Veni Vidi Vici

 Translation for those of you who didn’t have to suffer through four years of high school Latin – I came. I saw. I conquered.  These words were originally uttered by Roman leader,  Julius Caesar in a message sent to the Roman Senate on declaring victory in a battle in Asia. Brief and to the point – yet packed with power! 

This came to mind when I discovered Robert Hruzak’s Blog, Middle Zone Musings. He ran a contest (something bloggers often do to increase traffic, build their network, spark creativity, etc.) to see who could write the best six-word story. The link will take you to his post with all the collected entries. He wound up with 400-plus possibilities from 70 different bloggers.

But, I think that Caesar’s  three-word story, “Veni. Vidi. Vici.” beats out all of them for brevity, impact and action. The English translation even meets the six-word limit.

The message is pertinent to a key leadership trait, follow-through. So many times business or community leaders will show up (I came) and tour a site. They’ll meet ‘n greet informally, and maybe even participate (I saw) in some of the daily routines. But, once they leave the scene the status quo remains. Of course, this isn’t always a negative. But, when subordinates expect some help and hope for change, they need leaders who will take action (I conquered) with  courage and conviction.

Without the follow-through, there is no story. There’s little or no impact. Showing up (I came) and observing (I saw) are only two thirds of the formula.  Action (I conquered) is required to complete the equation.