Shared understanding - Keeping your assumptions in check

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Build better shared understanding by leading from a macro to micro level

The last 5 weeks at Clearleft has presented the opportunity to work with people from a wide range of disciplines and backgrounds, each with a wealth of experience to boot. Hopping from one project to another has exposed me to their preferred methods and personal twists on problem-solving techniques, some of these familiar to me, others not.

Zooming into the micro-level of detail, I have always been met with an enquiry of understanding โ€“ โ€œHave you heard about [x]?โ€ or โ€œHave you used the [y] method before?โ€ โ€“ and then an offer of explanation if required.

This process of enquiry and explanation isnโ€™t exclusive to newer additions to the office either, it forms the basis for much of the organisation discourse; internal and client playbacks, less formal team meetings, standups, one to one catch ups, general water cooler chit-chats.

The value of this learning was truly brought home during the UX Laundromat โ€“ a weekly 1hr get-together for the UX team โ€“ where I was invited to give a playback of an internal project called Tiny Lessons I had been working on with Nicky. I began with the assumption that my audience knew the overall objectives of the project so I accelerated at 60mph to the nitty gritty details. Through the quizzical looks James Box flagged me down and suggested that I shared an overview of the project for the benefit of everyone in the room. Iโ€™d wrongly assumed that everyone was onboard with the Tiny Lessons project and that a re-play wasnโ€™t required.

James later reiterated the value of beginner's mind and the importance of onboarding your audience from a macro level before zooming into the micro details.

Mulling over the previous week of Tiny Lessons themed discussions and meetings, I realised I had not taken the opportunity to ask Nicky if she knew about [x] or had followed the [y] process before. This is something I wanted to address. Doing so is respectful to your team and forms a better discussion for everyone involved.

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