Employee Misunderstanding: Why do my employees not understand me, or do I want them to do?

In working with my clients, I often hear this concern: “Why do my employees not understand what I am saying?” or “Why do my employees not do what I ask them to do?” or “Why don’t they see it the way I see it?” Sound familiar?

I recently read two articles: “Only 12% of People Think This is ‘a’ Penguin and Why That Should Matter to You” by J.J. Pryor (Published in Bouncin’ and Behavin’ Blogs) and “People Differ Widely in Their Understanding of Even a Simple Concept Such as the Word ‘Penguin’” by Simon Makin, Scientific American. Both articles address studies showing that people cannot agree on the common noun “penguin.” The studies indicated that there are 10 to 30 different concept variants for “penguin.” Additionally, the study stated, “The probability two people selected at random will share the same concept about penguins is around 12 percent.” In other words, 88 percent of people do not share the same concept of a penguin. Kidd continues, for example, “people disagree about things like whether penguins are heavy, presumably because they haven’t lifted a penguin.” Here, Kidd hints at where many of these differences likely come from: they boil down to a person’s life experiences. “If you’ve spent time watching penguins walk, you’re maybe more likely to think they’re heavy from their waddle,” Kidd says. “If you’ve spent time learning about anatomy, you’ve maybe learned birds have light skeletons and so think penguins are light.” If most people can’t agree on a common noun like “penguin,” it’s no wonder that when you ask your employees to do something, each one of them may not understand exactly what you are requesting.

While knowing that only 12 percent of your employees will understand or do exactly what you are requesting might sound discouraging, this knowledge is good news. I understand this might sound bizarre, so let me explain.

When you can accept that your employees not doing what you requested is not a function of something wrong with them or you, you can begin to take responsibility for how you communicate with your employees and have. power with those communications. The issue is not that there is something wrong with them but rather that their life experiences, points of view, and backgrounds influence how they hear what you are saying. Being aware of these differences between your life experience and your employees’ can help bridge the gaps and foster more effective communication.

In today’s fast-paced, digital world of quick reactions through emojis, likes, and retweets, slowing down to consider others’ perspectives can be challenging and might appear counterproductive (if they just did what I said, I wouldn’t spend time following up, explaining, etc.). However, taking the time to understand your employees’ beliefs, points of view, etc., is what I call “working slow to work fast.” If we as leaders take the time to communicate in a way that allows employees to do exactly what we are requesting the first time, if we work slow to work fast, there is the opportunity to achieve results with less time and effort.

I invite you to contact me for an exploratory conversation about what I can provide for you and your company about working slow to work fast (how to communicate to the 88 percent who don’t initially get what you are saying).

I can be reached at jody@leadersteam.com or at 415.948.6320. linkedin.com/in/jody-dasilva-43479a3

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