Working with people can be hard. Chances are, unless you did someone’s job before, you have no idea what’s important to them; what they really care about.

But, without knowing how they view their own role and their priorities you’ll always have difficulty getting them to see your point of view. You need to understand your collaborators’ mental models to get them to see yours.

  • If you work with designers, make them understand that aesthetics are important to you.
  • If you work with developers, make them understand that performance, code re-usability and simplicity is important to you.
  • If you work with accountants, make them understand that… etc, etc…

Show collaborators that you understand their reality, that their concerns are valid and that you care about what they care about. Empathy will help make your interactions and negotiations a lot smoother.