Add perspective by consciously not knowing the detail

When I trained as a coach, one core element was learning to listen for CONTEXT, rather than CONTENT.

Today a contextual observation that comes both from listening for Context, as well as the additional clarity that can come when you simply don’t know the content. the detail.

First, last week on a road trip, I met for the first time since the pandemic started with a client I worked with extensively a few years ago. We have always stayed in touch (as I do with almost all my clients, they may not be “active” clients, but they are always clients!), but naturally, while I understand them and their organisation deeply, I am at some distance from the current details. One thing we remarked upon as I listened to their updates and a few key “top of mind” areas, was that my distance (literally and metaphorically!) was of value in then being able to listen, observe, then reflect and (sometimes) offer a different perspective.

Second, a few days later, this week I read an update from the leadership of a large company I have worked with for some time. Within that update was a very positive forecast for the future driven by external economic and fiscal/political drivers in key markets. I thought back nearly a year ago, around 2-3 months into the pandemic, when, in discussion with one senior leader in that company, I mused that, come 2021, there would be huge opportunities for them driven by massive shifts in political direction to reflate economies worldwide.

Now, I am sure that the leadership team in this company did also see this coming at the same time or earlier than I could, yet at the same time, knowing the company well and the areas they operate in, I have the sense that I was able to see this biggest of big pictures more easily than I otherwise could as an outsider due to the fact that I am not party to or involved in the detail of the business.

So, these two brief experiences I am reflecting lead me to feel that you can “add perspective by consciously not knowing the detail”.

Consider then, when you need to know the detail, the CONTENT, and when, as a leader, it is more important for you to stay focussed on the bigger picture, the CONTEXT.