Leading Thoughts: Perspective and the eclipse

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Perspective and the eclipse

When we are born, our view of the world is as small as our bodies. The time-honored game of peekaboo works in part because babies are still learning that something doesn’t cease to exist just because it’s out of sight. As babies, everything is about us—our need for food, sleep, touch, stimulation and learning how our bodies function. Empathy and compassion are typically in short supply because what’s important is just these needs. 

As we grow, we learn about concepts such as feelings and sharing. Taking rides in a stroller, on a bike seat or in a car or airplane broadens our perspective. We meet new people and animals, realizing there’s more to life than our few caregivers and maybe the cat or dog we see every day.

That process of learning and gaining a broader perspective hopefully lasts our entire lives. Sometimes, our learning is accelerated by our motivations, interactions and external events.

The eclipse helped many of us think more about the moon, the sun and the solar system. The sun, the star at the center of our solar system, is just one of at least 200 billion stars in the Milky Way galaxy, which is itself part of a universe made up of billions of galaxies.

If you think about all that, a baby—or an adult for that matter—is quite small. What we can see at any given time is small. It’s all a matter of perspective.

I heard someone say recently that an older CEO can’t comprehend or relate to young workers at their companies these days. I don’t agree, and not just because I’m a middle-aged CEO.

An acquaintance told me that, when it comes to interaction with different races, she doesn’t see color. I know it was meant in the spirit of stating that she treats everyone the same and does not discriminate. For a person of color who has felt treated differently than white individuals, the “I don’t see color” statement can seem like a way of minimizing their experiences. Perhaps not seeing color, if true, is a privilege to which not everyone gets access. 

The point, however, is that both statements only ring true from a certain perspective that is centered on the speaker’s experience.

Whether we are talking about a CEO attempting to better understand how younger generations want to be treated or someone who grew up in a city seeking to understand what it would have been like to grow up in a rural environment, it takes an openness and effort to gain understanding.

Some things—like the eclipse—can help us see the world in a bigger way and realize that everything is not always about us. What else helps?

Travel, taking in an exchange student, reading, education, attending a talk and seeking conversations with a variety of people, some of whom look different and come from different backgrounds, are the kinds of activities that help broaden perspectives. We take those perspectives, blend them with facts as we understand them and form opinions. 

I’m a big believer in facts. As a team of workers, a government body or a society, we should strive to develop and understand a common set of facts. They help us make good business and policy decisions. 

How people look at things, including their experiences, also matters.

If the eclipse helped some of us to take a broader view of our world, we have both learned important scientific facts and gained new and useful perspective. If our goal is to lead and influence others, the compassion and empathy that comes from these perspectives are essential. We aren’t babies anymore.

Thank you for reading. I can be reached at [email protected].

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