Want To Get Out of Your Box? Learn.

You have heard the expression thinking outside the box. It refers to changing our normal ways of thinking in order to look at situations differently, changing our perspective to see things, or people, in a new light.

Thinking outside the box is absolutely necessary if we want to get the best out of ourselves, but let’s not stop with thinking—how about moving outside the box? How often do we actually get up from our familiar work area in our familiar department where we interact with our familiar coworkers, and communicate or interact with employees in different departments? How often do we leave our "box" to visit or work with someone in their "box"?

One of the strongest barriers to productivity and workplace morale is the presence of "silos" or "fiefdoms": separate departments that do not communicate with each other. People in organizations tend to be territorial. How much do customer service representatives know about what lineworkers do, and vice versa? How about engineers and administrative assistants, or business managers and human resources personnel?

Silos lead to office politics and rivalries. When one department doesn’t understand what another one does, misunderstandings occur, mistakes are made in work procedures and processes and communication shuts down. Loyalties harden and "turf wars" break out. In the end, too often it is customers who suffer from delays or faulty service that could have been avoided.

I don’t have a simple, magical ways of making this problem disappear—nor does anyone else, apparently—but it seems to me that the first step in removing the barriers between "silos" or "fiefdoms" would be for individuals to understand what their coworkers in other departments of the organization do. In other words, the process starts with learning.

How do you learn about others you don’t know well? It’s not that difficult. Open up the lines of communication by visiting other departments and asking them about their jobs and what they need from you. Tell them what you do and what you need from them. Share information and listen. Ask how you can support them and thank them when they help you.

These moves alone won’t bring about instant workplace harmony, but they are a learning experience that will move you and your coworkers out of your individual boxes and remind everyone that you all work for the same big box: the utility.