Question
In the After Action Review (AAR), the team discusses the mission in great detail. The environment is made safe for everyone to talk by switching off ranks and switching on humility. This means that everyone is equal during the discussion and can freely question every decision made during the mission. The team puts their guns down, symbolizing the non-threatening environment. The purpose of this detailed discussion is to create a shared understanding of what happened during the mission and to model future behavior.
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Dave Cooper carries a reputation for building SEAL teams that collaborate seamlessly. For Cooper the central challenge of creating a hive mind is to develop ways to challenge each other and ask the right questions. To do this, he continually gives signals that nudge them towards active cooperation, use his first name and question his authority. Over time, Cooper has developed tools to improve team cohesion. One of the most effective ones is the After Action Review(AAR) that follows every mission. Cooper creates a safe space for everyone to talk by having "Ranks switched off, humility switched on". The team puts their guns down and the start discussing the mission in excruciating detail, questioning every single decision. AAR's enable the team to have a shared mental model of what happened and model future behavior.
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