"Walking Point" in business and leadership - the explanation

“Walking Point”, as described in “Executive Courage - Sometimes You Have to Walk Point”, implies an aggressive, decisive, courageous, and accountable leader who doesn’t shy away from facing the problem head on, making the critical decisions, and accepting accountability for the outcome.

In business, Walking Point refers to the numerous executive actions that require the courage, stamina, and will of the executive that remind me of the occasional decision to walk point in the mountains and rice paddies of Vietnam when contrary to standard operating procedures, the platoon commander must take the point due to the exigencies of the tactical situation. Walking point in the corner office carries its own risk. The risk may not be as lethal as in combat, but it is real. The risk in the corner office revolves around the will to make unpopular decisions - sometimes based on nothing more than intuition, the necessity to move from stasis to change, and the courage to remove the marginal, yet popular performers and those that affect the chemistry of the organization.

Walking Point is taking charge. It involves trusting one’s instincts, a propensity to will or determine an outcome through words and actions, a poorly developed sense of fear and risk, and an insatiable intention to be the best.

TAKEN FROM THE INTRODUCTION TO “EXECUTIVE COURAGE - SOMETIMES YOU HAVE TO WALK POINT.”