How Openness Enhances Team Collaboration and Performance

This is what Open Teamwork means: we create the conditions in our organisation to identify personal or interpersonal issues blocking progress and deal with them. Open Teamwork is the foundation for influencing effortlessly because without openness, trust, and honesty, no influence can be sustainable.

I was preparing for a presentation with a colleague and sharing what I intended to say. My colleague said; "You can't say it like that, people will get confused" I immediately felt insecure. I noticed my head getting foggy and looked at him, trying to figure out what to say. There was not a lot of time. He shared how he would have explained it and the details of what was important to be said. It left me even more stressed, so I said; "I suggest that you take this part then, because I won't be able to say it like that, and now I fear I will do it in the wrong way". I also shared that it stressed me to have to live up to his way of saying things, with exact wording and that it felt limiting for me. Immediately he said; "No, no, you do this part. You do it your way, and I will support you, we will discuss it afterwards". I agreed to do the part. Afterwards we talked and he shared that he had noticed becoming controlling because he was stressed.

To me this felt like an open and honest dialogue, which improved our collaboration. We could express ourselves openly. I felt uncomfortable, but still chose to be transparent about my experience because we had trust and openness.

What I experienced here can only be done in an organisation when the environment supports it. Think about similar situations in a team. When the environment doesn't support it, we get stuck in endless loops of defensiveness, trying to avoid our uncomfortable feelings and even hiding them from ourselves. This unawareness on a personal and interpersonal level keeps us from experiencing flow.

When was the last time you felt blocked in a team conversation? What didn’t get said?

Now, think about balance - the only way to restore balance when you get stuck and communication locks down is to move towards openness.

In an environment of openness, it is as if we can expand our trust and relax.

In an open environment, you know that you are invited to participate. You feel empowered, recognised, rewarded, and treated as a human, all of which encourage you to be open.

In an open environment, you can see yourself; there is no distortion, and you can be honest with yourself and your colleague when you experience something in your relationship that blocks the flow.

The goal is balanced, mature relationships filled with energy, honesty, friendliness, and a genuine intent to collaborate.

How you feel about yourself influences how much you need this environment.

In leadership, we often see people who speak first, speak fast, and speak most, creating a belief that this is what leadership looks like. Over time, many of us accept this as the truth.

But confidence without awareness often turns into taking over the room, leaving little space for others to be heard or think.

What if the most trustworthy leaders are not the loudest, but the ones who listen the deepest? The ones who pause before speaking. Who notices what isn’t being said? Who creates space for others to contribute?

Have you ever worked with someone who didn’t say much, but when they did, everyone listened? There is something magnetic about grounded presence. It doesn’t demand attention. It earns it.

There is no right or wrong, but it is essential to ask yourself why you behave in a certain way and whether it effectively contributes to creating an open environment.

When you are in touch with your aliveness, self-determination, and self-awareness - and you feel significant, competent, and likeable- you can observe yourself meaningfully and adjust your behaviour to what is needed.

There is nothing to prove when you have an inner freedom, are self-sufficient and live according to your values.