Ed,
You make the point that choosing between cooperation and competition is
not the real choice. There is a continuous spectrum from totally
competitive to totally cooperative, and neither of the end points -- nor
the end regions -- are particularly good or healthy. I agree with this.
We find that there are instruments that help us determine a person's
position on this spectrum, and this influences our hiring decisions. We
prefer people who are in the middle, but more toward the competitive side.
This is a person who will be forceful in espousing his or her beliefs, but
will also be able to listen and accept the perspectives of others that may
be different than his own. This person can, if the counter-positions have
merit, change his opinion.
To put your point another way, a highly competitive person cannot
recognize the merits of any opinion except his own. The totally
cooperative person in effect has no opinion.
--Rol Fessenden
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