Assume Makes an...
.. ass out of you and me is how the saying ends.
Our lives are governed by assumptions. We “assume” something will go a certain way (especially if we’ve planned it). We “assume” that certain views are inherently “right” (or “wrong” depending on our cultural, social and educational background. We “assume” we understand what the person means.
As Robert McCloskey (and, apparently, Alan Greenspan) said, “I know that you believe you understand what you think I said, but I’m not sure you realise that what you heard is not what I meant.” We tend to think we know what another person means or wants, but this may not always be the case.
I recently attended a wedding reception during the Christmas season. Luckily, we were the first to arrive at the venue to find that the tables had been decorated with a Christmas theme. This wasn’t surprising; after all, it was the Christmas season. What became clear, however, was that the message that the event was a wedding reception rather than a Christmas celebration either hadn’t been delivered or understood clearly. It was no problem to remove the decorations from the tables, and we all had a laugh about the “crossed wires” that had caused it all.
It got me thinking, though. How many times have we as managers either been guilty of assuming something was the case without clarifying it, or of assuming that our message to others was clear? We’ve given an instruction to someone, only to find that when the task was finished, it “wasn’t what we wanted”.
It all boils down to communication – one of the most important management skills and one on which I find I still need to improve. One of the best ways to make sure it’s been “well received” is to get the other person to repeat what they understand the task to be. Look at the restaurant staff who take your meal order. At the end, they repeat it back to you to make sure everything has been correctly recorded.
I constantly need to remind myself that what I say may not be what the other person understands. I’ve learnt not to assume that everything will happen as people say it will, or as I expect it to, so making allowances for miscommunication or misunderstanding should be just as natural.
More work needed, as they say!
I have spent more than half my life delivering change in different world markets from the most developed to “emerging” economies. With more than 20 years in international financial services around the world running different operations and lending businesses, I started my own Consultancy to provide solutions for improving performance, productivity and risk management. I work with individuals, small businesses, charities, quoted companies and academic institutions across the world. An international speaker, trainer, author and fund-raiser, I can be contacted by email. My website provides a full picture of my portfolio of services. For strategic questions that you should be asking yourself, follow me at @wkm610.
Labels: Leadership, Teamwork
posted by William Martin @ 09:42
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