I love the month of May. It is when the warm weather we might have experienced in April is likely to stay. It marks an end to the very rainy season. More people start to venture outside for longer periods of time. And it is the beginning of graduation season. Graduations are wonderful events. They mark an end and a beginning. Whether the graduate being celebrated is earning a doctorate or a promotion from pre-school to "big" school, milestones have been conquered and new opportunities are beginning.
I just returned from my niece's graduation from a small university in Atlanta. The weather was picture perfect and the 200+ members of the graduating class were wearing smiles to beat the band. I enjoyed looking at proud mothers, fathers, siblings, spouses and extended family members who had come to wish the graduates well. In lieu of a single keynote speaker, there were short talks by the president of the class (he managed to be inspirational and hilarious and appreciative in a manner of 4 minutes) and the three persons (two academics and an elected official) who were being presented honorary degrees. As I was listening to the talks, I came face to face with my 'preconceived notions.' You see, when I saw the list of the honoraries, I made up in my mind which of the speakers was going to absolutely rock the house. I will tell you that each of the speakers rocked the house in their own way, however the speaker that 'moved' me the most was not the one I expected. Which then reminded me of something I share when I am conducting communications training -- we communicate long before we say a word. Based on what people have heard, read or learned about us, they likely have a preconceived notion. When I do communications training for high school students, I will often play music before I join them. I play something that is "their music" (I have to admit I like a lot of it) and the mood of the students is instantly changed. They sit up, lean forward and give me the benefit of the doubt. Even though I am 'old' to them, a preconceived notion has been dispelled.
Not all preconceived notions are bad. For instance, we look forward to the next movie from a favorite director, the latest song from a favorite artist, the next book from a favorite author. Unfortunately, however a lot of preconceived notions are not ones we would be comfortable admitting we have. In the workplace, there are sometimes preconceived notions that accompany job titles, offices, cubicles, parking spaces, and other trappings. We can sometimes ascribe characteristics to co-workers (which really is how I think of all of us) based on these trappings. Don't get me wrong, I know there are different roles in all organizations. But, they are just that 'different.' It takes everyone to make organizations work and I find it interesting that while most of us understand how 'important' the President or CEO is, we can forget that it is the front line worker that always needs to have a replacement to do his or her job when they leave for vacation. The CEO can leave for weeks and not have a replacement CEO called in to do his or her work. But, to be fair, if a CEO leaves for good, it takes longer to find his or her successor.
What preconceived notions do you have? As I sat in the car coming back from the graduation -- where a great time truly was had by all -- I started to think about other preconceived notions I have and to commit to trying to eliminate those that are not value-added. One of the preconceived notions that I will hold on to however, is the notion that we are all here to do our very best work. That one I don't want to lose.
