I had a phrase pop into my head the other day: “Informing your position.”

Upon reflection, it initially seemed to be about an issue of time management but then morphed into “defending our limitations.”

The time management issue boiled down to this question: How much time do we spend looking for evidence for a position we’ve taken? “A lot” was the answer I came up with.

Oftentimes we take a position on something that we know very little about and then go looking for evidence so that we can defend our limited knowledge.

We only search in one area – the area that will support our position. That’s a limitation.

A successful coach in sports or in life is going to help you improve your strengths and strengthen your weaknesses. If you are only looking to build up your strengths, you will eventually be taken down by your shortcomings.

“Informing your position” is a weakness. Finding out where you are weak and improving upon it will move you further forward than working on what you already claim to know.

Is a drunk leaning on a lamppost for illumination or support? Are you leaning on a position that will expose your limitations? My guess is “Yes,” especially if you’re not willing to find out where your weak link is.

Informing your position has you go to only one well. That’s not only limiting, it’s a guarantee to remain uninformed.

The best negotiators know all the positions before they even begin to dicker. They spend more time investigating your position than they do their own. Their position is second nature to them; yours is a puzzle that needs to be solved, in advance.

Defending our limitations has become a national and global pastime. My thought is this: It’s well past time to stop informing our position and start making the effort to become more informed.

All the best,

John