It’s April. And in Texas, that means it’s bluebonnet season. Every year these hardy blossoms – the state flower of Texas — cover fields like blue blankets, and it’s a rite of passage for every Texas child to be photographed in a patch of bluebonnets.
Several years ago, some folks in my neighborhood came up with what I’m sure they thought was a brilliant idea. They created a flower bed around the base of a large tree in their front yard. That’s not so unusual, right? The uniqueness of this project lay in the fact that the bed was shaped like the great state of Texas. And what better flower to plant in the bed than bluebonnets? Perfect. Great idea, wouldn’t you say?
Not necessarily.
Each spring an abundant crop of bluebonnets surround the tree. It’s a beautiful sight, but since people see the bed from ground level, passersby have no clue as to why the edging material meanders as it does. Only the homeowners and the few people who know the story have any idea for the reason behind the peculiar shape. To see the big picture, people would need to climb to the top of the 15’-20’ tree to look down and thus understand the “why” behind the oddly-shaped bed.
In many organizations, employees – and even those who lead – aren’t privy to “the big picture”. The shape of the organization, the overall goals and objectives aren’t communicated. Even directors, VP’s, managers and supervisors have no idea of the “why” of the whole. Their view is strictly ground-level. They see only what’s in their line of sight – their area of responsibility, their concerns, their issues, and their challenges – with no understanding of the ultimate goals of the organization and how they, their department, and their contributions are linked to every other facet of the business.
The same holds true for people, doesn’t it? We often look at others only from ground level, from our limited point of view, without ever knowing – or even trying to know – what caused them to be shaped a certain way and why their views or ideas don’t conform to ours.
Leaders of organizations that fully blossom communicate to all employees the view from the top of the tree. They give their people a clear picture of the shape of the business and help them understand where each person fits.
Bluebonnets are unique to Texas. They aren’t found anywhere else in the world. Each business, as well as each individual, is unique and can only be understood from the perspective of the top of the tree.
©Copyright 2017
