Engineers are really smart. Unfortunately, we sometimes try to act smarter than we are. We feel like we need to come across as all-knowing, and will sometimes sit through an entire meeting of acronym soup, understanding nothing, but nodding and acting as if it’s all sinking in just fine. After all, nobody else is asking any questions. They all look like they understand just fine, so they must, right? Well - perhaps they are thinking the very same thing you are? What a productive meeting!
In a field where knowledge and intelligence is highly valued, it is often difficult to be a WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get, pronounced “wiz-ee-wig” for you non-engineer types). But it’s also very brave, and very effective in creating and maintaining high-quality, respectful relationships with others, thereby increasing productivity. Martha Beck calls this being “TAO”, which stands for “Transparent, Authentic, and Open”.
To be transparent means to be able “to be seen without any intervening material”. Often the intervening material is our ego. It prevents us from saying or doing what we truly want. Being transparent doesn’t mean to go around calling your boss an a** just because you happen to feel that way at that moment. What it does mean, however, is to communicate how you feel with tact and respect. When you aren’t transparent, what you really feel gets buried inside, just to simmer and ferment, occupying your thoughts and mind energy. You are responsible for communicating your thoughts and opinions. If you don’t, you cannot expect someone else to know how you feel. I’m sure we can all think of situations where we thought “If she had only told me that in the beginning, I wouldn’t have wasted all of this time!” Being up front about things can save lots of time and energy, assets that are often in short supply in the engineering world.
Authentic is defined as “not counterfeit or copied; genuine and therefore worthy of trust, reliance, or belief”. Being authentic is, simply put, being yourself. If you are a software geek, be a software geek. If you love to test, test away. But don’t sacrifice who you are to please the crowd. Everyone will do best at what they are most passionate about. We all know people like this – people on our team who are always reliable, always trustworthy, and just damn good at what they do. They are themselves, and we never have to wonder what they are really thinking or if they are going to do what they say they are going to do. They’re genuine. They’re reliable. We trust them. And therefore we don’t have to waste our own time or energy worrying about whether or not they will follow up on their tasks.
To be open means to be willing to share yourself with others, to be vulnerable. I can hear some groans and gripes right about now. Let’s just say that the typical engineer is not so much into emotional “woo-woo”. But this woo-woo has been over and over again scientifically linked to increased productivity, and that leads to more time for you to do the things you enjoy. Admit your mistakes. Admit your failures and flaws. Admit your strengths and weaknesses. Take responsibility if you mess up. This allows others to see you as you really are, that is, human, and to relate to you.
What’s standing in the way of you being a WYSIWYG? How has not being TAO gotten you in trouble?
