I will continue with my observation on assumptions today also. People who read my last blog may recall that I had implied that our decision-making is not based on solid facts but on lots of assumptions put in by us, whenever there is a lack of information. This is true whether we are talking of individuals or situations. We assume what others might be doing and thinking while doing these tasks. We are always concerned about option B if things go wrong. We are so obsessed with the things going wrong that a good amount of energy is wasted in tackling that.
By the way, what are the chances that things can or do go wrong? I would assume that things can go wrong 50% of the time, like when we toss a coin, the chances of it going heads or tails is 50%. But did you notice that this is an assumption? Lots of times I have seen twice or even thrice continuously heads coming. Similarly, we assume that if someone is good they won’t make mistakes or if someone is bad, they will make mistakes. But are these certainties? Definitely not.
Leave aside the operational aspects of these examples for the time being and let us focus on the cultural aspects of these. Some employees are given more responsible work and some are not. These change the individual experience profiles. Some people get more experience and some don’t. The people with more experience get more confident in those types of work. But what happens if they had failed the first time for any reason? They would not have got the chance to prove that they are good. Correct?
We know that champions also fail, but if that one failure decides the future of the champion by not being given any chance, will it be justified? Are we sure that it is not happening in our companies when we make assumptions about who is good and who is bad? Are we not paying less attention to the mistakes being made by our bright employees and are more critical of less bright ones? The scenario could have been different also initially with different initial changed scenarios.
What does it mean? It means everyone deserves a chance. It means we are the ones, who in the name of performance, do not allow everyone to grow and then label them such. We are the management. We in trying to keep our efficiency high are ready to sacrifice others and at the same time, keep on taking about caring for the employees. This contradiction breaks trust, and without trust, no cooperation or collaboration works. We start lacking confidence in each other and the results are obvious.
And here comes the contradiction – the growth of society or the individual – which is more important? So, different groups own up to different responsibilities and there is a conflict between them due to their focus. Unfortunately, they start working against each other and mistrust between them spoils everything.
The only way to come out of this imbroglio is the teachings of Buddha – The Middle way or the “Madhyam Marg”. When we don’t go out to the extreme in whatever we are doing, there is a chance of finding balance. Let us find balance in our behaviour, our action and our mind.
Let us start #makingworkplaceshappier.
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