Episode 71:
Sara Taylor earned a master’s degree in Diversity and Organizational Development from the University of Minnesota. She served as a leadership and diversity specialist at the University of Minnesota for five years and as director of diversity and inclusion for Ramsey County, Minnesota for three years.
Sara is the founder and president of deepSEE Consulting and has worked with companies as large as Coca-Cola, General Mills, 3M Company, AARP, and numerous others. She has a new book, “Filter Shift: How Effective People See the World,” that explores how our unconscious is actually making choices and decisions for us, all without our knowing — and how to change that.
What you’ll learn about in this episode:
- Why we typically pay attention to and notice another person’s visible actions and behaviors, rather than the thoughts that drive those actions
- How our unconscious filters are what drive our thoughts that lead to our actions, and why recognizing and paying attention to filters is the key to breaking the feedback loop
- Why, in any unpleasant interaction, it is important to stop and consciously consider the filter the other person is experiencing that started the interaction
- Why in the workplace we often focus on rewarding positive behaviors and reprimanding negative ones but don’t consider where those behaviors are coming from
- Why the conscious thought isn’t always a part of the process and is sometimes skipped when unconscious filter leads directly to action
- How we sometimes have well-worn “go to” filters that cause us to skip the conscious thought process and go straight from filter to action
- How repetitive experiences and interactions can form pathways that help us unconsciously make decisions
- Why the thought step, the one we often skip, is the important one that we need to expand on and spend more time in
- Why taking the time to think allows us the opportunity to decide whether there is a better response to the situation
- Why it is important to consider what advantages and disadvantages your filters may give you in your interactions with others
Additional resources:
- Website: www.deepseeconsulting.com
- Twitter: @deepseesara