See It, Say It
You know how airports ask us to say something if we see something? It’s an invitation to to notice and take action if anything seems off. We need this reminder every time we’re at the airport, because we humans are very good at ignoring, second guessing or stepping over things we see that might be important. If it’s NOT important, we risk feeling embarrassed or guilty for wasting someone’s time.
Most things we see at the airport are not a threat. Maybe that’s because all of us are doing a great job staying on top of it.
Turns out, this practice of seeing something and saying something is crucial inside organizations— it creates transparency, clarity AND a lower threat environment, just like at the airport.
In my coach certification training we called this practice Articulating What’s Going On. It means noticing or seeing something with a client and making it explicit—by saying what you see, then asking about it. My brilliant friend and colleague Annalise wrote about AWGO here, giving a real world example of what this looks like when you practice it with a team.
This can feel risky, because you’re sort of guessing and may be wrong. But the point isn’t to be right about what you think you see. The point is to get the thing on the table which opens a lane for transparent, honest communication.
But when we don’t say something when we see something, we fill our imaginations with assumptions, judgments or interpretations, which are often WAY off track. Unchallenged these stories calcify into “certainty” in our thinking which can lead to all sorts of mischief, such as:
We ignore or avoid a direct report’s toxic behavior (because we can’t “afford” to lose them)
We don’t question or seek clarity on a decision we disagree with (because our leaders are super smart so they must have thought this through)
We think it’s “not our place” to raise concern when we see something off in the culture (because who am I to step outside my lane?)
We interpret our peer’s silent scowl as disagreement (because we misread a facial expression and now we feel threatened and defensive)
You can see how this goes wrong. And sometimes it goes really, really wrong.
But it doesn’t have to, because we all have access to a simple tool: say what you see (notice, experience, suspect, assume, judge, etc.) then ask a powerful question to shine a little light on the matter, like this:
Your outburst in the meeting shut down the conversation. What was going on for you?
I don’t understand this decision. What was the thinking behind it?
Ever since the acquisition, our teams seem disconnected and out of alignment. What are you seeing ?
It’s articulating what’s going on, or saying the quiet part out loud or just “see it, say it.” (I hear you Kevin 🙂). They all mean the same thing: making explicit what’s in your head or heart, then inquiring to learn more.
And “learning more” is listening to the answer with curiosity and openness, checking our judgments, assumptions and rightness at the door.