Five Things to Consider When Collaborating

Collaborations speak to my heart. I love them. I learn so much about myself and about others when I collaborate. Collaborations are interesting because they bring something and/or someone new onto my radar. They are experimental so I always set them up with an end date. They allow me to flex my problem-solving prowess. Collaborations challenge my cooperative dexterity. And they reinforce my ability to amplify the unique skills of the person or people I am collaborating with. I really do love a good collaboration. 

Here are five things to think about when considering a collaboration. 

1.     Understand goals. Each person comes to the project with different needs, intentions, and resources. If all parties are transparent about what each has to offer and what each needs to walk away with, it is easier to determine if the collaboration is a good fit at the moment. And remember, a successful collaboration allows everyone should walk away with a win. 

2.     Set expectations. Make sure you are on the same page regarding what each party wants from this collaboration. Understand how responsibilities will be distributed. Set your start and end date. Clearly state the goals of the project. Determine who supplies the resources and in what amounts. List out the steps of the project and assign who is doing each step. 

 3.     Share responsibilities. Jobs do not need to be shared evenly but they should be shared equitably. One person’s skill set might be more specialized than another’s. One person might have more financial resources to share and another might have more time to share. In a successful collaboration all parties should feel they are getting more out of the project than they are giving. 

4.     Create connection points. Out of the gate there should be an understanding of how often the parties will connect, how communication will happen and how follow-up conversations will happen. Healthy communication is important to any relationship. 

5.     Value all contributions. Remember the organizer is playing a vital role in a collaboration. Keeping things on track, communicating, setting deadlines and harnessing resources are skills not to be taken for granted. All skills are important and a good organizer is contributing by filling that role in addition to anything else she is doing to enhance the project.

Successful collaborations can give you more than you could ever gain by flying solo. It allows you to land on the radar of others, sometimes leading you to long-term connections. But when considering a collaboration, take the time to ask questions, set expectations, and lay out an equitable plan. Considering these items will lead you to a better collaboration.