Writing Collaboratively

Welcome back, ladies and gentlemen! Tonight, we are going to be talking about writing collaboratively. This is a vital skill to have because you will be interacting with people for the rest of your life! Let’s take a closer look at writing collaboratively.

Advantages of collaboration

•    Draws a wider skills base.

·         Suppose an accountant must write our patients financial document/receipt after we offer our services. Accountants for sure know more about finance than we do.

•    Improves communication of employees

·         Since dietitians work with a multitude of employees in different work settings (accountants, doctors, physicians, athletic trainers), it encourages us to communicate effectively with one another to achieve the common goal.

•    Helps acclimate new employees to an organization

·         Once your new coworker sees how things are done, they’re more likely to incorporate the hardworking habits and attitudes that are needed to get the task complete.

Unfortunately, there are disadvantages to collaboration. Here are a few important ones to note, and maybe even prevent us from experiencing now that we will be aware:

•    Takes a larger chunk of time

·         Since we will be communicating with our peers, it will take more time for everyone to share their ideas

•    Can reduce a person’s motivation to work hard on the document

·         Since members know this is a group effort, they can slack off, which can hurt the group as a whole

•    Can lead to groupthink

·         Suppose you disagree with the doctor in your group. Because of conformity, you might be likely to just brush off a difficult conversation that needs to be had because you don’t want to cause any issues.

•    Can yield a disjointed document

·         Suppose you and a doctor on your team are writing an infographic. If you both fail to communicate, you might end up repeating the information that was already written. To prevent these issues, you and the doctor need to plan the document effectively.

Now that we know about the advantages and disadvantages of collaboration, let's discuss the technical aspect of collaboration.

Using Social Media and Other Electronic Tools in Collaboration

The 2 most important tools in collaboration for us as dietitians in my opinion include:

1.    Shared Documents

2.    Messaging Technologies

When working with a shared document, all group members can edit, revise, or input new information that they feel is relevant to the subject. Assume that a team of dietitians and doctors are putting together an informative PowerPoint on the causes of Type II diabetes. Since our profession is different from the doctors on our team, we can each add our own content, but make revisions if necessary. A shared document is also convenient because since it doesn’t require the internet, it can be edited from anywhere.

As we all know, we are living and participating in the digital age. Due to this, we can quickly send formal text messages and emails to our colleagues. Even though nothing is being directly edited on a document, we can use these methods of communication to discuss the next move on our project or experiment in an urgent manner.

No matter what field of dietetics you end up in, you will have to collaborate with a group of people. Collaborating can be a difficult task, but if you work in a timely and efficient manner, your project will be completed successfully. I hope you guys enjoyed this chunk of information! Talk soon.

Sincerely,

#sharingwithshar