Why Collaboration Fails Without Curiosity, Care and Courage

Collaboration is one of those words that everyone agrees with in principle - yet so often struggles in practice.

We hear it in strategy papers, leadership programmes, and team meetings. “We need to collaborate more.” But what does that really mean? And why does it so often fall short, even with the best intentions?

Through our work with leaders and teams, we’ve learned that collaboration doesn’t just happen because people are told to work together. It happens when the conditions for trust, openness and shared responsibility are created.

At the heart of that is what we call Our Collaboration Equation™ - the mindset and behaviours of Curiosity, Care and Courage.

Curiosity: the spark of learning and growth

Curiosity invites us to look beyond our own perspective.

It’s the willingness to ask why, what if, and how might we - not to prove a point, but to discover one.

When leaders bring curiosity to their conversations, they open up learning and possibility. They make it safe for others to question, contribute and challenge.

Without curiosity, collaboration becomes compliance - people agree to avoid conflict rather than to build understanding.

Care: the foundation of trust and belonging

Care is often misunderstood as being soft. But real care is active -  it’s the awareness of how our behaviour impacts others.

When we lead with care, we consider the tone of our words, the assumptions we make, and the time we take to listen. It’s how trust is built, one interaction at a time.

Without care, collaboration can feel transactional. People hold back, protect themselves, or disengage. Care gives collaboration its humanity - it’s what turns working alongside each other into working with each other.

Courage: the catalyst for wholehearted contribution

Courage is what keeps collaboration alive when it gets uncomfortable.
It’s the moment you speak up with a different perspective, admit a mistake, or invite feedback you might not like - because you care about what’s possible together.

Courage creates movement. It helps teams stay in dialogue when things are uncertain or challenging. Without courage, collaboration stalls. Decisions take longer, creativity fades, and energy drifts away.

Finding your Collaborative Edge™

When Curiosity, Care and Courage work together, something shifts.
Teams move faster because they’re aligned, not because they’re identical. Mistakes are shared and learnt from. Creativity flourishes.

This is what we call finding your Collaborative Edge™ - the value created when people feel safe, seen, and supported to contribute fully.

And it’s what we help leaders and teams develop through our Collaboration Equation™ - a practical framework for building the mindset and behaviours that make collaboration real.

A reflection and an invitation

Think about a team you’re part of:
Where do you notice Curiosity showing up or missing?
How does Care shape how you work together?
When was the last time Courage changed the direction of a conversation for the better?

If these questions resonate, we’d love to connect.
Through our Collaboration Equation™, we help leaders and teams create the conditions for collaboration — where trust grows, learning happens, and collective success follows.

Lucy Kidd & Anni Townend
Co-founders, Collaboration Equation™