I’ve been thinking a lot about the idea of going “upstream.”
Recently I’ve been reading Upstream by Chip Heath, which explores how leaders often spend enormous time reacting to problems instead of preventing them.
The concept shows up everywhere once you start noticing it.
Oddly enough, it even shows up in our office elevator.
Funds For Learning’s offices are on the second floor, and our elevator is… let’s say it’s not the fastest machine in the building.
Most mornings when I arrive, I take the elevator up to the second floor. When the doors open and I step out, about half the time I push the “1” button before I walk away.
Why?
Because I know someone else is coming behind me.
Everyone is arriving at roughly the same time in the morning, and everyone needs to go up. If the elevator stays on the second floor, the next person has to wait for it to be called and travel back down.
But if I send it back to the first floor when I get off, the next person walks up and the elevator is already there waiting.
It’s a small thing. It takes one second. But it saves time for the next person — and the person after that.
Truthfully, I only do it about half the time. I should do it every time.
The same idea works in reverse at the end of the day. If you’re leaving the building and not sending the elevator back up, you’re setting up the next person to wait longer than they need to.
It’s such a small example, but it illustrates a bigger leadership idea.
Small Upstream Moves Add Up
When we talk about “going upstream,” it’s easy to imagine large systems and complex interventions.
But upstream thinking often shows up in very small moments.
Leaving something a little better for the person behind you.
Removing friction before someone else experiences it.
Taking one extra second to make the next step easier for someone else.
None of these actions are dramatic. But when they become habits across a team, they compound. The workplace becomes just a little smoother. People waste less time. Small frustrations disappear before they accumulate.
Culture Is Built in Tiny Decisions
Leaders often talk about culture as if it’s built through big gestures or sweeping initiatives. In reality, culture is mostly built through tiny decisions repeated over and over again.
Things like:
- returning the elevator to the floor where people will need it next
- resetting a room after a meeting
- leaving clearer notes for the next person picking up the work
- anticipating the friction someone else might encounter
These are not policies. They’re habits. And habits spread.
A Leadership Challenge
I am challenging myself to do the elevator thing every single time.
Not half the time. Not when I remember. Every time.
Because if something that small can save a little time and frustration for someone else, it’s worth doing.
And maybe the bigger lesson is this:
Leadership isn’t only about solving big problems.
Sometimes it’s about noticing the tiny ones — and quietly removing them before anyone else has to deal with them.
All it takes is pressing the button for the next person.
