subject: Collaborative Advantage – Building Emotional Deposit [print this page] Collaborative Advantage Building Emotional Deposit
Many of us have read about "Seven Habits for Highly Effective People" by Dr Stephen R. Covey. In his book, he mentioned "emotional bank account", instead of financial bank account. If you have not read about it, it basically means that when you build a relationship with others, you are actually created an "emotional bank account" with them. When we develop a good relationship, you are creating positive emotional deposit with them. In return, you will gain love, trust, respect and all sorts of favourable responses from them. However, if the relationship turns bad, you are withdrawing from the emotional bank account with them. You will lose their love, trust, respect, and received unfavourable responses from them instead.
Before we move on any further, let's relook at our competitive world. We compete for all sorts of material possessions such as money, power, land, and etc. All of these can be translated into financial gains, which help to fill our financial bank account. I am not saying that this is bad. In fact, these are common things that all of us have dreamed of for live. However, when you defeat someone in a competition to achieve your financial success, how many of the people share your joy? Maybe except for those who have directly benefited from your success, you have most probably withdrawn from people's emotional deposit account. You are more likely to create enemies than friends, including those who have lost in the competition, and those who envy your success.
In addition, we know that financial deposit can be stolen. We need to constantly on guard to protect our financial processions. We may start to have doubt about people around us, and hence, further withdraw from our emotional deposit with them. Therefore, in a competitive mode, there is no real winner. It creates a win-loss situation, regardless of whether you appeared to be winning or losing.
On the other hand, when you are building collaborative advantage, you are actually creating positive deposit with your co-workers, customers, partners, friends and family in the emotional bank account. Positive emotional deposit is the key to good collaboration among the people. It represents trust, respect, and good feeling people have towards you. With the emotional assets, surely you will able to work effectively with others in any collaborating projects. In return of this success, you will gain monetary returns, recognitions, and even fame. At the same time, you are building your positive financial deposit. You create friends and not enemies. The most important of all, what you have achieved will be long lasting. Emotional deposit cannot be stolen unless you intentionally let it happen. It is a win-win situation that will bring long lasting peace in our lives.
Building collaborative advantage means gaining love, trust, and respect from the people around you, which in turn creates positive emotional deposit in your emotional bank account with them. That is the collaborative condition that we need to constantly harness.
