Is the Bigger Picture = My Picture + Others' Picture ?

राधे राधे 

"Look at the bigger picture". We have heard this phrase quite a few times in our lives from our parents, teacher, managers, peers etc. I have wondered at times what exactly does it mean! Is it looking at things in a holistic manner or does it mean putting myself out of the equation to observe something? I was never clear about it until a few days ago. But when it hit me I could not stop thinking about it. I have finally figured out what it means to me.

To understand the roots of my understanding you will have to bear with another understanding of my own. I have believed for some time that we create a bubble of all things we are comfortable with around us. Whether it is our favorite newspaper or our family. This is the bubble which gives us a feeling of protection and warmth. We don't want to venture out of it. The same goes for our thinking. We have practiced thinking in a particular way that familiarity leads to monotonicity. In a movie called "Proof" a character describes how a mathematician tackles with a problem. He or she (the mathematician) keeps on attacking the problem from different directions. Chipping here and there till he or she has chipped enough to see the core or just found the right pattern! This process of attacking from different sides helps him or her to find what is "right" for him or her. Similarly for a manager or a leader or even a co-worker to understand the others' point of view on an issue gives the "Bigger Picture". So the bigger picture is not "your" picture but your picture plus the "other's" picture.

Most of the time when we are looking from our point of view we might miss another crucial point of view simply not visible to us! It is the missing gaps that builds the bigger picture. Not only it fills the gaps but it creates synergy when we try to see the others' picture. When your picture and others' picture fuse among themselves we can call it a complete picture. This for me is the definition of the "Bigger Picture". I know it is a long task ahead of me to develop this ability to see others' picture. But God willing I will!