Tell the Invisible Man I can't See Him Now

“Where can I get a taxi?” I asked. “Over there, in that queue, sir” came the quick answer. When my taxi comes, I climbed into the front seat. It gave me a chance to talk to the driver. I’ve found that taxi drivers will talk to you about all kinds of things if you’ll give them a chance.

In Barcelona, I got a travelogue of the city including the best times to visit certain locations and some insights into less visited places. The talkative cabbie in Dublin told me about the economic impact of the new “No Smoking” ban on pubs. When I commented about how clean Singapore was, the taxi driver there smiled and remarked, “Singapore is a fine city.” He explained that there are enforced fines for even simple offenses like chewing gum and jaywalking. I hoped they wouldn’t search my backpack! I carry chewing gum when I fly. I could always claim that it was for medicinal purposes.

Of all my taxi rides, two stand out in my memory as significant. One happened in Germany. My friend Joe, from Lebanon, began talking to the Iraqi taxi driver. Joe translated for me that the Iraqi wanted to thank me for removing Saddam Hussein. Chemical Ali attacked his village with chemical weapons killing nearly everyone. His entire family died. He had been away at the time and later escaped to Germany. He believed in Saddam’s weapons of mass destruction. Quietly I said, “You’re welcome.”

The other happened in Hong Kong after it became part of China again. The driver was an ancient man. I asked how long he’d been in Hong Kong. “Born, raised, married, and then raised my family in Hong Kong,” came his reply. I asked how life was now that the Island was part of China again. He looked at me smiled and said, “Hong Kong is still Hong Kong. It always will be.” We continued talking about life in the city, missed our exit, and spent another twenty minutes getting back to the hotel. It was a good conversation.

What strikes me is that taxi drivers, like so many other people who serve us, have knowledge and wisdom about life and the world around them. Yet they tend to be invisible people. We don’t see them as we rush from place to place. We just use their services and move on.

Invisible people are like apple seeds –you usually don’t notice them. When you do, what do you see? The seeds themselves? The apple? The tree? Or an orchard that feeds hundreds of people? We miss the significance if we only see the seeds. The invisible people around us are similar. We look past them…we don’t see them. We don’t see their knowledge and wisdom. We don’t see their significance.

This is not a new condition caused by our fast-paced world. The Christmas season was a reminder of that. When the wise men came looking for a newborn king they started at the palace. They ended their search in cave near a small, insignificant village. They didn’t see just another baby; they saw a gift…a savior…a sacrifice…an eternal King. They saw an infant and recognized the possibilities.

It happens to us in organizations today. The invisible people are those we have put in a box, categorized as having limited status, knowledge, or wisdom. We miss their creativity and that limits our possibilities. When you look at them, what do you see? The person today? The last mistake they made? Or their potential…their destiny? Seeing past the moment is an act of creativity.

So, the next time you’re facing a challenge in your organization, slowdown, think first, and …

• Ask yourself, “Who are the invisible people I could talk to?”
• Then as they talk, listen, contemplate, don’t correct them or say “Yeah, but…” just say “Thank

   you.”
• Next, find three ideas from your conversation that you can apply to your situation.

Your assignment for 2006 is find new possibilities from new people. And when you do, tell your invisible people you can see them now.

From a taxi on the way to the airport in Brussels…

Charlie