By Eric Althoff
Working well with others is the cornerstone of success in business and life. The Creative Collaborator is charismatic, energetic, and social, often telling stories that draw in others. They are original thinkers and often spark ideas for improvement. The Collaborator seeks harmony within group dynamics, which can be difficult to achieve—but that’s why having the Collaborator on your team is a grand idea.
Quite often, in group settings, it’s difficult to get the conversation moving. No one wants to be the one to speak first; this is where the Creative Collaborator comes into play. The Collaborator is a natural facilitator, looking to build bridges between others where they might not have existed before.
Must work well with others
The Creative Collaborator typically lights up the room with an amusing anecdote or holds the crowd rapt with a unique tale. The Collaborator is always pleased to see you and will tell you as much. Unlike the Notable Networker, the Collaborator can be a bit slow to warm to unfamiliar faces, often preferring known entities. Their strength is in relationship familiarity, so once you’re “in,” the Collaborator is highly supportive of nurturing that relationship.
However, the Collaborator might miss certain social cues, inadvertently moving business relationships into the personal realm when the other party might not feel comfortable doing so. Boundaries aren’t necessarily the Collaborator’s stock in trade, and they are therefore likely to view Moguls and Closers as their “friends” when the reverse view isn’t always true. However, Analysts should hang out with Collaborators to come out of their shells. Collaborators want people to feel comfortable, and thus won’t push an Analyst into a situation unnecessarily; having a Collaborator as a wingman is never a bad idea.
Collaborators tend to take rejection well but would much rather get to acceptance ASAP. They have thick skin, are adventurous to a fault (see earlier note about respecting boundaries), and typically offer a fresh take on the issue. The Collaborator is a natural candidate to send to a conference. Working together with a Networker, sales leads are all but assured—even if the Collaborator might not put as much effort into those relationships as the Networker will.
How much collaboration is too much?
Collaborators may have a hard time realizing the conversation has been over for 10 minutes, and thus it’s time to return to his or her desk. (There’s such a thing as too much interest in your coworkers’ lives.) Working alone can thus prove difficult; self-starts are often bumpy, especially in the absence of a team environment. Additionally, a Collaborator’s thirst for excitement may lead them to take unnecessary risks; they could stand to learn a thing or two from an Amazing Analyst about dialing it back a bit and keeping their own counsel now and then.
With the correct training, however, a Creative Collaborator can learn to get out of their own way not only for success in business but also in social situations where more tact is required. The strongest teams have a Collaborator who helps bring out ideas and keep people connected. Schedule a demo today to learn more.