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Dare to disagree
Margaret Heffernan - TED
Margaret Heffernan argues that good teams need constructive conflict - people willing to challenge ideas so that thinking gets sharper.
Key takeaways
- Openness alone is not enough; people must be willing to disagree.
- Good collaborators are not echo chambers.
- Constructive conflict needs trust and a shared goal.
Reflect on it
- Who on my team challenges my thinking, and do I welcome it?
- When did I stay quiet when I should have disagreed?
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Former CEO and author Margaret Heffernan argues that the best teams are not the ones that agree - they are the ones willing to challenge each other.
Why it is worth 13 minutes
Many teams mistake harmony for health. Heffernan shows why silence and agreement can hide risk, and what it takes to make disagreement productive.
The key points
- Openness alone is not enough; people must be willing to disagree.
- Good collaborators are not echo chambers - they look for people who think differently.
- Constructive conflict needs trust and a shared goal.
- Disagreement is a form of thinking, not a threat.
How it links to team theory
Heffernan's talk is about team culture rather than a formal model. To see how teams move through conflict as they develop, read Tuckman's stages of team development. For how different people contribute, see Belbin team roles.
Turn it into CPD
Watch the talk, then answer the reflection questions under the video and log it to your free Passport.
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Sign in to save what you've read - we'll create a free CPD log for you.