Avoid these common misconceptions in work, life and uni

By sticking to some common misconceptions, we often make professional life harder on others and ourselves. Interact more effectively and smart by letting go of false believes.

If you are anything like me, you have been misled be the following three misconceptions. Reflect whether you are guilty of entertaining those fallacies:

Successful people don’t know failure

The myth that successful people never failed is a popular one. Thankfully, it has been debunked already in many books and publications (read also this blog post on a similar topic).

Still, I list it here because it is a very powerful and persistent misconception about successful people. The impression is reinforced by the fact that the vast majority of successful people avoid talking about their failures.

So the next time you meet a successful person, do not envy their achievements. Rather appreciate the number of setbacks he or she had to endure.

If something was done well it must have been easy

Just because someone does something well, this does not mean it was easy for that person. More often than not, producing good results on time is the result of someone putting a lot of effort and discipline into it.

It might be easy for him or her. But immediately assuming it was easy, might not do this person justice.

Body language sends the right message automatically

Without any doubt, gesture and facial expression is a big part of our communication. It underscores what was said, and we send and receive most of it intuitively.

Still be aware of terrible misunderstandings. They might happen if you do not know your conversation partner well or if he or she has a different cultural background.

Here are some examples of common misunderstandings: Just because someone nods, it does not mean he or she agrees with what you say. It could just be an indicator of understanding.

Likewise, if you do not agree but smile, others can misunderstand this as consent. If someone shakes his or her head while listening, this is often understood as disagreement. But, it can be an involuntary gesture. To be sure, ask those persons whether they agree or object. You might get surprised.