Understanding Different Perspectives

Everyone has a different perspective on things. One important way to being a successful communicator is getting a handle on what the other person's perspective is. For instance, take the boss of an office or even an entire organization. Sure, they make more money than most; have more authority; have more people to order around; have a better parking space; and get to rub elbows with other executives and big-wigs that most will never know or even meet. The boss seems to have everything going for them. After all, they are in-charge. Yet the boss has a perspective, too, that may vary from ones others might have.

They, too, have a boss they need to please. They, too, are held accountable for what they do and how well they do it. They, too, strive each day to make the best of their circumstance even though, in some ways, it is different than that of the people they oversee. They, too, are vulnerable. Perhaps in some ways even more than others. After all, my guess is a lot more people want their job than the jobs people under them have. In doing their job, the boss then, has the dual challenge of doing what they do well and satisfying their own boss, while trying to coax good performances out of those who report to them. All this is not to feel sorry for the boss, only just use them as an example of the different perspectives a person can and does have.

If a communicator can take the time to look at life or even situations through the eyes of another person, then making a connection is made easier simply because you have a better understanding of their likes and dislikes, fears, hopes, ambitions, and current challenges. This may not get you to like someone you did not like before, but it will help enormously as you try to craft talking points for your interactions with them and shape what you either have to or want to say in ways to which they can better relate. Learning about different perspectives is not always an easy thing to do, but when it comes to communication, to this day it continues to be among the best weapons a communicator can have.