Wednesday, June 09, 2010

What blindspots?


Without credibility, arguments vaporize. One of the most undervalued components in credibility is objectivity - being above any hidden agenda or influence. As clear-as-a-bell as it is when we hear someone else speaking, it's still incredibly tempting to overestimate our own objectivity.

Do media spokesmen have more or less objectivity after they've been hob-nobbing (or squirt-gun fighting) over the weekend with politicians at a beach party with the Biden's?

Does a new study that shows Ford is now "the no. 1 automaker in customer satisfaction with vehicle quality" have as much clout when you learn the study was commissioned by... Ford? (It disagrees with the most recent Consumer Reports.)

As an expert in your field, you have a claim to trusted advisor sentiments, but it's dangerous to let your bias speak when you need to remain aloof. When you put together your next presentation, make a point to cite objective, third-party sources that your audience trusts, both in the slides and the dialog. And lob the first salvo at "experts agree," and "research has shown," which are even more lame than no citation at all.