Collabor(h)ate: How to build incredible collaborative relationships at work (even if you'd rather work alone)

by Deb Mashek PhD

Overview

**Business Book Awards 2024 Finalist**

"We’ve all gotten stuck working with people we don’t like. Thankfully, Deb Mashek has written a lively, actionable book to fix that. Combining her expertise as a psychologist and her experience as a consultant, she reveals how we can earn trust, repair relationships, and create collaborations that bring out the best in us.”
Adam Grant, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Think Again and host of the TED podcast WorkLife

Many people have mixed feelings about workplace collaboration. On the one hand, they know collaboration is essential to achieve complex goals. On the other hand, they know collaboration is a slog. People pull in different directions. There’s desperately little communication and even less follow through. One person ends up doing all the work. The result? Friction mounts. Projects fizzle. Great people walk.

Here’s why: very few of us ever receive any formal training in how to collaborate well.

In Collabor(h)ate, Deb Mashek draws on her deep experience as a relationships researcher and collaboration facilitator to reveal everything you need to know to make workplace collaborations less painful and more productive.

Dr Deb Mashek is an experienced business consultant, professor, higher education administrator, and national nonprofit executive. She applies relationship science to help people collaborate better.
Learn more at: www.collaborhate.com

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781788603829
Publisher:	Practical Inspiration Publishing
Publication date:	01/24/2023
Pages:	220
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.62(d)

About the Author

Dr. Deb Mashek, PhD is the founder of Myco Consulting LLC, where she applies relationship science to help people achieve together that which cannot be achieved alone. Deb is an experienced professor, higher education administrator, and national nonprofit executive.

Table of Contents

Preface: From trailer park to PhD xi

Chapter 1 What is collaboration and how does it go sideways? 1

What is "collaboration" anyway? 1

How common is collaboration in the workplace? 4

Why is collaboration so common? 5

What's at stake when collaboration sizzles versus fizzles? 8

Mixed feelings about collaboration? Welcome to the club 10

Let's talk about the silent H in collabor(h)ate 12

Collaboration, why do I hate thee? Let me count the ways 13

Do we teach this stuff? 18

Where to start? 22

Fear not, this is learnable 24

Here's the point 27

Take 5 27

Chapter 2 Introducing the Mashek Matrix 29

Workplace relationships matter 29

Relationship quality: How good is your relations hip? 31

Interdependence: Do you and your collaborator influence each other's outcomes? 34

The Mashek Matrix 38

Here's the point 41

Take 5 42

Chapter 3 Understanding relationship quality 43

Let's consider: How people differ 44

Nine strategies to increase relationship quality 51

Here's the point 80

Take 5 80

Chapter 4 Understanding interdependence 83

Let's consider: Outcomes 84

Four strategies to turn the frequency dial 91

One strategy to turn the diversity dial 95

Five strategies to turn the strength dial 96

Here's the point 102

Take 5 103

Chapter 5 A DIY workshop: Leveraging the Mashek Matrix to improve your collaborative relationships 105

Step 1 Find current location 108

Step 2 Identify desired location 110

Step 3 Determine first step along path 110

Step 4 Decide preferred level of intervention 114

Step 5 Brainstorm specific ideas 118

Step 6 Systematically evaluate options 120

Step 7 Plan and implement 123

Step 8 Observe and learn 124

Step 9 Now what? 124

Here's the point 127

Take 5 128

Chapter 6 Getting the heck out 131

When to get out 131

How to leave a collaboration 140

Post-dissolution growth 145

All relationships end 145

Here's the point 146

Take 5 147

Chapter 7 Hey, you're collaborGREAT! 149

Which opportunities to say yes to 150

When you're asked to lead a collaborative effort 161

Collaboration in friendships, family, community, and life 171

CollaborGREAT expectations 174

Here's the point 176

Take 5 176

How to make your organization collaborGREAT 179

What Deb's Clients Say 181

Appendix: Overview of the Workplace Collaboration Survey 183

With gratitude 187

Index 193