The CEO of a company in Houston, TX engaged me to do an On-Purpose program at her headquarters. Fifteen executives gathered around the conference room table.
The COO was a woman named Barb. Early in the program she caught my eye. She had this look! My interpretation of “the look” was a mix of anger and confusion. What had I done to deserve this wrath? It was disturbing my concentration.
As a presenter I tend to home in on certain people as barometers of the group to see if I’m connecting. Barb had grabbed my attention. Could I win her over in the early minutes of a program that was scheduled to go all morning?
After 30 minutes of “the look” from her… I couldn’t take it any longer. I gingerly confronted Barb. I asked, “Have I said something that offended you?”
“No, I’m loving this on-purpose stuff!”
“Oh!” I was perplexed. “The way you were looking at me I thought you were upset with me.”
She laughed and her beauty truly showed. “This” and she pointed to her face while giving me the look “is my thinking face.”
A gasp erupted in the room from 14 other people and me. In that moment, we had all gleaned the same insight. The only problem was Barb had been working there for three years with these people. They all thought she was upset with them, too, but for years.
Barb now explains to people she meets that she has a “thinking face.” You can only imagine what a difference this has made in Barb’s life.
The present problems you face may be the face you present. Do you or someone you know have a “thinking face” that may be keeping you from being on-purpose?