This is a very, very important concept. Women and Gammas tend to be unaware of the distinction:
“I’m gonna give you a great quote that Ozzie Newsome said to me at the Senior Bowl,” [Oakland General Manager Mike] Mayock said. “I’ve known Ozzie forever. He congratulated me on the job. I said, ‘Do you have any advice?’ He said, ‘Mike, having an opinion is a hell of a lot easier than having to make a decision.’ I thought that was so well said back then. And then I really felt the weight of it last night.”
One of the biggest challenges facing any Bravo or Delta promoted to a leadership position is understanding that it is no longer sufficient to have an opinion. Having an opinion is easy, since there are no negative consequences associated with it even when one is completely wrong. But leadership necessarily requires making decisions… and being responsible for the consequences of those decisions.
It’s always amusing to see how rapidly even the most-opinionated people retreat from their opinions when they are informed that their advice will be scrupulously followed, but they will be held responsible for the consequences.
UPDATE: a question is asked.
Who do Gammas promote? Do Gammas tend to promote other Gammas in an organization? Or is it a mix of Alphas, Betas, Deltas, etc., just as long as the Gammas get to boss them around?
Gammas promote women. It’s always Gammas arguing for MOAR WOMEN in STEM, MOAR WOMEN in gaming, MOAR WOMEN in the chess club. That’s because they are always desperate for more exposure to women.