Focus on the clarity

Whenever I push or pull too hard, move too fast, or pour out too much of something, I recall my mother cautioning “that’s enough.”  Her words remind me “a little goes a long way.”

The reminder, you can imagine, wasn’t always welcome though it was often needed and useful. It’s easy to find ourselves overdoing something, and that includes overthinking too.

Few people relish the experience of others questioning their judgment, or their competency challenged.

Oddly, very successful people do.   Bby soliciting helpful input frequently, they gain new perspectives and often advantage. Their success reflects efficiency and effectiveness made possible from others’ perceptions, understanding and experience in precision and quality .

Ever find yourself picking up the wrong impression,mis-understanding directions, or losing valuable time and energy believing you discovered a shortcut others missed for good reasons?  Worse, ever find yourself having to redo something because the task was poorly defined, or inappropriate for the situation?

Getting clarity

It’s simple to turn a reactive approach into a proactive plan.

Taking a moment to repeat what you heard, request and then follow up with a statement of the steps you intend to take  often spares everyone  disappointment.  Replace the knee jerk why questions in your head with clear, positively  stated responses both convey what you understand and assure the requester satisfaction of their needs.

It’s simple, and yet the extra moments to pause, don’t trigger an active assumption check. In thinking  through what’s next we too often skip over the evidence or clarify our own understanding.  

“Did I get that right?” 

Successful people ask questions with confidence because they value their time, and also believe others do too!