Same street. Different shoes.

Have you ever taken a moment to think about how differently we are all processing the world around us?

No, really…

Have you considered that for each of us, we are navigating a different season, a different lifestyle, and a different support system? And because of that, the way we respond to the “world” around us is completely unique?

I was sitting next to the sweetest older couple and watched this play out in real time.

They had open what I think was Facebook. The husband was reading posts out loud to his wife. One by one. Story after story. Post after post. It was almost as if Facebook was a newspaper he was reading articles from.

I’d never heard or seen anything like it.

Most of us are doom-scrolling our way through content in silence. I’ve shared the occasional post with my husband, read aloud something worth sharing or worth discussing further, but I’ve never read my feed out loud while we sat next to each other.

In fact, it’s usually the opposite.

I think about groups of teens we see sitting together, but planted in front of their devices.

I think about strangers standing in line scrolling through their preferred platform.

But what if we all processed our algorithm the way this couple did? Out loud and with one another?

It made me reflect on how differently each of us is experiencing the world.

Some of us have completely retreated into our screens. Others are sharing the “news” out loud.

But regardless of which one you find yourself in, it’s a bittersweet reminder that we’re all walking the same streets in very different shoes.

And if that’s the case, we can’t expect anyone to respond the same way we do, care about things exactly as we do, or perceive the happenings of the world the exact same way.

In leadership, this matters more than we realize.

Because when someone feels off…
When performance dips…
When you sense a shift…

You’re rarely seeing the full story.

I shared on a recent podcast that we have to remember: everyone is going through something that most of us know nothing about.

Have we built enough trust with the people we serve for them to share it with us?

Have we empowered them to be honest in their communication with us?

If you’re seeing a dip, a shift, or holes in the work…have you considered getting to the why instead of simply addressing the what?

Because the behavior you’re seeing might not be the problem…it might be the signal.

Take time to notice it. 

Big hugs & so much love,

Cassy

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