An important distinction needs to be made in the increasingly powerful field called Collaborative Leadership. There is a critical difference between a collaboration that results from two or more people who aren't sufficiently separate as individuals and a collaboration between individuals who are sufficiently whole.

The highest potential of a collaborative experience arises when everyone involved possesses their individual wholeness while participating in a collective experience that accesses a wisdom beyond the sum of the individuals involved. Having been transformed by this collaborative experience, each person is deepened, now carrying the collective wisdom within the individual self.

On the other hand, when two or more people who don't own enough of their separateness open their hearts and collaborate, the results are unpredictable, despite how powerful their union might feel. The wisdom that arises here risks being contaminated by the unresolved personal issues of the individuals involved. One of the great risks of this kind of collaboration is a dependency or addition to the experience of collectivity itself. The wisdom accessed may in fact be extraordinary and profound, but it will not be integrated fully on the personal level once the collaboration is over. As individuals, we must be alert and use our judgment to discern the value inherent in any collaboration, one situation at a time.

Today, indeed, collaboration is the next step in solving our personal, organizational and planetary complexities. However, the great solution to these problems is not collaboration alone. Only through the coming together of sufficiently evolved individuals will the nature of collectivity be truly productive. When we are first firmly grounded in the individual self, we can then begin to collaborate on a collective level that infinitely transcends our individuality while deeply honoring it.

Author's Bio: 

For over two decades, Lynda has worked with individuals, couples, teams and organizations as an integrative psycho-spiritual therapist, coach and holistic business strategist. A professional public speaker, and published author, Lynda conducts workshops nationally and internationally and appears on radio and television.

An expert in the development of human possibility, she addresses a full spectrum of issues, from depression, anxiety and relationship issues, to leadership, female empowerment, self-care, finding your passion, manifesting your power, and pursuing your calling in the world.

She currently serves on the Board of GAINS: The Global Association for Interpersonal Neurobiology. Since 2009, she has hosted a monthly online seminar for professionals in the greater New York metropolitan area with Dr. Dan Siegel, one of the founders of Interpersonal Neurobiology (IPNB). A former tenured Assistant Professor of Clinical Psychology at Ramapo College in New Jersey, she now serves on the faculty of ASP’s Spirituality and Psychotherapy Graduate Program.

Her recent training in IPNB naturally compliments her unique set of skills and cutting- edge tools for transformation, which together form the foundation of her company Life Unlimited: The Center for Human Possibility. Her practice is based in New York City, where she lives.