The very real danger of native eyes
- Thu, March 08 2012
- Filed under: Marketing essentials
Moving furniture, Cambodia-style
Photo by Eve and Nono
Years ago, when I was working as a journalist in Cambodia, a friend visited me in Phnom Penh. At a sidewalk cafe, we drank iced coffee and watched the passersby. A family of six perilously piled onto one motorbike cruised by. My friend stared wide-eyed at the balancing act. A pedicab passed with two pigs lounging in the passenger seat. My friend pondered how that was possible, and I explained pigs were sometimes drugged with marijuana for transport. More amazement. A woman strolled by with a basket of lotus pods perfectly balanced on her head. The show went on, and slowly I realized something. None of the sights had captured my interest, but all of them fascinated my friend. After living in the country for two years, it all looked perfectly normal to me - even though it wasn’t for the rest of the world. I’d acquired native eyes. And that wasn’t a good quality for a journalist to have. If I couldn’t tell what was remarkable, how could I write remarkable things?
Here’s the thing. The curse of the native eye extends beyond the work of a foreign correspondent. It happens to you. And your organization. Every day. If you’re working intimately with your issue, it’s very common to see an incredible sight or witness a striking story - and to not even notice that it’s remarkable. It seems normal, because it’s part of your daily experience. It’s almost as if we’re so incredibly close to our impact we can’t see it in sharp focus.
The problem is, what is normal to you is remarkable to people outside your world. The challenge is to never lose track of what’s interesting—because your native eyes are witness to events that could dazzle and inspire your supporters and constituents. It’s on you to remember that.
And if you can’t see beyond your native eyes, there’s always the friend who can for you. Bring him or her to work with you, and watch what that person things is amazing. You’ll get a true gift: fresh eyes.
Comments
Great article. I think this message holds true in both your professional career and personal life.
Thank you for sharing. I work with kids and there are many times in a day this same thing happens to me. I don’t see the incredible things happening around me until someone from the outside points it out to me.
Thank you for challenging us all to look at things from a new perspective.
I loved this post! We definitely have this problem, so I’m including this piece in my next staff newsletter and suggesting that they bring a friend to work to see what they do with fresh eyes!
When my aunt got married with a foreigner, he was also amazed by our surroundings, a tricycle where almost 10 people riding it. A bus full of people even at the top of it, makes a crowd.