It seems to be a universal characteristic of human beings that we barely notice the things that are most familiar to us, while we devote most of our attention to things we see that have changed or are somehow different from the norm.
No doubt, biologists would point out the obvious survival benefits this bias brings. The familiar is unlikely to be threatening if we are still alive. It is the things we are unfamiliar with or that are changing that are most likely to threaten us.
No wonder people can be so anxious at the prospect of change.
Of course, in the modern world, there is not much in our daily lives that is directly threatening to us.
But we still retain a tendency to overlook the familiar and fixate on the strange.
And there is no reason why that should not apply to our professional lives.
Embedded in our firms, we become virtually blind to constants such as our in-house processes, ways of working and shared assumptions. We see things from a very specific perspective, but it is rarely obvious to us that this is the case.
That means it is likely we have in-built blind-spots to important ways of looking at things. This can be detrimental to the quality of our work.
It also points to one of the less recognized benefits of outsourcing – the value of an external perspective.
Our team has the training and qualifications to complete technical tasks to the highest professional standards. But they also look at problems from a different vantage point and with a different set of assumptions.
Sometimes, this can bring about important insights, such as spotting unseen opportunities or risks for the end client.
To find out more about how our external perspective can benefit you and your clients, contact us now.
