Independent thinkers are what could be considered people who can stand on their own and don’t need a lot of encouragement to share their views. They serve to challenge the tendency to have too much homogeneity in a group, which can stifle learning as well as creativity. But then again, there’s the team player who does their best work as part of a group. How then can one strike a good balance between the two?
What needs to be established first is that after you’ve been used to working and succeeding on your own, transitioning to teamwork requires some change in your way of thinking. In a teamwork environment, your actions and decisions affect not just you, but others involved in the team or project.
As you make the transition, there are necessary things to have, such as respect, patience, consideration, and humility. This isn’t readily easy for the independent thinker, as people veering away from the norm often do so at a high cost. They’re willing to verbalize things that nobody else dares to, and that means they aren’t always in other people’s good graces and they can raise others’ level of worry or anxiety.
Making the transition means getting into a teamwork mindset, committing to the success of the team. It’s about working to reach collective goals with the objective of having every member advance and prosper. It also entails flexibility and understanding, which includes being prepared for stumbling blocks the team may face as well as accommodating other people’s ideas and opinions.
Communication proves to be a critical ingredient from being used to independent thinking to having a teamwork stance. Engage in regular meetings, collaborate online, or solicit opinion or advice for yourself to establish that needed rapport and cooperation.
Jason Boreyko is a seasoned expert in network marketing, having been both a successful distributor and the CEO and co-founder of one of the world’s largest companies. More reads like this here.
Jason Boreyko 