🥾 Someone Else’s Shoes

Have you ever truly seen the world from another person’s perspective?
Not just listened but understood? 🤔

When we approach life with an open-door policy mindset — treating every conversation as an opportunity to learn rather than defend — something shifts. The walls drop. The curiosity rises.

We assume certain people from certain backgrounds fit certain stereotypes.
Dead wrong, compadre. 🪦

This is known as the False Consensus Effect, the tendency to think our own opinions and beliefs are more common (and correct) than in actuality.

We have a desire to view our perspective as appropriate and normal, proven by insurmountable evidence.

Living in an echo chamber of specific social media content only fuels this consensus. 🚒

So why bring this up?

Because understanding others starts with recognizing our blind spots. 🦯

In today’s world of nonstop political and religious friction, people take little time to recognize the foundation of opposing ideas. 

We’re all guilty of it. ⚖️

Things can get heated. 😡

You’d rather avoid disagreements with family/friends, potentially ruining relationships.

Instead choosing to keep the peace. ☮️

A general rule adults have abided by for decades. ⌛

Naturally, it makes sense to avoid conflict.

But what if we flipped that and turned those moments into lessons instead of landmines?

Make the shift from defending to discovering, and suddenly everything changes. 🦎

As parents of multiple boys, we have to adapt to each’s personality traits to help us comprehend how they approach or react to certain things.

We’re going to prove that when we take the time to understand why someone thinks the way they do, tension fades and connection grows.

Try and see the world beyond our own lens.

🎤 It’s Gonna Be a No From Me Dawg

We’re not big fans of focusing on negatives but I used to despise country music.
(the “H” word is condemned in our house, and no it’s not the one with 2 hockey sticks) 🏒

For years, I carried this invisible wall. 🧱

It wasn’t my thing, and I carried a ridiculous amount of judgment toward it.

I didn’t understand why people liked entire albums of twang and heartbreak.

I judged it from my own lens. 🥸

Seemed like the same messages on a loop.

“Ford truck broke down, guy misses his ex and the family dog died…” 🛻

Along Came Becka.

She dragged me to a concert of her favorite artist at the time.

Naturally, I wanted to go wherever she goes. 🫶🏻

Luckily for me, it was at Summerfest (my personal favorite) with plenty of beer to spare. 🍻

I promised myself: come in curious, not defensive.

The result?  I had a good time AND have been to many similar concerts since.

That hard shell boiled egg deep down cracked open. 🐣

I walked out thinking: maybe there’s beauty in what we dislike, if we just gave it a chance.

When we talk about perspective, we’re not preaching kumbaya. (unless that’s your vibe) 🪕

We’re claiming curiosity as a radical practice.

Turn every page.  Leave no stone unturned.  Comb the dessert.

And here’s why it matters, more than you realize 👇🏻

👯‍♀️ Freaky Friday Fun

1. Empathy, Trust & Social Bonding
Studies show that when people take on someone else’s perspective it often boosts empathy and reduces stereotyping. (E.g. Dissociating Empathy From Perspective-Taking, PMC) PMC

In virtual reality experiments, participants who “became” someone else (like homeless) reported more lasting empathy and were likelier to sign supportive petitions. (Herrera, Bailenson, Ogle, & Zaki, PLoS ONE, 2018) PLOS

2. Confiding in Strategy
If you want to predict someone’s behavior or make decisions that involve them, especially our kids, perspective-taking helps you reason strategically.

One recent paper showed that giving people factual info about their opponent improved their strategic guessing ability (parenting hack!) because they considered what the other would think. Stanford University

3. The Limits & Cautions
It’s not completely foolproof. Sometimes trying to imagine another’s feelings leads you to project your own biases. In competitive or high-stakes settings, perspective-taking can backfire.
You might assume selfish motives and respond defensively. (See The Darker Side of Perspective Taking, Harvard’s PON) PON Harvard

Also, “perspective getting” (asking someone directly) can actually be more accurate than “perspective taking” (guessing). Action Strategies By Design

Science is clear: perspective is powerful but, like people, it will fluctuate.

We want you to shift how you view everything around you. 

Look at it from a different angle

🍪 C is for Curate, Curiosity, Connect

We strive to learn by using these three mental habits. 

You can apply them in building new relationships, developing leadership and enhancing social creativity with peers.

When you merge your lane with someone else’s — instead of forcing them into yours — you unlock unexpected alignment.

You’re gonna like the way you look.  I guarantee it.

🌛 Fly Me to the Moon

Perspective isn’t permission to abandon your truth. It’s permission to expand it.

When you step into someone else’s shoes, you can walk further than you ever imagined.

Visualize being in Neil Armstrong’s astronaut gear while taking steps on the moon. 🧑🏻‍🚀

Picture putting on Shaq’s shoes (size 21?) and being over 7ft tall. 🫨

Imagine trying on Steve Jobs’ glasses and seeing his visions. 👓

These are all fun scenario’s we might’ve tried as a kid, and that’s the point.

Opening new outlooks to discover what makes us, us. 

Whether it’s your kids, your parents, your friends or a neighbor,
take a second to imagine the view from their perch. 

It will broaden your horizon and evolve your thinking along the way 🤓

Someone That’s B.A.

Simon Sinek | NYT Best-selling author

He is an extreme optimist who believes in our ability to build a bright future together. Simon's WHY is to inspire people so that, together, each of us can change our world for the better and each other in the process.

One of his main slogans explains it all, Simon says 🤭 
“We believe the best way to build this world is to commit to building it together. Welcome to the Help Others Industry.”

We couldn’t agree more sir.

Inspirational Quote

"If you want to lift yourself up, lift up someone else." - Booker T. Washington