I was thinking today about taking care of what’s mine and letting go what’s not mine. I thought of a good example.
Assume I am on a team where I was taught than when an email comes in that’s relevant to a ticket in the system, I am supposed to copy/paste that email into the ticket, if it’s not already there. I am diligent with this. I never forget to check if the email is there, and I copy it over if not.
But I notice that team members from another shift don’t do it. Emails are missing from the ticket.
Old Me would hunt down all the relevant emails and copy them into the ticket. Or Old Me would report the lack to supervisors.
Old Me would resent that I do all the things and my colleagues don’t.
New Me would apply “How Important Is It?” New Me would ask myself if the information in the emails is easily findable if necessary. New Me would ask myself if anyone would actually be harmed. If it’s not so important that someone would be harmed, could New Me let it go?
If it were truly that important, wouldn’t the lack be obvious? Wouldn’t corrective training be happening?
None of that is my business. I’m doing what I’m supposed to, and that’s what’s in my purview.
Now if something is going on where a harm is happening that is outside my realm, it’s my right and my responsibility to mention it. Once. And then I need to let go of the results. Speaking up often is an attempt to control. And we already established that it’s outside my realm.