A team of true team players consists of individuals that have many characteristics, six of which we believe are of utmost importance: Competency, Commitment, Adaptability, Communication, and the topic of today’s article: Awareness.
Achieving a balance between objectivity and subjectivity can be a struggle, especially because who we are and the experiences we’ve had – are valuable. On the other hand, our background can make us biased in ways that interfere with our ability to remain open minded, which is why a level of objectivity is also advantageous.
Think of it like this: let’s say you were part of a basketball team, and you were asked to reflect on the interaction and communication of the players on the court. Now, if your information intake only included your experience in the heat of the game, on the court, you would be missing a whole other perspective. But, if you never got off the bench, again, you wouldn’t have much personal experience of the players’ interaction to assess the actual participation.
Only taking into account your experience isn’t beneficial, but never considering it is also a problem. It’s all about balance. An all-or-nothing approach isn’t an appropriate way to achieve awareness.
There are two different degrees of awareness. The first level includes the ability to monitor your own behavior and modify it accordingly, so that you can maximize your performance. The second level involves your capacity to contribute to your group’s performance process. This requires a mature perspective that it’s not all about you, and a humble acknowledgement that you also influence the group’s performance (positively, and in some cases, negatively).
Are you willing to recognize that you’re part of the process, without being solely subjective or overly objective?
