Getting Ready in the Dark

5:38 a.m.   Pitch dark outside, pitch dark inside.  For fear of disrupting the remaining household's slumber, I don't turn the lights on. Just try to match socks with no light.  Good luck distinguishing between dark blue and navy blue.   WHERE IS THE BELT???!!!   Wait a minute, where did I put my phone?  I know I put it down here someplace.   And the keys. . .WHERE ARE MY KEYS???!!!

What is taking seeming hours of unnecessary time when there are only minutes to spare. . .and what will probably result in a catastrophic wardrobe mis-match ("What was he thinking when he got dressed this morning?") could be quickly remedied by just a little illumination.

In the workplace of "let's just get it done," illumination is not only helpful, but necessary.  "I don't have time to ask anyone."   "I don't need any outside help."  "I don't want to involve others."        These are all statements of working in the dark;  these are statements of working in isolation.

Working in the dark, or in the isolation of not having enough information results in wasted time ("I can't differentiate between the profitability statements because I don't know what drove the profitability.")  It results in frustration ("WHY DIDN'T ANYBODY TELL ME THERE WAS A POLICY ABOUT BRINGING CATS TO WORK?").  Frankly, it results in the practitioner looking bad ("What was he thinking?).

Beyond taking time to do one's own research, the best way to illumination is to not be an isolationist.  Great work is seldom the result of just one;   great work is often the carefully focused guidance of many.   It is the efforts of a team that bring information, curiosity and points of view to any decision.  All of this information, carefully focused - shines a very bright light on the project at hand.

And the truth of the matter is this:   none of us can really get ready in the dark - eventually we turn the light on anyway.   Illuminating our work  through inquiry and the views of others allows us to "get ready" sooner.

Like it ?  Share it!

My book "Courageous Questions, Confident Leaders" is available on Amazon Kindle.