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‘They’re so frightened of being wrong they have exempted themselves from being fashionable’ says British artist Grayson Perry in today’s headline in The Independent. He is referring to the personality-free trend in fashion which could be extrapolated to the fearful norm-driven world we live in.

Is being inoffensive, non-descript and safe serving the civilization? How does this transfer to style in the workplace?

Any workplace has its subcultures. Take a hospital, the doctors generally don’t mix with the nurses, and the technicians are a culture of their own. Some would attribute these divisions to hierarchy, but there is also an element of workstyle. Each subculture almost has its own language; there are types of people that prefer certain types of work. These differences are not inherently bad; they just are. If these types of people worked better together, understood one another’s language and yet had no expectation that one would begin to behave like the other, you might get a more interactive, dynamic work culture.

What if we had a cosmopolitan approach to dealing with different work styles? Instead of attempting to create a melting pot or a smoothie out of our diversity, how about fully imagining the potential of each person and appreciating that supporting unique style has more potential to create delicious possibility?

Cooperation is often confused with compliance or conformity. Perhaps because it’s easier for the mind to grasp, there is often a push in societies and workplaces for everyone to adhere to the same norms.

Collective potential is maximized when we steer away from conformity and more toward imaginative collaboration based on the appreciation of the potential of many independent and unique styles. In order to effectively mix different styles, it’s important to understand the distinct nature of your own style and that of others.

An understanding of aesthetic or taste can help identify different styles without them being seen as a source of conflict, but rather an appreciation of human possibility.

Realizing collective potential requires three types of action:

1. Understand style/identity and have an encounter with oneself and then the other – Be able to self-assess style, beliefs, values and ideas as they change.
2. Seek encounters that create engagement, dialogue and critical inquiry, practice the ability to communicate and perceive.
3. Engage in different style types for active problem solving, invention or design!

For more from Grayson Perry on creativity, identity, war, refugees, check this out:

“From the ice age, they still made culture…. When we’re fighting wars part of the reason is for the freedom for us to express ourselves.”