Every team experiences friction. But there is one source of friction I\u2019ve observed in almost every organization I\u2019ve ever been involved with. It comes down to a simple distinction, and I bet you\u2019ve noticed it too.<\/p>\n\n
Depending on what side of the distinction you come down on, it\u2019s easy to get frustrated with people on the other. It\u2019s easy to see them as an obstacle to your success. I know because I\u2019ve done that myself.<\/p>\n
What is it?<\/p>\n
Some teammates are more managerial<\/em>, and others are more entrepreneurial<\/em>. On any given team there are usually more of the first than the second. But each type has unique ways of getting under the skin of the other.<\/p>\n When I was at Thomas Nelson, this distinction played out between the finance people (managers) and the acquisitions people (entrepreneurs). Both worked toward the same budget goals each year, but they were responsible for different aspects.<\/p>\n Finance people were tasked with keeping expenses in line. Acquisitions people were tasked with hunting down new business. These priorities would sometimes compete, and each group sometimes imagined the other was hindering their success.<\/p>\n It doesn\u2019t matter what they environment is. Entrepreneurs hunt down new opportunities and see rules as slowing them down. Managers oversee existing business and use rules to keep things in order. It\u2019s inevitable that they\u2019ll butt heads.<\/p>\n The tendency is to side with one group over the other. The managers want the entrepreneurs to be less entrepreneurial. And the entrepreneurs want the managers to be less managerial.<\/p>\n But that is a mistake. The hard thing to appreciate is that most teams need both entrepreneurs and managers to succeed.<\/p>\n\nCompeting Priorities<\/h3>\n
Camels and Stallions<\/h3>\n