WiIw or “What if I’m wrong?” Do you ask yourself that question? I do. A lot.

I’m not a masochist. The truth is I don’t like being wrong. More accurately I dislike when know-it-alls point out when I (or my team) have missed something obvious. I’m also not a fan of messing up in public or in front of a client. If we can be open to learning something new and learn a lesson quickly – we can fix it. Boom! Done. That is the joy of asking “what if I’m wrong.”

Once when I switched teams – moving from a group that had a lot of trust and psychological safety to a competitive low trust environment. I was astounded when my annual review came back and I learned that co-workers interpreted this WiIw habit as a lack of confidence. Reporting that it seemed like I doubted myself and everyone.

As it turned out, it was true, I DID lack confidence. I lacked confidence in a culture that was too insecure to question itself or factor in divergent perspectives.