The stakeholders of your conversation
Very often in conversations we jump to conclusions.
It's an innate bias we have as human beings. We tend to make quick connections between concepts and come to a conclusion that might not be the right one.
It's only one very personal perspective, dictated and filtered by our background, experience and culture.
That's why we are so quick to judge others or to finish their phrases.
What's wrong with that?
For a starter, we assume we are superior to them in some way. That prevents us from listening to them without bias.
Additionally, we are not seeking the truth but confirmation of our own thoughts.
We lack the curiosity that is so necessary to really understand a situation, its circumstances and any consequences of our actions.
As an example, if we are having a meeting with a client, and only we do the talking, assuming we know what they need and want for their project, we are at risk of making a massive mistake.
If we don't explore the situation at 360 degrees we might not be able to uncover the real issues and the consequences of our decisions.
So what can we do differently?
I suggest you approach any conversation as a voyage of discovery, and at the very least, you take into consideration all the voices of possible stakeholders affected by it - these include also the silent ones, like Nature - take a look at the image below.
Look also at factors influencing the conversation - political, economic, technological and so on.
Think about the relationships between these elements.
How do they interact with each other?
What are the causes and consequences of any action taken on each of the elements?
If you don't know the answers to the questions above, ask the person in front of you and listen attentively to their answers.
Just by spending a few minutes looking at a conversation from a different angle, you'll be able to have a much deeper and more informed knowledge of it - which will mean a better, more tailored outcome for you and anyone else involved.
This article was originally written for the Green Gorilla weekly newsletter. If you liked it, subscribe to receive more articles like this and learn how to communicate sustainability better, how to be more productive without selling your soul to the work devil, and how to make an impact in the world. Here is the link: https://newsletter.thegreengorilla.co.uk/