Frog in the Well

Many years ago, I lived and worked in South Korea, first as a service missionary and then as a young employee in the corporate organizational development office at LG Electronics. As the only non-Korean in my division, struggling to learn the language and culture, I quickly became intrigued by the many insightful Korean proverbs that I encountered. One such proverb that immediately resonated with me and has stuck with me all these years later is 우물 안에 개구리, or “frog in a well.”

The Proverb’s Meaning

To explore the meaning behind this proverb, first try to imagine what it would be like to be a frog at the bottom of a well. Often those I train will quickly list the following conditions:

* Cold.

* Wet.

* Isolated.

* Limited.

* Trapped.

I then ask if there would be a difference between being a frog that fell into a deep well versus a frog that was born and lived its entire life there. Immediately, trainees see the difference and understand that a frog born at the bottom of the well won’t know any different. What the frog experiences is the entirety of the frog’s world, and the frog is unaware of the wider world around it (including the broad expanse of the sky, the diverse landscape, the variety of vegetation and animal life, etc.).

Koreans use this proverb to describe someone who walks through life with blinders on, with tunnel vision or with their head in the sand when it comes to all the diversity present in the world around them. The lesson is clear: We need to try to rise out of the well and experience the richness and beauty of the world around us!

Our Bias

The truth is, we are all like frogs in a well to a certain extent. We are all born and raised within a particular culture and context, with espoused values that inform our view of the world around us and create the lenses through which we interpret our interactions with others. However, this understanding in our childhood is necessarily simplistic and limited as we go through the stages of cognitive, social and moral development. We all have deeply embedded implicit (and sometimes explicit) biases and even prejudices based on our own particular upbringing, adjacent cultural conditions and predominant ideologies.

Shifting Our Worldview

The process of maturing and developing into productive adults often includes broadening our exposure to other people, circumstances and conditions that differ from our own upbringing and may even challenge our overly simplistic conception of a complex world. It is as though we are frogs rising out of the well, peeking over its edge for the first time.

As we climb to the top of the well, for the first time we see the full expanse of the sky above us and the diverse environment around us. We are now free to explore, experience new things, and both broaden and deepen our learning. However, we also quickly notice that ours is not the only well. In fact, the landscape is dotted with countless wells, each with its own little frog peeking out into the scary, complex world. Some frogs get scared, retreating back into their wells for safety (after all, it is what they know). Other frogs get frustrated by the limitations of their wells, rightly recognizing that their previous understanding was lacking, so they decide to explore. In time, many of these frogs will discover new wells but will in effect trade ideology for ideology, and find refuge in their new wells. The relative few who choose to embrace the newly discovered complexity, ambiguity and even dangers of this new world around them come to understand that the life well lived requires continual learning and respect and appreciation for all that the world has to offer.

The Value Of Diverse Thinking In The Workplace

While the wisdom of “frog in a well” teaches us the value of diversity, there is also a tremendous amount of research that has demonstrated the value of diversity in the workplace: Diversity enhances collaboration, creativity, innovation, decision making, and individual and team productivity. Often this research focuses on factors such as race, gender, religion, sexual orientation and socioeconomic status. However, it is also important to remember that diversity of thought is equally important. It is vital that organizations foster a culture that welcomes and embraces diverse social, economic and political backgrounds, as well as a wide variety of experiences, educational tracks and learning and communication styles. Leaders should create a safe environment of openness, trust and mutual respect that allows for the civil and productive sharing of ideas.

We all have biases and limitations to our thinking and understanding of the complex world around us. As we recognize these limitations, we can take proactive steps to broaden our exposure to diverse ways of knowing and understanding the different individuals and environments we interact with. Ultimately, we can discover ways to both honor and respect our upbringing, while simultaneously valuing the perspectives and views of those around us, thus becoming a frog outside of the well. By doing so, we will increase our productivity, creativity and decision-making capacity.

Originally published at https://www.forbes.com.