Seek first to understand. This is one of my favorite concepts because it implies gaining clarity by taking action.
The first thing that comes to mind when I think about the concept of “seeking” is a RADAR system that used to cause me a lot of headaches when I was a young Airman. As a C-130 avionics technician I was responsible for maintaining an old weather RADAR system called the AN/APN-59. This system was developed in the 1950’s and it was used to gather navigation, search, and weather information.
It was an active system. Which means it sent bursts of microwave energy out in front of the aircraft and then measured the returning signals as a way to detect storms and ground features. The antenna was in the nose of the aircraft and it could rotate at a set rate constantly scanning the environment, or it could be held steady in a specific direction. You could also narrow the beam to focus on a specific area gaining more detail, or you could use a broader fan pattern to gather more information but with less detail.
I think there is a good analogy here for how we seek out information to support our decision making. At times we can be broadly sweeping our environment taking a big picture look. When we see something that requires more detail we can shift our focus to “zoom in” and focus to increase clarity. But we have to be careful.
If we stay fixated for too long we might miss some other storm brewing in the distance or another opportunity popping up over the horizon.
It is important to realize that we get to choose how to operate our own mental RADAR. We are responsible for the maintenance, upkeep, and operation of this critical system. If we neglect it then it may break down and fail us when we need it most. If we fail to learn how to use it effectively and efficiently we will be operating at a significant disadvantage.
