The Astronomical Cost of Assumptions

Assumptions are one the most dangerous things in your business.

Think this is a just a fluffy, feel-good concept that isn't important?

💥 In 1999 The $300M Mars Climate Orbiter was destroyed because two different groups assumed the other was working in metric vs imperial measurement. This led to a series of undiscovered miscalculations, ultimately leading to the probe travelling too closely to Mars and blowing up.

This is an astronomically large example ( 😎 ), but assumptions permeate our every day in our workplaces.

We assume that things will take less time than they actually do. We assume we know what others are thinking. We assume that we've been heard and understood. We assume that others are motivated by the same things that we are. We assume that we're all operating with the same ground rules for healthy dialogue and conflict.

And these don't have small consequences. They can destroy deals, products, relationships, and even companies. After all, a simple assumption about units of measurement blew up a $300M spacecraft.

So what can be done? Well, it's impossible to avoid some assumptions. The very way we move through the world requires that we are constantly assuming things. This isn't all bad.

But we do need to build cultures that are constantly challenging assumptions. It needs to be OK in every meeting for anyone to raise a hand, and say "Can we just pause to check our assumptions?" Or "I think we might be making an assumption here, can we validate it?"

A week ago I was was chatting with somebody who displayed an extremely high level of self awareness by saying "I know that I am prone to making some big assumptions, so I'm giving you permission and asking for your help to challenge any of those when you see them come up."

It changed the nature of the conversation (and the relationship) entirely, for the better.At Crewjoy we're building a platform that uses human-centric data to make us more self-aware, and even to detect harmful assumptions that might negatively impact our communications and collaboration.What strategies have you found for recognizing and challenging assumptions in your team?