Someone was honking at me and I couldn't figure out why.

Someone was honking at me and I couldn't figure out why.

I started to turn right at an intersection, and a person and their small dog were in the crosswalk, so I paused.

The driver behind me couldn't see them. All they could see was my car sitting there, blocking the intersection for no apparent reason.

So they started honking. 😡

From where they were sitting, I was just some distracted idiot who wouldn't move.

From where I was sitting, I had a very good reason they literally could not see.

I think about this all the time when I hear:
"Why won't they just send me the data?"
"Why won't they just make this a priority?"
"Why won't they just see what they're doing is hurting the team?"

That frustration is valid. And underneath it, I hear: I cannot see what they can see. And they cannot see what I can see.

That’s actually the opportunity: get genuinely curious about what's blocking their view.

What are they trying to protect? What do they see from where they're sitting that you literally cannot see from yours?

"Why won't they just" is a signal - a little alarm bell warning that you've dropped curiosity and picked up frustration instead.

Once you can see what they see, things start to move.

🚗. vroom vroom 🚗

Got a 'why won't they just' situation? You don't have to name names 😏 - send me a note.