During a recent presentation, I thought I was moving at my normal pace. At one point, one of the participants raised their hand and asked me to slow down. I had not realized how quickly I was moving through the material. I suppose it is easy to forget that the slides I was presenting for the twentieth time were being seen for the first time by this audience.
We often overlook the fact that there is literally no one who has our complete experience. There are going to be times when we might be the only person in the company who possesses that bit of knowledge and expertise. Without a background in the subject, it is difficult to appreciate the nuance that a fully trained individual might have.
In my own life, my six-year-old son shakes his head when he has to explain to me the difference between green and red light sabers. He scoffs at my inability to differentiate between the MTT and the Venator. When I ask him how he can tell Qui-Gon Jinn apart from Obi-Wan Kenobi, he rolls his eyes. He takes a passionate interest in Star Wars and cannot understand how I fail to share his level of commitment.
I have to keep reminding myself that what I think is self-evident often is not. Sometimes this effect is most apparent when I speak to my direct supervisors. I have sometimes assumed that they were more directly involved than they were. I am guilty of forgetting that they often have many other issues that are going to be at the forefront of their mind (well ahead of my daily struggles). If I can add some context and give them the highlights, they can quickly get back up to speed and at least see a small portion of my field of view.
Perhaps tonight I ought to spend some time in a galaxy far, far away....
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