Navigating Collaboration: Five Essential Tips for Working with Others

Apr. 17

Written By Julie Entwistle MBA, BSc (OT), BSc.

Mastering Collaboration: Five Essential Tips for Working with Others

Unless you work alone without staff, customers, or the need to navigate anyone but a computer, these tips might help. We can all do better at navigating our way around each other or better yet, helping each other to become improved versions of ourselves daily.

Here are five people-management tips you can apply to elevate your connection and work with those around you:

1. Cultivate Effective Communication

Communication is fluid. It changes with every word, shift in tone, or movement of the body into, or out of, the conversation. Through active and conscious listening, attending to body language, and looking for what is NOT being said, you move towards being present in the conversation and elevating your connection with others.

2. Develop Emotional Intelligence (EQ)

EQ is one of the most vital indicators of success in business and life. It has been noted in the workplace that 90% of high performers have high EQ, and 80% of low performers have low EQ (source: TalentSmart). That is quite compelling!

So what is EQ? It is the ability to recognize your own emotions and to respond to the emotions of others. (Learn more in my previous blog post, Understanding Emotional Intelligence.)

Personally, I practice this through VALIDATION (“I am sorry you are upset by this”) and by being CURIOUS through open questions (“what do you think you can do?”).

Here are few other suggestions:

Be mindful of your words. Even using “you guys” may not be “slang” or come across appropriately to a female audience.
Control undertones of anger, frustration, and annoyance.
Work proactively to understand your emotional triggers and work to eliminate them.

3. Foster Perspective-Taking

This is harder than it seems. You will never have the perspective of others as you are not them and have not experienced what they have experienced in their life. But taking time to understand, be inclusive, non-judgmental, and check the bias of your thoughts and words goes a long way to building relationships with everyone around you – not just everyone “like you.”

4. Embrace Collaboration

Ask questions, and get input. Make consensus decisions and encourage group ownership and responsibility. That is how good leaders operate.

5. Understand Behavioral Styles

There are four styles, and we all have one that shows up more than the others. But if you don’t adapt your style to the styles of those around you, you miss the opportunity to better connect with 75% of the people you work with and lead. Knowing your personality, behavioral style, and driving forces and motivators can set you up for more thoughtful and sensitive connections.

Unlocking the Power of Connection

Discover the transformative potential of these five essential tips for working with others as you navigate the complexities of teamwork and leadership. Embrace collaboration, empathy, and self-awareness to cultivate thriving relationships and drive success in any professional or personal endeavor.

Want to learn your EQ level, behavior and communication style, and driving forces? Reach out! I have access to these profiles, and people find the debriefing with me on these insightful and useful.

TeamworkCollaborationCommunication

Julie Entwistle MBA, BSc (OT), BSc.

Julie Entwistle is a Certified FocalPoint Business Coach and works with business owners and professional service providers.

Julie helps her clients by building their business confidence so they can run, grow, and develop legacy practices that are focused and optimally successful. Julie knows that when professional service businesses do better, their clients also benefit. She knows this because she was one! Prior to joining FocalPoint, Julie was an independent owner of her own healthcare business before successfully merging, growing, and selling the practice. As an owner Julie had her own business coach, and this was a key element in her success.

Academically, Julie has degrees in Health Studies and Gerontology and Health Science (Occupational Therapy) from the University of Waterloo and McMaster, respectively, and an MBA from Wilfrid Laurier. She attended Queens University as a part-time Doctorate student prior to discontinuing her studies in 2023. Julie is also a Chartered Director and has Board and governance experience.

Julie grew up in a franchise family, so business is in her DNA. She has raised four daughters who are off writing their own stories as young adults. Julie is active and fit with a black belt in Karate, a competitive golf game, and enjoys many other sports. She believes in authenticity, showing kindness to all living things, and is happiest when helping others to build their own wealth and wellness.

Find Julie on LinkedIn at: linkedin.com/in/julieentwistle

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