Blog Post #4

True collaboration among human beings is a very strange phenomenon. It often benefits all individuals involved more than if they had worked alone. For example, take Pelotonia. The bike shop owners want a way to capitalize on the increased interest in bicycles, and the people involved in Pelotonia want donations. So in an effort to scratch each other’s backs, the bike shop owners are offering discounts at their stores and donating some of their proceeds to Pelotonia, and the people in charge of Pelotonia advertise the stores that support them. In other words, by collaborating, both parties are in way better financial shape than if they had not worked together. Yet it is very rare to find true collaboration in this day and age. Everyone in our society is so focused on their own goals that they fail to see how helping someone else with their problems can benefit themselves. In other words, no one realizes that collaboration can be achieved in spite of selfish motivations.

Selfish motivations are something that will probably always be present in every member of our species. Everybody knows this, and I think it makes people hesitant to work together. In collaborative scenarios, it would be easy for one person or group of people to completely mess up the work of the rest of the group. Even if this action would screw that person over as well, we always view ourselves as having the most to lose, and therefore are frequently unwilling to work together with others. When people are attempting to reach goals collaboratively, selfishness is viewed as a barrier that must be overcome, instead of a tool to use for mutual benefit.

Imagine an electric car as a group of people working together, all with the same, selfish goal of getting from point A to point B. Now even though it may seem like it would benefit each component to hog all of the available energy, no piece can achieve its goal without help from the others. Without the motor, the other pieces can’t move; without the windshield wipers, the other pieces can’t drive in the rain; without the headlights, the other pieces can’t drive at night; without the speedometer, the other pieces will be stuck in a tow lot because the driver will be arrested for speeding. Each part has a crucial role to play and is incapable of reaching its goal without the others.

While the mutual benefits of collaboration may seem obvious to some, others will still resist and claim that they do not receive anything out of the efforts. It is at this time that some people would try to force collaboration onto the resistors. However, I think this is the wrong plan of action. Even though you might be doing what is best for that person, forcing them into a collaborative effort is likely to turn them into someone who hinders the rest of the group. I think the only way for someone to be a truly effective member of a collaborative effort is voluntarily.