Assume that differences are opportunities for exploration. When you take the position that you are right and others are wrong, nobody wins.
Richness is created from diversity. Sometimes survival depends on it. A series of exercises were once devised to simulate being lost on the moon, lost in the Arctic, lost at sea (in a lifeboat) or in some other life-threatening situation.
Teams were given a list of resources and told to choose those that would be most important for their survival. They needed to reach consensus about which few items they could keep. Their choices were compared with choices made by true experts in each situation.
Research showed the teams did much better when everyone contributed their knowledge. When they deferred to "experts" on the team, important information from less knowledgeable players was omitted and team scores declined. The livelier the discussions (arguments???), the better the team scores seem to be.
Some things you can do to make this work on your team are:
- Describe the differences of opinion or perspective that you notice
- Respectfully ask questions to clarify those differences
- Listen to the answers without unnecessary interruption
- Interrupt only to ask clarifying questions
- Do your best to understand the reasoning that leads to the differences
- If you disagree, challenge the idea and not the person
- Allow enough time to complete these important conversations.
Remember, when every one thinks alike important information is usually omitted. When everyone has the same skills tasks are completed in a lopsided way. When everything looks the same the view is boring. Go for the richness.
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