|
|
|
|
I had the good fortune to travel to a few places throughout the U.S. this past month. I realize what a privilege this is, to be able to travel, and to have the opportunity to talk with different people in different places. It’s a deeply rewarding part of my job to have conversations with people across the country each week and hear about their work, successes, and challenges. Cultures, personalities, attitudes, formalities, norms... these all shine through in these exchanges and the sociologist in me can’t get enough of it.
And as I was traveling this past month, I noticed (or made myself notice as I’m working to be more aware of this) the biases I showed up with each place I went – both positive and negative. I worried about political leanings, I wondered about how welcoming each place would be, and I was at times judgmental about customs, food and culture. But when I checked myself on these judgments and solely focused on the experiences and interactions I was having with people at each place I went, every conversation I had was a delight or at least a learning.
I know for many of us Covid has restricted who we interact with and how frequently we have the opportunity to engage outside our comfort circles. For many, restricting interaction with those different from ourselves is a choice, and for many that interaction is
restricted due to limited opportunities. My hope for this country as we begin to re-engage is for people to challenge themselves to step out of our comfort zones and be intentional about interacting with people and places that are unfamiliar.
As we interact, and expose ourselves to new people and places, we will learn phenomenal things about each other that will surprise us, delight us, and we’ll begin to wear down our preconceptions if we allow it.
This past month has solidified something I knew I needed to do, but often don’t put energy towards, and that is being aware of
my preconceptions.
Below are five ways I’m working to be more intentional here:
- Pay attention: What thoughts are getting in the way for me to more objectively experience this moment?
- Be present: Am I listening more to my thoughts or to the person I’m speaking with?
- Suspend judgment: What thoughts are putting an inaccurate filter on this moment?
- Sit with discomfort: What physical or mental characteristics do I notice that are making me uncomfortable?
- Be open: How can I think about this moment from another perspective?
I hope you'll join me in this journey.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
READING
- 7 Soft Tools to Break Hard Preconceptions (No Hammer Needed) – “To have a preconception in the literal sense means that you have an opinion before you learn or experience something; in design, it is an opinion you have before you create something.”
- How Preconceived Notions Hijack Your Mind – Great read that overviews the two cognitive mechanisms for decision making, how we base majority of our decisions using the energy-efficient shortcut mechanism and what we can do to avoid making decisions on false judgments.
|
|
|
|
|
ANNOUNCEMENTS
- We're Hiring! Check out our current open positions and please share in your networks.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
LET'S CONNECT
If you would like to contribute to content or would like us to include your resources in the future, please reach out to info@resultslab.org and we will connect with you!
For more resources and updates, follow ResultsLab on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter
|
|
|
|
|
ResultsLab is a woman-owned social enterprise that propels organizations, communities, and networks to the next level of impact through quality design and effective use of data. We are reinventing impact management
by providing strategic design and capacity building for data informed decision-making to organizations and networks that exist to drive change for our communities.
|
|
|
|
|
