(Expansion) – Imagine that you are in a very important meeting with your director: before concluding, the team members say they agree with the topics that were addressed and the agreements that were reached. Even so, some collaborators leave the room feeling that something is wrong and that they must have raised their concerns. Does it sound familiar to you?
The reality is that they did not do it, simply out of fear of expressing it, because they think that their opinion is not valid or because they believe that no one cares. It is a situation that is repeated in practically all work environments.
There is a problem, everyone sees it, but no one mentions it; is the elephant in the room. This silence is recognized as a disastrous empathy for fear of hurting someone else’s feelings, or as a manipulative insincerity derived from the desire to always fit in with the group. In both cases, the work of a team can be the most affected at the end of the day.
The main challenge in the growth of any organization lies in getting people to express themselves, to do so honestly, without thinking that by doing so they will be perceived as aggressive and wanting to put someone else out. When people engage in an honest discussion using a respectful tone, the team’s problem-solving efforts can begin to be more creative.
To encourage this exchange of ideas, it is essential to identify the types of personalities that are part of work teams.
There are those who are very outgoing and always think and formulate their opinions while speaking, and are enthusiastic and excited about what they say. However, they seldom notice an elephant wandering around; and if they do, they prefer to ignore it and get on with it.
There are those who are good listeners and observers, qualities that would allow them to be the first to notice the elephant, but will not say anything about it because they may not want to interrupt the extrovert. They are also not sure how the rest of the group feels about the elephant’s presence, so they remain silent, but pay attention to its movements instead of focusing on the discussion.
There are also those who seek to understand as much as possible before taking a step and acting. They are attentive to detail, but introverted. Obviously, they see the pachyderm too, but they’re not entirely sure that someone else will see it. Especially when nobody says anything. So they are probably not going to mention it, but they are going to be distracted by obsessively thinking about how much it can grow, and the potential it has to become a significant burden.
Finally, there are those who always get down to work, are practical and have no qualms about saying what they think. They realize the dimensions that the elephant is reaching the moment its progress is interrupted, and it is easier for them to express their concern and question why the hell there is a pachyderm in the middle of the table. Although sometimes, when the alarm is raised, it can be late and the problem has grown so much that it is impossible to get it out through the living room door.
The above simply illustrates how and why people keep quiet, even when silence could lead to significant challenges.
Getting team members to express themselves and point to the elephant, which is fueled by problems and conflicts, requires coordinated stimuli and actions, including greater commitment, creating greater trust by getting to know each other more personally and closely, as well as how to allow each one to contribute their strengths and recognize them for their contributions in ways that make the most sense to them.
For their part, business leaders can set the example and tone, pointing out the issues they see in a respectful and thoughtful way. And, of course, ask people to inform them or the team when they suspect an elephant might be in the room, so that action can be taken to resolve the problem immediately.
Obviously, it is essential to generate sufficient trust between the different personalities of the collaborators, introverts, extroverts, focused, attentive to detail, so that they express their concerns and ideas in a timely manner and that they not only help to identify problems, but also solve them, promote the progress of the organization and even favor innovation by listening to those voices that could go unnoticed.
Editor’s Note: Francisco Briseño is Lead Partner of Human Capital in Consulting, Deloitte Mexico. Follow him on. The opinions published in this column belong exclusively to the author.
