287. The Challenge Of Being In The Spotlight Effect

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In 1999, psychology professor Thomas Gilovich conducted a seemingly ridiculous study at Cornell University.

In the process of said ridiculousness, he uncovered a meaningful insight into how you view yourself.

Here’s what he did:

Gilovich gathered a few student volunteers and gave each of them a bright yellow t-shirt featuring a large image of Barry Manilow. The shirt was bright, bold and the complete opposite of fashionable.

(Editors Note: don’t say we didn’t warn you it was a ridiculous study)

Each student was instructed to wear the shirt to one of their well-attended classes. After each class, Gilovich asked the participant to predict how many of their classmates noticed the shirt.

On average, the participants predicted that 50% of their classmates would remember the shirt. After all, it’s bright, Copacabana yellow. How could you miss it?!

Surprisingly, only 25% of classmates remembered seeing the shirt.

Gilovich extended the study to use less embarrassing and more popular images, like Bob Marley and Jerry Seinfeld, but the results were the same.

He called this The Spotlight Effect.

The Spotlight Effect

The Spotlight Effect is the tendency to believe that you’re being noticed more than you really are.

Because we are each the center of our own universe, we have an innate tendency to believe we are also at the center of everybody else’s.

We are not.

In the end, we naturally overestimate the degree to which other people notice our appearance or actions.

You know that time when you said something really ridiculous to that group of people and you were totally embarrassed and knew without a doubt that it would lower everybody’s impression of you and bring a lifetime of shame down on you, your family, and all of your pets?

Well, most likely nobody else noticed. And if they did, they didn’t care about it as much as you.

That’s the Spotlight Effect.

The Spotlight Effect At Work

The Spotlight Effect impacts your company culture every single day - you just don’t recognize it. Let me shine a little light on a few ways it appears.

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The Fear Of Public Speaking

Public speaking can feel very stressful for those not used to doing it. It is common to fear that you might screw up a word or make another mistake that will scar you for life. It’s like bungee jumping into a boiling bowl of anxiety. The truth is, even if you do screw up your speech, most people won’t notice and nobody will care.

How to Help Give a little pop of praise to people after public speaking. Let them know they did well and encourage them to speak more often.

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The Intimidation Of Sharing Ideas

A lot of people can get scared to contribute in meetings or other group settings. It’s incredibly common to feel anxiety about saying something stupid that will be remembered by others.

How to Help Create a safe place in all your meetings by ensuring all ideas and feedback are embraced with an open mind. Encourage everybody to talk. When a shy person participates, acknowledge them after the meeting and encourage them to speak more often.

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Over-Inflating Mistakes

Minor errors can send employees slip-sliding down the spiral of shame. It’s easy to think that your error has had a significant impact on others’ mindset. Heck, last week I sent out a proposal to a new client and I misspelled the name of the key decision-maker. My embarrassment reached new heights. The concept of seppuku was bandied about.

How To Help Create a culture of accepting mistakes as learning experiences. We all make mistakes. Your mission is to make mistakes ok to make. If somebody makes a miscellaneous mistake, be sure to let them know it’s completely fine.

Don’t Be Blinded By The Spotlight Effect

Understanding the Spotlight Effect is important for your mental well-being and for the development of a healthy and supportive company culture.

By recognizing the impact of Spotlight shame, you have an opportunity to actively work towards creating a safe culture of open communication.

So the next time you or your colleagues start worrying about a minor mistake or hesitating to share some thoughts, reread this article and remember that the spotlight isn’t as bright as you think.

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