Lessons to be learned from Robert McNamara and a pair of long-handled toenail clippers

This column considers the ability to see things through the eyes of another individual. Psychologists call it a Theory of Mind - which has been defined as the ability to accurately infer another person's thoughts; and then use that inference to construct an appropriate response.

Lessons to be learned from Robert McNamara and a pair of long-handled toenail clippers

Jeremy Bullmore

Empathy doesn't just mean being cuddly – it means learning to see through your customers' eyes.

Imagine two people, one on either side of a canal.

The first one shouts across: "How do I get to the other side?"

The second one shouts back: "You are on the other side!"

At the heart of this primitive joke lies a form of blindness that has probably contributed to more wars, divorces, family alienations, political failures and wastes of marketing money than any other single cause....

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