Problems? Take The Balcony View

This is something I wish I’d known earlier. Taking the balcony view.

What does it mean? Well, it’s having an awareness and understanding of what your problem looks like from a layer up or two layers up and from that perspective, you can evaluate what’s really important.

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So, if you imagine, we are all on the dance floor, dancing away. Sometimes, it’s a mosh pit, and it gets a bit lively. People push into each other and shove each other around. That’s you and your problem.

If you imagine moving to the balcony and looking down on the dance floor you get a totally different perspective. This is the balcony view. One step removed, with oversight and space to evaluate.

I find this super helpful when it comes to thinking about your role in your job, your team’s role in the organisation, the organisation's role in the industry and so on. If you move to the balcony view for each of those and look down, it gives you a different context from which to consider your problem.

So, you and a colleague arguing over resources? Go to the balcony view and look from the perspective of the organisation. What’s important?

Is your business finding that the old ways of doing things are not working? Go to the balcony and look from an industry-wide or world view. What’s changed, and what ways are working now?

Essentially, it’s about looking at the bigger picture and understanding your issue in the context of that.

In these times of incredible change and disruption, I think the ability to take that balcony view is vital.

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Give it a go, and let me know how you get on!

Tracy