“There is no longer any room for leaders to be heroes."
- Margaret Wheatley

Successful collaboration any project involving a large number of people requires what could be considered a “collaboration ethic”. Practical rules that will facilitate collaboration include:

1. Practice “deep respect”
Really this is just a variation of the golden rule applied to opinions. What we assume of ourselves is that:
a) our opinion matters
b) we speak with the best intentions
c) that there is truth in what we say

Another way of practicing deep respect: if you can, try walking around every day assuming that everything you think and believe is roughly 50% wrong. Respect follows naturally. The best we can do is learn from everyone else.

2. Participation rules:
This rule requires the opt-in principle. If you do not choose to “opt-in” and then participate in the process, you do not have the right to complain about the result. We must respect the collaborative process and respect people who have shown up for the process. Latecomers should not expect to have their opinions fully considered. At the end of the process we must collectively stand by the results. Those who chose not to participate must respect the results. The opt-in requires trust in the group and transparency of process.

3. Nobody “owns” an idea
In response to being called a ‘towering genius’, Isaac Newton responded, “It is only because I am standing on the shoulders of giants”. There is no such thing as an original idea: the best we can do is absorb and reassemble old ideas in some new way. Some individuals do have a special ability for refactoring old ideas, but the ideas themselves are mostly like the trees of a forest - they grow and thrive largely of their own accord.

renamed from Collaboration etiquette mainly because I am incapable of spelling etiquette

contributed by mlpilling on Sep 13 11:41am