Tonight I invite you to pull up a chair, grab a cuppa tea, and join me in pondering the mysteries of the "global-minded" and how the rest of us relate to them. :)
I’ve been reflecting on how, in college and now at work, I’ve
generally seemed to end up with highly “global-minded” (as my piano teacher
used to label them) professors and employers. The college prof who taught my
music theory/music business courses was totally a global thinker, and so is the
dentist in the practice where I work. You know, they’re those people that
always think and talk in large generalities with lots of room for personal
shenanigans and ingenuity, who are usually contemplating the bigger picture and
leaving the smaller details to sort themselves out. I could list SO many ways
in which this was a blessing while in college, and continues to be a blessing
now where I work. These types are usually really laid back, flexible, and very
ready to teach and answer questions. Like, lots of questions … usually from
people like me and my personality type (to be dealt with in more detail in the
next paragraph). They aren’t easily phased, but roll with the punches. They
usually aren’t perfectionists, but rather see the bigger picture. And they
definitely aren’t control freaks. And while I was trying to figure out college
in general, and those classes in particular (they were online but taught
through live web-cam and chat which was quite a learning curve),
those characteristics in my professor were wonderful in more ways than I can
count. Then again last year, starting my first dental front office job fresh
out of a training course, the same characteristics saved my hide numerous times,
letting me find my way and giving me plenty of room to grow and expand.
However. They’ve
also been known to cause me moments in which I thought a nervous breakdown
could be the only end result. ;) Sometimes having a nature mostly opposite to
that of a global thinker can cause a few issues. I am not so much a global
thinker – rather, I am very detail-oriented, rather a perfectionist, and I like
order and organization. My spontaneity is sometimes slow to show itself. Which,
when working with a global thinker, can cause me to feel as if I am spinning
around in a chaotic mess of ideas,
possibilities, and thoughts, with no absolutes, no organization, no foundation. Nothing to grasp as
definitive, no set-in-stone rules to go by … help!!! How will I know how to get
it right when I don’t know exactly what you’re looking for?! When I don’t have a bullet point list
or regulations to follow or instructions that tell me more than the very barest
minimum, the most basic scope, the most general of principals? Terrifying, I tell you!
Not only that, but sometimes, because the global thinkers
are so busy thinking about the bigger picture, so-called “smaller” details that
really are important get lost in the
shuffle or aren’t relayed to the people in charge of those details until … kind
of late in the game. For example … “Oh … that patient whose insurance claim I
sent three weeks ago and was paid on yesterday didn’t end up having an
emergency check-up but instead an extraction, a root canal, a gingivectomy and
an implant? [Insert mental gasp of
despair and consternation here] No problem. Let me get with the insurance company for some
minor revisions.”
(Some slight exaggeration as far as treatment,
but you get the idea.)
Anyway. It can get a bit messy. But because of such personality
conflicts, I’ve been learning some really important and useful lessons, about
myself and the global thinkers and how we relate. For instance, you know how I
said I was terrified of “getting it wrong” if I didn’t have more than the
barest smidgeon of information to guide my tasks? Well, that’s what is wrong – the fear I’ll get it wrong! Because generally,
global thinkers don’t think in such detailed terms. When a
global thinker is wanting something accomplished, he usually doesn’t want or
expect a carbon copy of his own ideas just put down in the subordinate’s name.
He wants the subordinate to go about things his own way. Because he isn’t a control freak, he doesn’t mind the many
number of paths that a person can take while getting a thing done, as long as
the bigger picture stays the same. Incomprehensible to us detail-minded,
organized control freaks, I know.
Also – major epiphany here – but guess what? Those global-minded
people really do need us detail-minded folks! I’ve been learning that I’m there to
be the balancing factor in the equation. While the global thinker is out making
sure the bigger picture is where he wants it, I’m the one keeping all the
pieces together. I’m making sure the global thinker has all the components
needed to get the ultimate vision accomplished. I’m “filling in the cracks” if
you will.
But doing that definitely takes work. I mean, first you have
to combat and quell all of the above mentioned feelings of chaos,
unpredictability, etc. Ironically, you have to take on some of the
characteristics of the global thinker. I’ve learned, for instance, to just relax about things. To not be so
up-tight and to be wise about what really needs to be taken care of now rather than later – to decide what’s
honestly important at the moment, and what needs letting go. I’ve learned that
it’s okay to feel as if I’m swimming in a chaotic mess, and that things will
work themselves out if I just stay in the game. I’ve learned the importance of
taking things as they come and when glitches happen, to be just be prepared to jump in and fix or smooth. I’ve learned that not having a detailed set of rules
and regulations to follow is sometimes (read: often) the way life is, and I
need to figure things out for myself and not be so afraid of “getting it
wrong.” I’m still a list person. I’m still a “make bullet points and check them
off as you go” girl. I still like order and predictability much of the time. But
I’ve been learning to temper, to meld, to have a good time on the roller-coaster or
bronco-ride or whatever you want to liken the craziness to. And boy am I still
learning. It takes time. And I’ll probably be “tempering” my detail-oriented
nature for the rest of my life. ;)
So, fellow detail-minded
people out there, you aren’t alone! There are challenges working with
global-minded bosses, co-workers, and even spouses, but it can be rewarding
and fun too. After all, God made us with our different personalities for a good
reason. We all need to be tempered and balanced by each-other! Sometimes it’s
definitely stressful, and occasionally frustrating – but I think much of that
stress and frustration can be attributed to our not being willing to lay aside
our rigidness, instead taking things as they come and using our detail-minded gifts to
the best advantage in each situation. This way, we can take great satisfaction
in doing our job well, in keeping things in order, and in ultimately being an
important part of achieving the ultimate goal, instead of creating additional
problems and resistance by our organized, step-by-step natures. It is so
rewarding to me after a day at work or at home to know I was a contributor to
keeping things running smoothly, seamlessly, and without conflict when the day was crazy. I definitely don’t always get it right – in fact
sometimes I totally mess things up – but, by God’s patience, I’m way farther along
than I was last year or the year before, and the journey’s been ever so
rewarding. :o) I hope that yours is just the same!
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