Working collaboratively has its benefits and is necessary for many successful businesses. Yet teamwork and collaboration have become a national obsession. The implication is that everything is better done as a team. People are evaluated based on their ability to contribute to the team discussion and express their ideas verbally. At times this feels like a performance American Idol style – where the next person speaking is akin to the next competitor striving for the one winning prize at the end of the discussion. Did the group land on your idea? If so – you win!
A consequence of our compulsion toward group work – is that the best idea may not get chosen but rather the person who performed the best (or the most forceful) is chosen. There are countless stories where introverts mentioned something and no one responds and then later a more noticeable extrovert says the same thing and the group goes wild. Introverts are at a distinct disadvantage here. In these situations our mild mannered tendency can undercut us in a culture that puts a premium on being outspoken, bold, and assertive. There are many examples of groups plunging over a cliff – figuratively speaking – because they were persuaded to follow a bad idea proposed by a dynamic outspoken leader.
Ideas for how to honor our style:
1. Listen to the quiet contributors on the team.
2. Slow decisions down. Urge the group to table the decision until the next meeting or a later date. Then write out your idea and email this to others for feedback and support. This allows you and other introverts to be able to influence in a medium that is typically your strong suit – the written word.
3. Propose a process that makes room for the quiet contributors like inviting people to send their ideas in an email after the meeting, sending out brainstorming topics ahead of meetings, etc.
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Reblogged this on Intelligent Introvert and commented:
This was one of my earlier posts before I had a big following. I want to highlight it since team work is such a prevailing theme in both the work place and schools.
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So true. I watched it happen so many times over the years in my previous job. In the last year before I retired I worked on at least 7 working groups and they each left me exhausted. It’s an honor to think they all wanted me for my knowledge and ability, but at the same time I was strong enough to actually speak my peace and in many cases I made the product better. It’s finding the strength to speak accurately and to the point that helped me. I am not saying it was easy and did not take years to develop.
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