We moved into our house nearly four years ago, and I still don’t know the names of my neighbors. I didn’t intend this – but in the first few weeks of moving in, the time to orient myself in the neighborhood never came. And now it’s a little too late to try and introduce myself to the neighbors.
When you start a new job or project, there’s so much to learn initially, but the drive is high to make an impact and contribute early. Something’s got to give, and often it’s the relationship building with the stakeholders that matter on the team. Or maybe it’s learning the lingo of the organization.
Putting forth effort to learn won’t pay off early, but it will pay off eventually.