Tunnel vision
I had a friend once, Jack, who was deaf and had tunnel vision – literally. He was able to see people and things directly in front of him but had no peripheral vision at all. If I wanted to gain his attention, I had to stand directly in front of him to sign. As I approached, I had to be careful not to take him by surprise, as if suddenly appearing out of nowhere. It was a tough lived-experience for Jack and made navigating the world and relationships very challenging. I admire his courage in how he handled it.
In common use, we apply the phrase ‘tunnel vision’ metaphorically to represent a person or group’s psychological state. It tends to be characterised by limited focus or perspective, lack of awareness of the bigger picture and unwillingness to consider alternative points of view. As such, we normally associate tunnel vision negatively with narrow-mindedness, a condition to be avoided or challenged. We need to think more openly, broadly or laterally if we are to be effective…or so we assume.
Yet there are other dimensions to tunnel vision. Think of blinkers or blinders that enable a horse to focus on straight ahead by excluding a wider view and, thereby, to avoid it becoming distracted or alarmed by things around it. Think of choosing to focus intently and single-mindedly on a vision or piece of work in order to fulfil it, complete it to a certain standard or achieve it within a given timeframe. There are times and situations where tunnel vision serves us well to achieve our goals.
There are aesthetic dimensions too. I walked along a train platform this week and noticed a beautiful snowscape through a porthole window. I was struck by how the window framed the view in such a way that it drew my attention to things I had never noticed before. It was as if I saw them simultaneously out-of context and in-new context, like how we see special qualities in a person, how he or she now stands out from a crowd, when we fall in love.
So...as we approach 2018, is there light at the end of your tunnel?
Covid Vaccinator at Haxby Group
7 年Hi Nick, with great difficulty!! However, the CEO and directors of an organisation must be the initial drivers, facilitators and motivators of any transformation program of this magnitude. However, top down assertions in a traditional multi-layered organisation in todays, rapid, unpredictable and ever increasing digital world is not enough. In my opinion there needs to be a more dispersed system of accountability and governance for successful and sustainable change.
Covid Vaccinator at Haxby Group
7 年100% agree with your critical Question Nick
Covid Vaccinator at Haxby Group
7 年Hi Nick, I agree that distributed and dispersed leadership provides the foundations to enhance an organisations resilience, sustainability and adaptability, However this type of leadership is not without its challenges especially in large organisations that are mired in traditional hierarchical thinking. Implementing a more emergent approach in this context would require a complete shift in organisational culture. If an organisation truly exemplifies shared leadership then people will be more likely to explore, understand, influence and exert positive contributions both within and outside of the organisation. I believe this is why its vital to understand an organisations reality across all levels before instigating large transformational change.
Covid Vaccinator at Haxby Group
7 年Hi Nick, your post really resonates with me with regard to a session I co-delivered a few years ago. The session was focused on business planning and was inspired by a book I read on engagement. Using the analogy of altitude the author found that people at different levels of an organisation fly at different altitudes. For example, Leaders fly at 35000 feet, they can clearly see the horizon, mountain, lakes, how they all connect and affect each other but they cant see the detail and what's happening on the ground. Managers fly at 15000 feet, they can see skyscrapers, motorways, forests and houses that all look alike, however they are unable to see the horizon or the day to day detail. Then there is the frontline staff who fly at 1000 feet, they can see specifics e.g. buildings, cars, but they can’t see the horizon and how it all connects together. They all work in the same organisation but all have entirely different perspectives – in effect they all have tunnel vision! One of the first things I now ask people now is, what is your reality?
Individual and Team Coach, Trainer & Supervisor
7 年Interesting and thought provoking Nick