It’s a Matter of View(point)

By Vicki Wrona, PMP:

Recently, I was at a neighbor’s house looking out their front door at our street and at my house, a perspective I normally don’t have. Even though I walk my dog by their house frequently, I don’t sit on their front porch and just look. I was struck by the different views they see. I live on a street with curves and bends, so every house truly has a very different perspective than another. I didn’t appreciate just how much until this visit.

I could see how easily they can see things I would miss. And how they would notice things I would not, and vice versa.

The same is true with projects or multi-functional teams of any kind. We all work next to each other on a project or on (hopefully) aligned goals, but even though our paths cross daily and our work intersects, the world we see is very different from each view. No wonder we disagree so often.

Part of this is because many people are not very good at communicating or explaining to others in terms so the OTHER PERSON will understand their perspective or reasoning. The other part is because those receiving the message are too busy or distracted to listen well.

This is a simple breakdown of the communication model, one as old as time. We won’t solve it, but we need to remember it exists to make an effort to compensate for its shortcomings in our daily lives and at work. We all know this, but a periodic reminder doesn’t hurt….like when I visited my neighbor.