See Things Differently

Find out what can happen when you open your mind and adjust your focus.

Harness the Power to See Things Differently to Enhance both Relationships and Goal Achievement

In today’s workplace, working together and getting things done efficiently is crucial. Using critical thinking skills to see things differently is like a superpower that helps people succeed.

It’s not just about being creative. Being open to adjust your perspective or focus, and being able to see new sides to an issue is a powerful tool that improves relationships and helps teams in achieving their goals.

First let’s work on helping your mind to see thing differently.

Try the Focus Exercise below.

Think about a new stressful situation or problem at work. What recent issue are you facing that needs to be resolved?

When you’re focused on a problem, and not getting anywhere, try this exercise. It will change the way you think when you return to the problem.

The Old Cliché: Think Outside the Box

What can we do to increase our abilities to See Things Differently?

Here are three exercises to work with critical thinking skills to increase our abilities to see the world differently:

1. Study an object until you find out a few facts about it that you didn’t know before.
2. Choose a word (random or specific) and list 5 ways in which that word relates to your life.
3. List 10 things you need to consider before making any decision.

Now let’s turn these three exercises toward work:

1. Study an element of your “challenging situation/problem” to discover something new about it.
2. Use a solution word and draw relationships between it and the problem.
3. Identify the considerations that must be taken in decisions relating to this problem?

Building Better Relationships

In any successful workplace, strong connections between people are really important. This includes relationships with colleagues, team members, and leaders. Seeing things differently is a path towards helping to improve relationships, especially if it leads people to understand each other better, feel more empathetic, and work together more effectively.

Imagine a situation where a team has a tough project to work on. Each team member has their own way of looking at things. Instead of thinking of these differences as problems, the team sees them as chances to learn and grow. By looking at things differently together, they can handle challenges in a complete way, combining all their different ideas. This doesn’t just make the team closer, but it also makes the overall work experience more enjoyable and valuable.

The value in “See Things Differently” extends beyond the individual.

A flexible mind is a powerful force that can enhance relationships, break down communication barriers, align teams with common goals, and nurture a culture of continuous improvement.

Organizations that champion this mindset not only create a more vibrant and harmonious workplace but also position themselves for sustained success in a rapidly evolving business landscape.

This content is a part of our Improving Communications curriculum. If you’re looking for ways to improve your communication skills, register for one of our public classes.

Other Resources:

The Power of Perspective

4 Most Effective Ways Leaders Solve Problems

Photo credits to “Carlos ZGZ”