A few weeks ago, I started noticing a small, grayish blob positioned around the center of my left eye. Panicked, I went to my ophthalmologist, who took a look and explained that it was my first “eye floater,” essentially a clump of cells that had come loose within the vitreous jelly of my eye.
Floaters are a natural occurance as your eyes get older. “If you suddenly see a large black spot, come and see me immediately,” he advised.”That’s a detached retina.”
So I dodged a bullet. And as he predicted, I’ve grown accustomed to the floater and rarely notice it. But I do love a good metaphor, so I can’t help but relate this to mental blind spots. These are areas in our perceptions or behavior where we can’t see our biases, limitations, or shortcomings.
The truth about blind spots is that, like cars, we all have them. We may even have an inkling of what they are, floating around in our mind’s eye but not quite clear enough to identify.
I’ve signed up for some intensive, small group training this spring to help me to identify and understand my psychological blind spots. The opportunity came along, and because I believe in continuous improvement, I’m ready to roll up my sleeves and see what I can discover. Like the new floater that I no longer really notice, my blind spots are elusive to me but still present.
I’ll stretch the metaphor just a little more to say that you, my work colleagues and friends, can help inform me, just as my ophthalmologist did. What do you see about me that I don’t seem to be aware of? What constructive feedback (delivered with kindness, please) can you share to help me improve? What can you teach me? I am open to the conversation.
The floater in my eye is apparently here to stay. But the blind spots in my thinking? I intend to clear those from the vision of who I want to be.