Misunderstandings are come place. So common that they can feel like an inevitable part of communication and particularly working with others.
Collaboration in a Co-Creative project can look just like any other project yet the are subtle differences. Take for example a situation where in a meeting someone has heard an idea or belief that they don’t agree with. Perhaps they have not fully understood why the idea has given them a sensation of unease or even revulsion. In a typical project these kind of feelings can lead to heated disagreements, where one or both sides of the “argument” feel undervalued, attacked or dismissed. In short all the sorts of feelings that get in the way of Co-Creation and successful projects.
Misunderstands and arguments are not a feature of Co-Creation, these are replaced with harmony and flow. In the flow of a Co-Creation what might look like misunderstandings become opportunities for expansion and clarification of the idea.
At this point you may be thinking that what is being proposed here is just a renaming or re-framing of two unavoidable features of working with others. In a Co-Creative team the members “leave ego at the door” so they can full engage with new ideas and tap into their own curiosity. They don’t do this because they are nice, rather because it means the overall discussion,experience or event is expanded for them and everyone else. By doing this each member can see ideas for what they are just ideas to be explored, expanded and appreciated.
Ideas are not part of the being of the person who first voiced them, exploring the idea and its opposite can not “hurt’ the person who proposed it. Neither does the person adding to or proposing a different idea need to tread carefully in case others get upset. Every idea that is voiced, added to, replaced or updated is an expansion and clarification of the original idea. Each member of the group recognizes their contribution to the whole and others contribution.
Image by Albrecht Fietz from Pixabay