One of the wonderful things I am doing lately is teaching college. It really is a joy to work with college students, teaching Organizational Psychology. They are working on a semester-long assignment of forming work teams for a fictitious new gym. One of the students came up to me at the end of the class last week and asked me if I wanted them to do something theoretical or something real. I told her that I wanted them to be practical and work together, as the team process is one of the very important things that organizaitonal psychology is all about. She replied, "I don't care about what the others think or say, I just care about my grade." In response, I smiled and told her the team process was paramount. She simply could not understand the concept.

She really isn't very different from many people in the day-to-day work world. They often just are focused on their individual results and don't really care or contribute to the team/division/department/ results. This particular student probably believes that my discussions about emotional intelligence and cooperation within the workplace is just a bunch of hooey. 

She is sadly mistaken. In the long run, it is more about how you get your work done than what work you do. In other words, it is extremely critical to have successful interpersonal relationships with those you work with. Yes, I am sure you can cite examples of people who are bullies, or isolationists at work who are successful. That works, sometimes, depending upon company culture, for the short term, but not in the long term. 

Managers who do't give their teams the appropriate credit, lose team members at a much faster pace than those who share kudos with their subordinates. Note this - 11% of employees who like their bosses say they will look for another job in the next year, while 40% who don't like their bosses say they will look for another job in the next year.

In government, where it is often viewed as more difficult to fire someone, people who don't get along with others are often isolated and pigeon-holed.

In business, people are fired more often because they don't get along with others than getting fired for not having the appropriate skills necessary for the job.

What does this all mean? It matters very, very much how you get your work done. It matters if you leave a trail of "victims" in your path, or if you leave "fans" who sing your praises of being a superb team player. Of course, knowing your work, having the skills is critical, but two people with equal (or almost equal) skill levels in times of layoffs -- the one who doesn't get along with others is much more likely to be cut.

There is a fine line between between being a collaborative, productive employee and one that too easily gives in to the needs of others. Make sure that you never sacrifice your values, and always make sure that others know your value. You don't have to toot your horn loudly, just ensure that you get credit for what you do, and that you shine as much as possible.

Next week, when I see that student again, I intend to have another conversation with her and the entire class. I want to ensure that everyone knows that the 20% of their grade that derives from class participation, incorporates how they function, and not just what they answer.