Few things come as a complete surprise. In most cases, we get signals, hints that something is amiss before it breaks down.
The trouble is usually when we ignore the signals, or subject them to our own timeline. We forget that, wishing for the best is not the way to solve many problems.
We can start seeing real change when we can recognize more of the signals for what they are, and act as soon as we can.
It’s easy to talk, even to give advice to others. The hard thing is doing what we preach, and to be consistent in our practice.
Part of the challenge is that things don’t change in isolation, and it’s difficult to accurately judge what we will do in a situation we haven’t been in.
So the hard work is working on ourselves. To practice, fail, and practice again. For while we’re imperfect beings, we can be less so every day.
Every process comes at a cost. If democratic, it comes at the costs of the minority, if autocratic, at the cost of the majority.
These are extremes, but it’s worth considering the impact of our processes on the people we seek to serve.
In the movie Judge, the judge is accused of killing a man, and he has to be tried in the same court where he served for so many years.
As I watch this, I can’t help thinking how hard it is for us to step into the shoes of the person on the other side of the table. We justify our actions, but find those of the other person unreasonable. Yet, even in situations where the rules are clear, we behave differently based on whether we are the ones recommending or approving an idea. The same things that we put in place to ensure that we make good decisions, are the things that we resist when we are recommending an idea.
These are precisely the moments that help us appreciate that we are human, but also that no process is final. As we engage and change our perspective with a different seat on the table, it is an opportunity to improve.
And that is ok. Most of the times, not knowing is not fatal. And acknowledging that we don’t know opens the door to learning, to start understanding when we choose to ask instead.
Asking also helps me to understand it better from other people, and may help improve the message.
Random Walks 