Trish's Blog

Are you confusing consensus and collaboration?

Consensus often looks like everyone nodding. Sometimes politely. Sometimes silently. Sometimes while thinking, I don’t agree, but I’ll go along.

Collaboration is messier. It’s people contributing even when it complicates things. It’s ideas rubbing up against each other. It’s someone saying, “I see it differently,” and the room not shutting them down.

Consensus can feel efficient. Collaboration can feel slow. But only one of them actually improves thinking.

This matters for Weird Wisdom (R) at work because Diversity of Thought doesn’t show up in neat agreement. It shows up in tension, curiosity, and the willingness to stay in the conversation when it would be easier to smooth it over.

If your meetings are full of agreement but light on challenge, you’re probably getting compliance, not contribution.

And that’s not collaboration.