Are you a novelty seeker who thrives on diverse challenges and is always ready to switch roles to keep things exciting?
If so, let me share with you some insights from my 16 years of code-switching between roles.
In my dynamic career, I've worked with four different organizations while engaging in consultancies with numerous others. These experiences have allowed me to collaborate with brilliant minds from across the globe on projects spanning product design, process innovation, livelihoods research, and, most recently, urban leadership in my current role as the AMALI director.
Reflecting on my unconventional career path, I've identified five distinct roles I've adopted to enhance my collaborations and navigate transitions. I've coined these roles as: "Super Connector," "Lone Genius," "Active Follower," "Disruptive Antagonist," and "Servant Leader."
Super Connector:
My natural extroversion and love for connecting with people from diverse backgrounds make the "Super Connector" role my favourite. I enjoy bringing people together and expanding my networks both socially and professionally. However, mastering this role requires balancing between uplifting others while still maintaining a competitive edge in high-stakes collaborations.
I cut my teeth in super connecting at the University of Nairobi, where I led several collaborative research projects with multi-country teams. A good example was the GENS Trilateral research chair, which included colleagues from Stellenbosch University, Brunel University London, and Nairobi University and was funded by the National Research Foundation of South Africa and the Newton Fund through the British Council. It was quite the mission working with two other project leads to coordinate three research teams, do two case studies in South Africa and Kenya, and report to the two funders through our respective universities. I brought these collaborative skills to my new role at AMALI, where we work with a geographically distributed and culturally diverse implementation team and pool of experts.
Lone Genius:
Occasionally, I've realized the importance of stepping back from my extroverted interactions to generate groundbreaking ideas. These "Lone Genius" retreats, which I undertake every few years, have proven essential for personal growth and revitalizing ongoing partnerships.
One of my most reflective retreat periods was when I took a break from design teaching in 2012 to pursue a Ph.D. in Public and Development Management. Pursuing a Ph.D. in a new field and a new country broke me, and in that breaking, I discovered a profound inner strength and passion for knowledge building that has kept me going ever since.
Active Follower:
Collaborations thrive when each team member contributes creatively and takes ownership of the collective vision. Shifting from the "Lone Genius" mode to becoming an "Active Follower" involves shedding the ego in favour of a shared goal.
My best active follower days were right after I completed my Ph.D. work in South Africa in 2016. Upon graduating, I returned to my lecturer position at Nairobi University, where I supported various ongoing projects such as the Nairobi Innovation Week. By working alongside seasoned researchers like Prof. Madara Ogot, I was able to expand my internal networks and pave the way for my future research collaborations.
Disruptive Antagonist:
Disrupting a partnership is never a preferred course of action, but it can be necessary to drive significant change when a collaboration turns toxic or dysfunctional. Initiating such drastic changes demands courage and foresight, as well as the ability to prepare for resistance and navigate the fallout.
I once had to disrupt a toxic research partnership where the project lead was psychologically manipulative in the way they belittled colleagues and took credit for all the collaborative work outputs. Unfortunately, my exit made the partnership untenable, which did push my former colleagues and me to pursue other opportunities, hopefully having developed a thick skin from this toxic experience, if nothing else.
Servant Leader:
I aspire to be a "Servant Leader" above all. This role involves nurturing the strengths of both "Lone Geniuses" and "Active Followers" while fronting "Super connectors" as the glue that gels the team together. Even "Disruptive Antagonists" can be valuable contributors when their contrarian tendencies are productively channelled into brainstorming and boundary-pushing sessions.
For instance, I once redirected an antagonistic team member into becoming a valuable sounding board, with the added advantage of reducing hostility within the team. However, it's essential to remember that dealing with an aggressive team member can be emotionally draining, and the servant leader must shield the team from the brunt of the antagonism while finding ways to rejuvenate and re-energize the team. In this way, a collaborative team can navigate through challenges and frictions and turn them into opportunities for learning and innovation. If not, the collaboration is bound to fail.
Balancing Code-Switching:
In an ideal collaboration, code-switching among team members is highly beneficial. In my experience, a high-performing team should have many code-switchers supported by a dedicated group of emotionally intelligent servant leaders. This balance allows for nurturing innovative ideas and managing conflicts within the team.
Do these roles resonate with your experience, or do you have other thoughts on code-switching? Let me know.
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