Your Opinion Doesn’t Matter.

Your Opinion Doesn't Matter.

OK. Maybe that isn’t actually true, but it should make you stop and think for a second. Is your opinion really that important? It is to you, but what about to everyone else? They’re in the same boat as you. They have an opinion and their opinion may or may not matter to you. Most certainly, your opinion is, in your eyes, more valuable than theirs. Unfortunately, they think the same way. If you extrapolate it out even further, there are people on the extremes who truly believe your opinion matters nothing whatsoever, and is likely wrong and completely abhorrent to them.

The fact is that, when you boil it down, your opinion doesn’t really matter. What matters are the facts. Facts matter, and what we do with those facts and how we twist them and use them to our own advantage is what matters, for better or for worse. If you agree with that, then what becomes important is to understand both sides of any topic. It can be something simple like an opinion with a co-worker on a project, or it can be political, religious or any other category of conversation. Your opinion matters to you, and maybe a little to someone else. Their opinion matters more to them, but the truth, the facts and the eventual outcome likely lie somewhere in the middle.

So what?

How about we solve all the world’s problems by trying one thing. Try to see the world, or at least see a single situation, from someone else’s point of view this week. Why not try to see things the way they see them, and better understand the context for how your reaction either conflicts, aligns or even justifies their point of view? If you get to know the other side of the situation, you can become more effective at helping become the solution rather than simply perpetuating the problem.

This can work in your personal life, but also in the workplace. Sometimes people say to “assume best intentions”, and they’re right. Most people do have the best of intentions, but those intentions get drowned out when you get caught up in the minutiae of the day. Stress and anxiety in the workplace create blockers and instill myopia, and you get more tunnel-visioned and unable to solve what lies in front of you. I bring this up because I see it all the time. I am guilty of it sometimes. When I get stressed, my opinion seems to be the one that matters the most. Sometimes I wisen up and catch myself doing so, and I find that a new headspace can solve the problem. That’s not always the case. Sometimes you need someone else to help you see it. That’s why this section of the column is being written this week. We ALL need a little help now and then to get out of our own way and see the ways others see things. If you can put yourself in their shoes, you can become better.

My old business partner had a great way of doing that. John Durham had this shtick he used where he would send a media buyer one sneaker in a box, and he would ask for a meeting. At the meeting, he would bring the other shoe and then speak about how he wanted the buyer to walk a mile in his shoes, and understand the journey that his team would take to win their business. It was a great gimmick and he saw it work to perfection on numerous occasions. I also work with other marketers from time to time and I help them try to see the point of view that may be emanating from their colleagues in sales, or product. Those folks all have the same goal as you, but the way they deal with things from their angle may be foreign to you, and you need an outside person to help you understand.

So keep in mind this month that your opinion matters less to everyone else than it does to you, but you can win by understanding and even leading with their point of view, and bringing them to a place where you both can succeed and win.

photo accompanying this post is courtesy of UnSplash