Liz, a supervisor on the team I lead, commented to a person on her team that they needed to create a case for their best next step. I loved the idea.

What’s a case?

The earliest uses of the word “case” come from French and Latin. The word, a long time ago, generally meant “a chance, occasion, situation, opportunity” and in Latin the word’s general meaning meant “to fall” as in “to fall in place.” I, very generally, see the word as “to create conditions to pounce when preparation meets opportunity.”

If that’s a useful definition, the implication is that we should spend our time in preparation so that we are in the best position possible to meet opportunity.

Put another way: If you want to sustain yourself with a career in music, show up and act like someone who already sustains themselves with a career in music.

Thanks for the inspiration, Liz!

Note for managers: create conditions for your teams to do the work of someone who is in a higher salary band or a higher promotion. As much as possible, give your team opportunities to stretch themselves and become who they believe themselves to be.

A gardener makes the conditions right for a seed to germinate and reach its fullest potential.