Participation in the planning activities initiates the process and builds skills. Where those who are developing the supports have not had the opportunity to participate in the planning process, they must have other opportunities to develop understanding. The more skilled you are, the less time is needed to achieve a basic level of understanding, but there are clear minimums. All people are complex, regardless of the presence or absence of a disability. All people show different facets of themselves in different settings and with different people.
Understanding requires that more than one facet be seen.
Further, we cannot claim to understand someone if we do not know their core values. Discovering core values requires a picture of the person across settings. By definition, core values are stable across settings although they may be manifested differently in each setting. Given the complexity of people, our understanding should continue to deepen indefinitely over time. Our initial efforts should be seen as a beginning, not an end.