I tend to be an observer, an analyzer, and sometimes—I admit—an over-analyzer. I often reflect on interactions and replay conversations in my head, wondering if I handled a situation well or said the right thing. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve followed up with a friend or colleague to double check that a joke I made or question I asked didn’t cause offense or misunderstanding.
While I’m sure this trait has always been a part of my personality, I’m also pretty sure it has gotten stronger as I’ve grown older and have enjoyed a long and fulfilling career in healthcare leadership.
I will never forget a lesson I learned early in my career that I think helped serve to strengthen and increase my habit of reflection and analysis. I learned that perception truly matters.
When I first started as a hospital CEO, I was young—thirty at the time—and looked even younger. I didn’t realize it for awhile, but many people within my organization assumed I had gotten the position thanks to a rich or influential parent, or some such reason, which was not the case.
Unbeknownst to me, that perception created some resentment and disillusionment among workers at all levels within the hospital who had years or even decades more work experience than I. It took months and years of building personal connections and proving myself as a capable and compassionate leader before those perceptions faded.
I ended up serving as CEO of that hospital for 15 years, and have no doubt the important lesson I learned about perception in my first months on the job served me well for the rest of my career.
As my friend and colleague Andrea Overman once wisely said when discussing leadership, “We’re not leaders because of a title; we’re only a leader if people are willing to follow us.” And that willingness very often depends on perception!
How about you, have you had an experience that revealed the incredible importance of perception? How have different perceptions influenced and impacted your life and career?
