The Art of Perceptual Thinking
We all know that what you see depends on what you’re looking for (which is a simple way to explain the phenomenon called “confirmation bias.”) Recently, I had an experience that reminded me of the equally important truth that what you see depends on where you’re looking from.
I serve on the board of an organization that is deeply committed to improving its diversity and inclusion efforts in a real, sustainable and even global way. To help us in our efforts, we engaged a consultant (and all-around great guy) named Dr. Harry Li. Harry, as he insists we call him, is with an organization called Mosaix that helps faith-based and other organizations become more welcoming to people from different races and ethnic backgrounds by assessing and improving what it calls “cultural intelligence.”
Harry is a first-generation Chinese American and recovering engineer with a delightful Southern accent tuned from many years living below the Mason-Dixon line. His essential point to us was that if you really want someone from a different background to feel like they belong, you first must be willing to look at the world from their perspective.
To make this point more vividly, he shared this video clip of something called “perceptual art,” which essentially means you can’t see the true design or beauty of the work of art unless you’re standing in exactly the right spot. See for yourself what I’m talking about, and prepare to have your mind blown: Illusion Sculptures Only Appear If You Stand In The Right Spot | Master Craft - YouTube.
The artist behind this remarkable work, Michael Murphy, uses thousands of pieces of wire and plastic to create sculptures that form portraits of people, words or objects, but only if you’re standing in the right space where the intended image becomes visible. Otherwise, a viewer who doesn’t take the time to discover the hidden design of the piece will see only random pieces of junk with no apparent purpose or use.
As noted in the clip, “[t]hat magical shift where you see all the pieces align to become one photograph is the result of something called the parallax effect,” which “refers to the apparent movement of an object when viewed from different positions.” Notably, it’s not the object that moves to reveal its inherent design; it’s the viewer who makes the effort to get in the right position to see it.
Perspicacity
While perceptual art has much to teach us about how to improve diversity and inclusion by looking at things from different perspectives (which is the simple lesson Atticus Finch taught Scout so long ago), it has as much to say about effective leadership if you ask me.
Or better yet, ask my colleague Paul Sinclair. Paul has written a gem of a book called Perspicacity Principle in which he makes the case that the most powerful leaders are those who intentionally try to see things differently and to act on their unique vision. (Yes, it’s an unusual title, but his original title of “Embrace the Suck” was taken. Besides, “perspicacity” is a cool word that’s been on the sidelines for too long.)
Paul explains that, “leadership perspicacity is the ability to sharply cut through initial and obvious interpretations, to see through existing frames of reference, and to discern with the powers of mature and accurate judgment the real meaning of organizational situations and circumstances.”
Perspicacious leaders are “able to perceive strengths and growth opportunities . . . where others see only deficits or problems” and can “understand solutions that others fail to see and the judgment to know what to do about it.”
Citing examples of a number of great leaders through history, Paul explains that sometimes leaders are able to accomplish great things by drawing on lessons learned from their own experiences, but “sometimes it’s the leader’s willingness to consider someone else’s experiences that creates the environment for the breakthrough.” Sounds a lot like the parallax effect, doesn’t it?
The Power of the Reframe
What these great minds from different fields – the cultural intelligence trainer Dr. Li, the perceptual artist Michael Murphy and the author Paul Sinclair—are each getting at in their unique way is what I like to think of as the power of the reframe.
I have had the opportunity to coach more than 100 people since I became certified as a coach after serving clients for many years as an employment lawyer. (Interestingly, this move itself was a powerful example of a reframe for me of my desire to help employers build better workplaces by growing stronger leaders, rather than defending them from employment claims caused by weak ones).
By far the most powerful coaching moments have occurred when my clients realized that although the challenge confronting them might seem immovable, they could generate new options by merely changing their perspective. Sometimes, they did that by looking at their own strengths differently and applying them in a new way. Sometimes, they did it by being willing to consider someone else’s experiences in a novel way, much as Paul suggests leaders do in his book.
My challenge for you as you face the challenges hanging like random pieces of plastic on wires in front of you is to apply the power of the reframe to look at them differently:
How can you use a natural strength to accomplish something in an unexpected way? What if your tendency to point out the flaws in situations is not because you’re negative or hypercritical, but because you are a gifted problem solver and you can’t solve problems until you identify them?
How can you look differently at someone else’s apparent weakness and realize that it could be a misapplied or frustrated strength? What if the team member who seems to chafe at following orders and constantly challenges your directions is actually a natural leader who hasn’t been given the opportunity to lead?
How can you look at a challenge currently facing you as an opportunity for growth instead? What if the dead-end assignment you’ve just been given isn’t a reason to polish up your resume, but is an opportunity to acquire new skills that will make you a better leader or more effective performer in the future?
Remember, the parallax principle teaches that the appearance of movement comes from your willingness to view the object in front of you from different positions. Whether you are a leader, individual contributor or other team member, what movements can you create and what hidden designs can you discover by being willing to move around to see things differently?
Mike Tooley is a Co-Founder with Upstream Principles LLC, a coaching and consulting firm dedicated to helping individuals, leaders, and teams go upstream to discover solutions for their leadership and employee development challenges. As a certified Leadership and Strengths Coach, Mike is committed to serve as a guide to help others discover, and live out, who they are designed to be.