In some ways synergy and groupthink are opposites. Synergy emphases how
team members can work together to achieve shared goals and the sum of this
joint effort achieves more than any single individual by him/herself (BTW,
wouldn't you expect that anyway - that people working together can do more
than single persons by themselves; I don't see why it needs a special
concept like "synergy"; but that's another matter). Groupthink, on the
other hand, is destructive of synergy or team work efforts - it suppresses
or inhibits sharing of information, of feedback, of expression of doubts
about decisions.
Anything that reduces the likelihood that flight crew members will share
information or ideas, express doubts, cross-check decisions, etc. can lead
to trouble. But to overcome groupthink and other barriers to communication
means that some crew members may need to change their beliefs, assumptions
and personal style of communicating. Personal change is a tough assignment
because old habits die hard.
Those of you who have been following my earlier postings will know that I
favour the Lyndon method (Old Way/New Way) for overcoming habitual ways of
behaving and achieving more rapid change. The conventional alternatives
produce a much slower rate of progress and the associated phenomenon of
"training failure" as shown by reversion to old ways despite our best
training efforts.
However although the Lyndon method has a long history of success, uptake by
trainers and other behaviour change practitioners of this approach to
personal and professional coaching has been slow. Which brings me back to
my original question - what do you have to do these days to get a good
practical idea noticed and accepted?
Paul
--Paul Baxter PhD, MA, BA(Hons), BA, Dip Teach, MAPS Personal Best Systems (R). Less pain, more gain. Brisbane, Australia. Ph +61 (0)500 579 257. Fax +61 (0)7 3376 1576 Internet: http://www.personalbest.com.au/~pbaxter/habits.htm Email: pbaxter_at_personalbest.com.au