Thursday #10: Learning People

How we learn to work with People:

1. Evaluate yourself. It is important to always be introspective. If working with people is not something you are naturally gifted with, you should be in the frame of mind that you are constantly learning in an effort to improve yourself. When walking away from different interactions with people, ask yourself honestly how it went. What could I have done differently? Is there anything that worked really well? What should be improved?

2. Have someone you trust evaluate you. Gaining the kind of friend who can honestly tell you how things are is a priceless gift. Maybe this is a spouse, or a coworker, or just a best mate. But having an outside perspective can be incredibly valuable. This can be dangerous, as there is the possibility of feelings being hurt, but setting up guidelines beforehand as well as knowing there is a love that underlies everything being said can help one evaluate in a way that is not possible by oneself.

The underlying factor in both of these is experience. It is impossible to grow without experience, and if we really want to get better with people, we have to be with people. This is a non-negotiable.