Teamwork is Hard
“What if it’s hard” asked a recent team-building workshop participant after we had just completed an exercise about working with people who have styles quite different than our own. At the time I thought he might be joking, even though his face suggested he was being quite serious. So I tackled his question straight up.
First up, agree with the premise of his question. It is hard. People who are different from us challenge our values and beliefs. They force us into doing things that aren’t comfortable. They somehow manage to push our hot-buttons; leaving us frustrated, angry, and exhausted.
With that out of the way, I decided to make the case for why it is worth the effort. Here’s what I came up with. If you can add to the list, please do so in the comments.
- Reciprocity. If we go out of our way to accommodate others, perhaps they’ll one day return the favor. And if we don’t see ourselves as being difficult for some of the people we work with, well then it’s time to develop some self-awareness.
- Learning. When people force us out of our comfort zone, we can’t help but learn something about them and ourselves in the process.
- Results. Let’s assume for a minute that we don’t always know the right thing to do, nor do we always know the best way for doing it. Mixing it up with people who are different from us helps us discover new and often better approaches. Together we are able to more effectively solve problems than we could have on our own.
- Necessity. Finally it all comes down to this. We live and work together. We are social beings. For most of us, we aren’t financially in a position to pull out of our jobs or society and live in isolation. With this reality as a backdrop, what choice do we have?
Is is hard? Yep. Is it worth making the effort? Absolutely. Look around at the people with whom you work, especially the ones you don’t like. Now find a way to connect and succeed together.
