Coordinate and act
I intend to…
Replace requests for permission with declared intent, which keeps ownership with the person while still surfacing the decision.
Borrowed from former US Navy submarine captain David Marquet, in his book Turn the Ship Around! Read the original source.
Ongoing habit · Minutes to start · Anyone on the team can start it
Try this first
Ask people to bring you intended actions, not questions. I intend to, rather than should I.
Use it when
Escalations bottleneck the leader and people wait passively for orders.
Skip it when
The person needs the competence and context to form a sound intent. A novice on a high-stakes call still needs guidance, and irreversible actions may still warrant explicit approval.
How to introduce it
Change the language. Instead of can I do X, people say I intend to do X. Whoever is accountable, the leader or the human owner of an AI action, gets a moment to catch a problem. Ownership stays with the person doing the work. Passive followers become decision-makers who happen to say what they are about to do.
How to show up
Encourage the phrasing and answer it lightly. A nod, a question, an occasional wait. Turn every declaration into an approval and you have taken the ownership straight back.
How long it takes
No setup. It's a change in how decisions are voiced, reinforced in the moment.
What makes it hard
Leaders hear I intend to as a request and start approving or rejecting, which kills it. Intervene only when something is wrong. People trained to ask permission find declaring intent uncomfortable at first, so encourage it out loud.
What it looks like when it's working
People declare and own their decisions and carry the outcomes. Every I intend to still becoming a request for approval means the ownership never moved.
How long until it sticks
Expect a few weeks of use before declaring intent becomes the natural default over asking permission.
How you know it stuck
People say I intend to, own the call, and you step in only when you must.
The idea behind it
Asking permission makes people passive and hands ownership upward. Declaring intent keeps the call with them and still catches mistakes.
Where it comes from
David Marquet's work on submarine command. People (and an agent's human owner) state their intended action rather than asking permission. Surfacing the decision for a quick check while keeping ownership with the doer. Instead of asking permission, crew declared their intent, "I intend to...", which shifted them from passive followers into active decision-makers.
Why it matters for senior teams
It shapes direction and consequential decisions