I’ve been writing about how solid the world looks to each of us.
It looks like the world is solid, and “out there.”
But it’s really just projected on the “screen” inside our brains.
“What is real? How do you define real? If real is what you can feel, what you can smell, what you can taste and see, then real is simply electrical signals interpreted by your brain.” — Morpheus to Neo, The Matrix
Each of us gets inputs through our senses and create a model of the world from it. And then, based on our culture and history we make up stories about that world and live within those stories. What should be and what shouldn’t. What’s good and what’s bad. What we can change and what we can’t.
We are often blind to those stories, because they seem so obvious to us. But those stories are different for everyone.
Different Worlds
“How can you possibly believe that?”
Have you ever asked that question? Perhaps at Thanksgiving dinner after one too many glasses of wine?
The person you asked it to is just as convinced that they are right as you are. That their world is the “real” one.
What if neither of you has any idea about the “real” world?
The Elephant and the Wise Men
Remember the story of the blindfolded wise men and the elephant, each touching a different part?
What if that’s your leadership team?
What if you started getting curious rather than trying to convince everyone that your version of the world is the right one?
What if you saw that no one is ever “wrong,” they just have a different perspective?
What Kind of Team are You Creating?
If you had the exact same lived experience as your coworker, you would see the world in exactly the same way, and tell the exact same stories about that world.
In fact, as leaders we often instinctively seek out people who agree with us. Whose stories are as similarly to ours as possible.
But what if you actively sought out people with both different expertise (finance, sales, product) AND different perspectives?
How much more valuable would your team be then? Because you would now have more data rather than only perspectives that confirm yours.
When Your Team Sees This, Everything Will Change
Imagine how your team meetings might change if everyone on your team understood this.
If everyone was unattached to their own view.
If everyone understood that everyone ELSE had value to add.
If everyone was curious about finding that value, and determined to hear even from the quiet folks.
What could that mean for your performance? For your results?
Want to Look at This More Deeply?
I’ve seen this dramatically impact both a team’s relationships and its effectiveness.
Send me a DM if you want to learn more.