A virtual team were having a difficult time working together, and asked for help from Wendy Sullivan. Exploring individuals’ metaphors for the team revealed they were all very different – and offered a way forward.

“When we explored how each person wanted the team to be, a team discovered that while one member wanted working in the team to be like setting sail for distant shores, another wanted it to be like a Formula One racing team!” Wendy explained.

“There were nods and smiles as the team realised they had seen individuals living their metaphors from day to day. The Formula One person’s meetings had no stops for lunch or tea. People were expected to keep working and concentrating as long as there was work to do. He spoke fast, with concepts flashing past at high speed.

“People started changing their communication so that it fitted in within the logic of a person’s metaphor. For example, they’d say to the Formula One person: ‘If we take this highly-targetted approach, we’ll get it done much faster and beat the other divisions by miles.’

“This helped members to feel understood.

“At the same time they were also more understanding of how and why others responded differently to situations affecting the team.”

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