Why is it difficult to maintain effective teamwork under pressure?
No team or organisation can be successful if its members are always in agreement with each other. People who are motivated to succeed have, by definition, strong feelings about what should be done. Clashes of opinion are therefore inevitable as well as essential. But whether the outcome of a disagreement is creative or destructive depends on how the people involved talk and listen to each other. Most do it by defending their own position and debating with their opponent. The trouble with this adversarial approach, however reasonable, logical and well intentioned, is that instead of producing a meeting of minds, it tends to lead to argument, entrenchment and mutual misunderstanding. Cumulative misunderstanding is the most common cause of deterioration in teamwork. People eventually lose hope of being able to achieve a meeting of minds when emotions are aroused.
