Your aren't IN traffic. You ARE traffic.

I’ve been thinking about something a friend of mine said recently, which I think has value for how we work as individuals in larger companies or organizations. He’s been a UPS driver for something like 15 years so he spends a lot of time on the road. He says, “Remember, you’re not IN traffic…?you ARE traffic.” It’s funny because we all do this. We gripe at people cutting in front of us then 30 seconds later we do the same thing to another driver. Perspective is hard.

It’s easy enough to think of ourselves as the protagonist in the story, when really we’re an ensemble cast or extras in each other’s stories. I think the same is true of the workplace. We all see our little part of it. We stare through a knothole in the fence and say “that’s the whole picture” but in reality, we can’t see or understand the whole thing. We are traffic.

A lot of times, when we come up against someone in our work lives who isn't cooperative or doesn't get what it is we're trying to accomplish, we perceive them as being willfully in our way. But in reality, they are on their way to something important as well, and we've all got to get there collectively and individually. We may think of people as trying to undercut our ideas or stonewall our progress, but more likely than not, we are coming up against their own limitations or even anxieties rather than some intention to stifle us.

So, while it is natural to think about the friction points of resources and schedules and wants and waiting amidst the politics and human frailties of any company structure, all each of us can really do is to navigate the best we can, put on our turning signals, let folks in, and wave when they return the favor. And if traffic gets too bad, we can exit for a different route altogether.

But resenting the next car in front of you is pointless. And it certainly doesn't get you to your destination any quicker.