Opening the book…
Most of what you think you know arrived pre-chewed — a summary, a headline, someone else's grudge. Proximity changes the picture almost every time, and the gap between the reported version and the actual thing is where bad decisions live. Opinions formed at a distance are cheap to hold and expensive to act on.
Before you decide a department is dysfunctional, sit in their standup. Before you write off a tool, spend an afternoon using it badly. Ask to visit the site, watch the process, meet the person you have only heard about — and hold your verdict until you have. If you can't get close, say out loud that your view is secondhand.
Some things are dangerous, cruel, or illegal to inspect up close, and you don't need firsthand experience to condemn them. And when a decision must be made today, an informed guess beats a delayed investigation.