Perspective Changes Everything ..

As we grow in our careers, learning the perspectives of stakeholders, colleagues, customers and partners strengthens understanding and defines a pathway towards empathy. Empathy is a catalyst for innovation, action and change. It's an equalizer that tales ego out and allows for the best ideas to win. So, seeking and gaining perspective will help us individually, organizationally or any situation.

Perspective is not simple. It involves experiences, assumptions and momentary state of mind. At workplace, all of us come from various backgrounds, cultures, countries, languages and experiences. So, our view of how we see things differs drastically from another colleague. So, if we are not mindful and open our minds to asking the right questions, we may become trapped in our own little perspective and not able to appreciate another thought process or idea. It can lead to conflict and unproductive discussions. Hence, as professionals we would need to learn seeking out perspectives.

"Perspective is the way we "uniquely" view the world. It comes from our personal point of view and is shaped by life experiences, values, current state of mind and assumptions we bring into a situation". Some associates tend to always be the "go-to" individuals and it's because they have open perspective. Great associates, managers, leaders not only know how to place situations into perspective but can through strong communication and empathy bring everyone together for alignment and great outcomes.

Perspective seeking is about discussing thoughts, feelings of a triggering event. For a very long time, I would get very upset when reach late to a place or go later than our given time. I have grown up in a culture where value of everyone's time must be respected. So, I would rather start early and reach a particular place in advance over being late and feeling bad and apologize. I felt late to a place or late on a committed date would impact my credibility. I would often work double harder in order to meet a certain deadline. I would get upset with anyone who did not hold the same standards when it came to time. This would lead to confrontation. I could never understand the casual perspective of time of another individual. However, over time I have gained much wider perspectives that different cultures do not hold the same standard. I also realized that my time standards could be very stringent and harsh on myself causing anxiety and worry about what someone else might think if I get delayed, it will hurt my credibility. I have learned to be more emphatic to myself on these aspects. Gaining these perspectives made me feel much better and wiser.

How does one grow through perspective?

  • Being empathetic - By putting one is someone else's shoes, you can better comprehend what the other person may be feeling, thinking and experiencing. This leads to a more compassionate and empathetic response.
  • Deep listening - Listening to understand and not to respond. Listening to grasp underlying emotions and what the other person is saying or not saying or non-verbal cues helps gain deeper perspective. It is being truly and authentically curious about hearing and learning another perspective. It is not about sharing your own or influencing a thought pattern.
  • Openness - Having an open and non-judgmental mindset is not easy. How does one suspend personal biases and preconceptions to genuinely consider another perspective that differs from own?  Seeking those diverse perspectives can be scary but it is essential in helping uncover potential blindspots or new things to consider.  

Finally, how does one act based on the new perspectives. What does it tell you about each person you spoke to and how they see their world? What will be the impact of a decision or situation on them? How can you communicate back to them using the information they gave about their perspective? How does these differing viewpoints contribute to the understanding and help in your decision making? 

Additionally one needs to consider if they are having the bigger picture or smaller perspective. Is there any information that you provide that will help widen their perspective?   If yes, what change does this create to their point of view ?

 

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