Action versus Inaction: Don’t Judge a Fish by Its Flight

We live in a world that worships action.

People applaud hustle, speed, initiatives, “quick wins,” immediate responses, and visible results. In the modern mindset, action equals progress, and progress equals value. So naturally, when we see someone else not taking action on a matter that feels urgent to us, we become uncomfortable. Sometimes we become critical.

We may even label them as:

• careless
• irresponsible
• lazy
• indifferent
• “not serious”
• “not proactive”

But often, the truth is far more simple—and far more mature:

They are taking action. Just not in your domain.

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The Hidden Trap: Assuming Your Domain is the Universal Domain

Each of us operates inside a “domain.”

A domain can be:

• a profession (scientist, businessman, teacher, doctor)
• an organisational role (manager, supervisor, operator, auditor)
• a personal role (father, mother, caretaker, student)
• a functional domain (design, procurement, finance, QA, maintenance)

Within our domain, our priorities become crystal clear. The problems feel real. The urgency feels genuine. And the action needed looks obvious.

Then we look at someone from another domain and wonder:

“Why are they not taking action?”

But this question itself carries a silent assumption:

“This issue is important in my domain; therefore it must be equally important in everyone’s domain.”

That is where misunderstanding begins.

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What Looks Like Inaction May Be Responsible Action

Let us say a technical person expects procurement to act fast.

Procurement may be waiting—not because they don’t care—but because:

• rules must be followed
• finance approval must be obtained
• multiple vendors must be compared
• compliance documentation is mandatory

To the technical domain, this delay looks like inaction.

To the procurement domain, this delay is actually responsibility.

Similarly:

• Finance may look slow to Engineering.
• Engineering may look “overthinking” to Production.
• QA may look “blocking progress” to everyone else.
• Management may look “detached” to the ground team.

But each domain has its own ethics, risk boundaries, and definition of action.

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Why We Criticize Others: Because We See Only One Part of Reality

When we criticize, we are rarely seeing the whole picture.

We are viewing reality through a single lens:

• our experience
• our responsibilities
• our pressures
• our deadlines

This makes our judgement biased. Not intentionally. Just naturally.

It is like a man holding a hammer thinking:

“Every problem is a nail.”

The other person may not be holding a hammer at all.

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Horses and Rabbits: The Wisdom of Not Comparing

A horse and a rabbit are both animals. Both can run. Both can move fast.

But their nature is different.

• A horse is built for endurance and long-distance strength.
• A rabbit is built for quick bursts and instant escape.

If you ask the rabbit to carry loads like a horse, it will fail. If you ask the horse to jump like a rabbit, it will look inefficient.

Yet both are perfect in their own design.

In the same way:

You cannot compare different people in different domains and expect them to act in the same manner.

Because each person is tuned to:

• different incentives
• different knowledge systems
• different risk exposure
• different performance measurement
• different responsibilities

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Action is Not Always Visible

Another subtle issue is that we consider action only when it is visible.

But many forms of action are silent:

• thinking deeply
• evaluating risk
• waiting for the right moment
• prioritizing something unseen
• solving an internal issue
• protecting the system from failure

Sometimes inaction is not laziness. It is wisdom.

A surgeon does not start cutting just because the patient is waiting. A pilot does not take off just because passengers are impatient. A responsible person does not act fast; he acts right.

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What We Call “Action” May Actually Be Ego

Many times, we demand action not because it is needed, but because our ego needs control.

We want the world to move according to our mental plan.

So we become irritated when others don’t cooperate with our timeline.

But true maturity is this:

Not everything needs to move at the speed of your mind.

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The Real Solution: Cross-Domain Respect

When we respect other domains, collaboration becomes natural.

Instead of saying:

“They are not doing anything.”

We start asking:

“What constraints are they working under?”

Instead of complaining:

“They don’t understand urgency.”

We begin communicating:

“Let me explain why this is urgent in my domain.”

This shift alone prevents countless conflicts in organisations and families.

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A Practical Insight: Replace Criticism with Coordination

Here is a simple rule:

If it involves another domain, assume there is an unseen complexity.

So the better approach is:

1. Clarify the goal (What outcome do we need?)
2. Understand their constraints (What rules/risks bind them?)
3. Agree on priorities (What comes first and why?)
4. Align on timeline (What is realistic, not emotional?)
5. Define interfaces (Who provides what inputs?)

Once this is done, “inaction” disappears—because both sides now see the complete system.

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Conclusion: Everyone is Doing Their Work

In a functioning world, everyone is working.

The problem is not that people don’t act.

The problem is that:

• we expect action in our style
• we expect urgency in our priorities
• we measure effort using our ruler

But the world does not run on one ruler.

The world runs on different domains—different strengths—different purposes.

So the next time you feel irritated about someone’s inaction, pause and remember:

You cannot compare horses and rabbits.
Each one is running its own race.