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Dimension
I XPLORE The Collaboration Concept
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Key
Concept 2: COLLABORATION Successful individuals are those who learn how to collaborate rather than competing with others.
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SNAPSHOT:
Denpasar Airport, 1996 Tourists
in Paradise Gaia: We
now live in Bali, a tropical island paradise in Asia just 12 degrees
south of the equator. We were drawn here by the wonderful balmy climate,
the colourful culture, and inviting environment. Originally planning to
come for a few months, for a working holiday retreat – we ended up
staying for many years. Many other
people, too, have been irresistibly drawn to the island. Tourism is the
number one industry for Bali, and every five minutes jet loads of
visitors arrive to experience the tropical dream. The total number of
tourists each year reaches almost 3 million. A
disproportionate number of visitors come from Australia, no doubt
because of its close proximity and the predilection Australians have for
sunshine and beaches. Right from the moment we arrived we could discern
two particular groups of visitors arriving from our home country’s
fair shores. The
stereotypical Australian “yobbo tourist”, firstly, travels by
Qantas. He consumes as much free grog as possible, eats Australian food,
and reads the Australian newspaper while en-route. He takes an
air-conditioned taxi from the airport, arrives at his air-conditioned
hotel or homestay, and enjoys the comforts of a home away from home. He
may go out to “Norm’s Pub” and watch some Aussie Rules Football on
TV or drink a Fosters Beer. No matter
what environment he may be in, no matter what the local culture is –
he will try to ensure that his experience is consistent with what he is
used to. He will not want to step outside of his comfort zone –
literally. Inevitably, any deviation from what he expects will prove
disastrous. He’ll complain about the heat, the food, the locals, and
the inconveniences. Then, after he’s arrived home, he’ll tell
everyone about the great time he had in Bali! The
stereotypical Australian “traveller”, on the other hand, will visit
another country precisely because she wants to absorb herself completely
in a completely different environment and culture. She will travel
Garuda and enjoy the local food, practising the local language with the
attendants along the way. She’ll read the Indonesian subtitles of the
movies, and continually check her phrase book to make sure her language
is up to scratch for when she arrives. The traveller
will walk outside of the airport to find the local transport, and
happily drag her backpack on board a local minivan or ‘bemo’.
She’ll enjoy the hour it takes to travel 3 kilometres, squashed in
with the pigs and the chickens, seeing it as an authentic Indonesian
experience. She’ll enthusiastically soak up the sights and smells of
the country she is visiting, no matter how unusual they may be. She
stays in a local homestay, bravely bearing the hole-in-the-ground toilet
and languid ceiling fans, taking time to interact with the local people
and learn about their lives. No matter what happens, she’ll enjoy the
experience simply because it is a unique experience. Both the
yobbo tourist and the traveller have arrived in the same country. Both
have had similar experiences. What sets them apart, however, is their
attitudes. It shapes how they see the situation, and how they respond to
it. It determines, ultimately, how enjoyable and meaningful their visit
will be. We have seen
many people come and go from Bali over the years we have lived here, and
in the end we have discovered that those who truly experience the island
as paradise are those who have the right attitude. Skill
or attitude Andrew: Those
who tend to succeed in life, in general, will always be those who are
willing and able to get along with and work closely with others. It may
not make a difference how intellectual, intelligent or competent they
are in their particular field of expertise, but it will certainly make a
difference how competent they are in interpersonal skills. “Emotional
intelligence” is, in fact, now considered to be the latest measure of
competence. Companies
today will invest a lot of time and money in individuals who outperform
others in the organisation, who are able to achieve superior results.
Known as “star performers” these individuals have been found to make
major contributions to organisations. The top 10% of computer
programmers, for example, have been found to exceed average performance
by 320%. The top 1% exceed average performance by 1272% A study of 44
Fortune 500 companies found that the top 10% of performers gave back to
their company 88 times their salary. Researchers
have found that the key element that can be found in all star performers
is not just their skill level, which is undoubtedly important, but also
their attitude. These people are able to collaborate with others when
working on projects rather than feeling they have to compete. They
recognise the value of the collective knowledge of the team. 90% of the thousands of individuals we have surveyed believe that attitude is more important than skill. And yet it’s interesting to reflect on the lack of emphasis on attitude education. Education at school and uni level, as well as on-the-job, generally focuses on skills rather than attitudes. Granted, it is a difficult concept to define and teach. But unless we are wrestling with our values and revising our attitudes, we will not be able to make significant progress. With a little respect
Andrew: The
key attitudes that make all the difference in relationships are the
ability to trust and respect others. By recognising and accepting
differences, we can begin to understand and appreciate the ways we can
complement each other. The process
of learning trust and respect should not be threatening, rather it
should be enlightening. Once you can learn to see how other people see a
situation and can begin to empathise with them, you are halfway there.
Tolerance is the first step, and this can soon – with a little
patience and perseverance – develop further into respect. This is not
a tolerance for ineffectiveness and inefficiency, but a tolerance that
comes from appreciating that people are different. Unfortunately
we often end up feeling so threatened by differences that we end up
creating unnecessary barriers. Instead of trying to make everyone like
us (to satisfy our own needs for security), we need to realise that if
treated carefully, we can actually make these differences a source of
strength for the group. This is by no means an easy process, as all of
us carry so much emotional baggage with us. More often
than not we will need to shift our paradigm to a new model and new
analogy to help us achieve this. This requires courage to let go of the
old and embrace the new. THE
3D DYNAMIC www.tirian.com
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