Observation

The skill of observation is one that will be of value to us in many different areas of life. As employees, as leaders, as parents, as bosses, as humans ... a keen sense of observation will be an asset to us in many facets of our journey. Even in the process of self-awareness, we need to develop the ability to observe things that are going on inside us and around us so that we can work towards enhancing the good things and correcting the not-so-good things.

When we are actively observing, our aim is to observe as much as possible, not just the point of focus in whatever is happening. Imagine we are watching a basketball game. We are usually focused on the ball and the action going on right there. If we widen our scope, how much more do we see? Players on the other side of the court are setting up a play and the defensive players are responding. Coaches are shouting instructions from the bench. Perhaps a player that left the game injured is about to come back in. A lot more is going on than just what is happening around the ball.

The same is true for our lives. Oftentimes when we are striving to achieve something, we are focused on it. This isn’t a bad thing, in fact I’ve often taught on how to get laser-focused. What I’m addressing here is that there’s a lot more going on that we should be aware of than just the point of focus. My experience has taught me that if we don’t at least occasionally check what’s going on in the periphery, it will impact what’s happening at the point of focus.

Another important part of observation is learning when to look for certain things. There are cues that we can learn that will help set us up to observe what is most important. For example, when I first meet someone, my sense of observation is heightened. I observe words, tone of voice, body language, eye contact, degree of engagement, degree of distraction, etc. I know all of these things are important in any conversation, but particularly when I am meeting someone new. Recently I was in a large gathering, meeting many people for the first time. A friendly young man was standing just behind me in line. I said to him, “Do I need to stand on my head to know your name?” You see, he was wearing his name badge upside down.

He laughed and said, “You must be a very observant person. I have talked to over 50 people and you are the first one to even notice how I put my nametag upside down. I did it on purpose hoping it would start conversations.”

Let’s think about how we can expand our scope to see more of what is going on, and let’s be deliberate about learning when to be especially observant. Let’s observe ourselves as we pursue our goals, taking the time to look around every so often to see all the things that are going to impact our focus or our outcome.

Author: Skip Ross

Skip Ross was the owner, founder, and director of Circle A Ranch. He and his wife Susan dedicated their lives to making a difference in the development of teens through their ministry and spent the over 40 years giving their summers to the work of Circle A.

Skip authored the books Say Yes to Your Potential and Daily Disciplines, and created the Dynamic Living Seminar and the Thrive Study Series. He traveled the globe teaching the principles of attitude development and leadership to millions of people for over 50 years. He also recorded numerous audio and video teachings that have been distributed around the world with the help of Network 21 and podcasts.

He was a successful business executive, recording artist, and motivational speaker. He was founder and president of the OFIDA Project, on the Board of Directors of the Fred L. Hansen Corp., a Crown IBO with Amway, and a graduate of Westmont College and Fuller Theological Seminary. He worked with many different ministry organizations over the years but had most recently been working with the Equip Organization, founded by John Maxwell, to produce highly effective Christian leaders around the world.

Skip Ross went home to be with Jesus on June 13th, 2021, at the age of 82.

This excerpt is taken from Skip’s book, Daily Disciplines.