The Importance of Interpersonal Openness

In today’s fast paced business climate, it’s possible to ignore some important communication practices like interpersonal openness. This is a willingness to engage others in a respectful and curious manner. It involves being receptive to different perspectives, ideas, and experiences, plus genuinely valuing the contributions of others. Let me tell you a story to illustrate its importance. ​

Rita was recently promoted to lead a team of seven people she was once a part of. The team was writing software to support supply chains working seamlessly. She was promoted because her coding skills were the best in the firm and her leaders wanted her to inspire others to become more proficient.

As a new manager, she started telling her teammates what she felt they had to do to improve the quality and speed of their output without asking for their input. Two weeks into her role, Rita’s direct supervisor informed her that her team members were expressing frustration about her management style. She told her boss she felt misunderstood, explaining, “I’m just trying to be helpful.” Her boss was understanding and referred Rita to me for some communication coaching.

After listening carefully to Rita, it was clear her heart was in the right place, but it was out of step with her way of speaking. I talked about the importance of interpersonal openness. I described this as Rita’s willingness to engage with her teammates in a respectful, curious, and nonjudgmental manner. We discussed the difference between recommending what to do versus having a discussion where Rita could ask questions and elicit ideas from her teammates about what they thought could improve quality and productivity without creating undo stress.

I asked Rita to practice these conversations with me first so she could become comfortable and confident. I suggested that she start by having one on one conversations with each team member. She began by acknowledging the feedback she’d received about her communication style and shared her commitment to change. She promised to be a better listener, ask open ended questions, be curious, and be open to ideas and suggestions to others.

Rita’s newfound interpersonal openness was paying big dividends. In her one on ones, she noticed how each person became visibly relaxed and expressed relief. After the one on ones were complete, Rita then felt comfortable having team meetings where she facilitated creative conversations about how to improve their output. Rita told me her supervisor called her back in to congratulate her on how she has turned around her leadership style.

Rita’s journey highlights the importance of openness and authenticity in relationships. Interpersonal openness is the foundation for creativity and innovative ideas and supports high performing teams. It is especially important to create and sustain psychological safety and high employee engagement.

Please contact me for a complimentary, confidential conversation about how to get more joy out of your work with less stress.