have access to that data? When I work with my clients on a […]

The three “buckets” of contact data

October 8, 2025

The three “buckets” of contact data Broadly speaking, when collecting data on contacts (individuals or organizations), […]

Balancing what is possible with what is realistic

October 1, 2025

Balancing what is possible with what is realistic When I work with clients on technology […]

“Humans want to be surrounded by beauty.”

September 24, 2025

“Humans want to be surrounded by beauty.” “Humans want to be surrounded by beauty.” – […]

Data managers vs data consumers

September 17, 2025

Data managers vs data consumers When I work with clients on any data management project, […]

Another universal truth

September 10, 2025

Another universal truth There are many universal truths in data management. Some examples: You will […]

Don’t miss this year’s DAN Science Fair!

September 3, 2025

Don’t miss this year’s DAN Science Fair! I’m taking a break from my weekly tips […]

Just start. And it’s never done.

August 27, 2025

Just start. And it’s never done. Last week I had the opportunity to lead a […]

Don’t ask if you’re not going to answer!

August 20, 2025

Don’t ask if you’re not going to answer! In the past week, on three different […]

Seek forgiveness rather than permission

August 6, 2025

Seek forgiveness rather than permission “Seek forgiveness, not permission.” I can’t remember when I first […]

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Scroll to Top