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Sometimes when we are too close to ourselves and our situations, causing us to become narrow-minded, judgmental, accusatory and, frankly, not a team player with a win/win attitude. Even so, there are ways to go big picture by acknowledging what is going well, looking forward to a positive end result, and figuring out how to expand your mind beyond narrow thinking. I’ve compiled a few real-life examples to illustrate the art of moving beyond narrow thinking and leave space for the big picture.
There Are No Words
A lovely man arrived immediately after a tense moment between boss, employee and client (me). He needed something that was against the rules, requiring pre-approval, and fell into the category of a fireable offense and a worse fate for his boss. I told him he arrived at a tense moment, to please show me his “credentials” and to give me a second to figure something out.
I asked him to join me for the one-hour ride back to the city and I would take full responsibility, so the employee (driver) would not get fired. It turned out to be one of the most enjoyable conversations and learning lessons. I learned he was a 25-year veteran of a major brand, was well-loved and respected in his field, and movies had been made about him. He shared stories from his life that stayed in the car. I also mentioned an artist who put a naked female sculpture on top of a legendary figure in history. This man, who was not at a loss for words, said, “There are no words.” I realized, in that moment, the power of this phrase. It says so much and helps someone get out of a conversation politely if they wish. I agreed and said, “Yes, there are no words,” with a huge smile on my face.
Those words helped me recently in a taxi ride in NYC. Two very prominent men were talking between themselves. I knew one well and the other I’d just met, and his language was crude and vulgar. My friend asked what my thoughts were on a vulgar subject and my reply was neutral. I said with a pleasant smile, “There are no words.” They both understood and changed the subject.
The Rolling Stone Culture Council is an invitation-only community for Influencers, Innovators and Creatives. Do I qualify?
The Big Picture
It can be difficult to step back and see the big picture, especially when you are so close to a particular project. For one creator, it was hard to learn the content they created did not make as much money as they thought and as fast as they desired. This creator did the ultimate damage to their name and title. This also blemished theperson/company (aggregator) that believed in their content so much, because they pitched it to this platform.
This person, after learning how little they made from the aggregator, contacted the platform directly to ask how their title got on there and how much money they made so far. Circumventing is a sign of someone not understanding business acumen and someone untrustworthy. This also sets off a copyright infringement question, which now puts the creator and the person/company that pitched them to possibly never having any other titles accepted. One party was the creator and the other had a legal agreement to license the content from the creator. Even so, what this person did broke several “cardinal” rules. It shows poor business acumen, aggression, ego (a killer of many projects in the entertainment industry), etc.
I share these with you as “there are no words” is now a tool I use to quickly and elegantly turn a gnarly situation around. Keep in mind, we can all learn from each other — what we like and don’t like, what works and what doesn’t work and improve. We do not have to be stuck.
