Sunday, November 18, 2007

Changing Eyes

"The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes." - Marcel Proust

There was a repetitive process at work that various employees had performed for years. During that time it was often asked "how can we do this more efficiently," and the response was "it can't." Then one year a new employee did come up with a way to shorten the steps using some database technology. She brought perspective that her predecessors didn't -- in a sense, she brought a new pair of eyes.

Marcel's comment counters the old "grass is greener on the other side of the fence" attitude. There's often more richness in our own backyard than we've dug to find. And sometimes "having new eyes" can mean taking the time to put ourselves in someone else's shoes, either in thought or by asking them for their ideas. In that way, their eyes become our own!

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