It is hard to emphasis just how much of a difference good communication makes. As a junior developer this crucial aspect of the role and can often seem really difficult. Everyone you work with might seems really busy, everyone will know more than you, it can feel like you are bothering people when you get stuck so you should just try to figure things out for yourself.
We don't know what to say, or we don't want to come across as ignorant, we don't think what we are doing is important. It is always going to be something about ourself or our self image. In this unit we are going to look at some practical ways to build rapport with your team and start communicating like a boss!
Rapport is the trust and quality of relationship that exists between 2 people. Rapport is the foundation of good communication. We are going to look at how to spend time with the busy people around you and build up that rapport in a systematic way!
There are 4 things that you can think about to help you develop rapport with your team.
We are going to spend time together in groups talking through these four ideas. Together these 4 ideas make the word HEAR Honesty, Empathy, Autonomy, Refection.
In all your dealings with team members be honest.
In groups with your coach ask yourselves some of these questions:
Empathy is a natural human quality very young toddlers display this ability. An important starting place is knowing your own thoughts and emotions. You can practice this by sharing your thoughts and emotions with others in an honest way. It helps to be in touch with where you are at before thinking about where others might be at.
“If you can learn a simple trick, Scout, you’ll get along a lot better with all kinds of folks. You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view, until you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it.”
Atticus Finch in To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee
This saying gives us a method for developing our empathy. We are encouraged not to judge or view another's actions from our own point of view, but make efforts to consider situations from there point of view. To make our empathy deeper and our interactions more skillful we can take this practice further and try to see things from another persons point of view, considering their values, their beliefs, their dreams and wishes.
To do this we should take the time to find out what people we work with value, what they believe and wish for. Once we have found out these things, use them to help you empathize. Just doing this will make you always have something to ask someone or talk to them about. Everyone will feel delighted sharing their aspirations and longings with anyone who will listen!
Our internal drives and desires lead to our behaviors. We don't like feeling controlled. Building rapport with others requires us to know and respect this fact. We will be unable to control or influence people without them deciding they want to do things differently. Just like in the movie inception, to plant an idea in someone, it has to become their own, they will own it and grow it.
This is a powerful skill that your coach will likely be using with you. When people reflect back things we have said, we know they have listen to us. Being listen too carefully helps us trust that person. What is interesting is we can't reflect back everything that a person has just shared with us, so what will you pick out to reflect?
This workshop is based on the work of Emily and Laurence Alison. You can read more about these ideas in their book "Rapport: the four ways to read people"
In the level 4 standard the way you work with and build rapport with your colleagues forms part of the assessment.
| Area of Standard | Description |
|---|---|
| #B01-Independent | Works independently and takes responsibility. For example, has a disciplined and responsible approach to risk and stays motivated and committed when facing challenges |
| #B03-Professional | Maintains a productive, professional and secure working environment |
| #B04-Collaborator | Works collaboratively with a wide range of people in different roles, internally and externally, with a positive attitude to inclusion & diversity |
| #B05-Respectful | Acts with integrity with respect to ethical, legal and regulatory ensuring the protection of personal data, safety and security |
| #B06-Resourceful | Shows initiative and takes responsibility for solving problems within their own remit, being resourceful when faced with a problem to solve |
| #B07-Communicator | Communicates effectively in a variety of situations to both a technical and non-technical audience |
| #B08-Curious | Shows curiosity to the business context in which the solution will be used, displaying an inquisitive approach to solving the problem. This includes the curiosity to explore new opportunities, techniques and the tenacity to improve methods and maximise performance of the solution and creativity in their approach to solutions |
Can you relate 1 or more of the 4 HEAR principles to each of the competencies above? For example which of the 4 would help you to work independently? Can you think of times when you have displayed these qualities already? Which one do you need to work on?