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A Teacher's Perspective

· Communication,Conflict,Team Work

In the 7th grade, my Social Studies teacher, Ms. Margaret McDermott, drew a tall building on the chalkboard and asked us to imagine it in 3-D. She pointed to various windows at different levels, on each of the four sides. She did this to show us that depending on which side of the building we are on, from which floor we looked out, our perspective of the landscape will be different; i.e., a high floor to the north or a low floor to the west, will allow us to see different things. In order to see what others see, we need to go over to their window and see the world from their perspective. Still today, I remember her message.

"There’s no question that it’s easier to manage people who are the same, but we are not – and it is not our similarities that cause our problems.”

- Jim Braham