Title: Personal Agenda Information
Course: PIM: Teaming 2: Self and Other Awareness > Section: Personal Agenda

A personal agenda is one individual's or a small group's goal that is different from the team’s goal. As the Awareness Test video demonstrates, one person's focus on a particular goal may help achieve one thing, but in the process, that person may miss something else. This may happen in discussion, on the playing field, in the lab, etc.

Personal Agenda Examples:

- A student wants to take on the easiest tasks for a group assignment.
- A coworker wants to complete a project as quickly as possible.
- A student-athlete wants to maintain a particular schedule to accommodate practice sessions.
- A company’s sales department wants to keep prices low to please customers, while the finance team wants to raise prices to increase profits.

Personal agendas aren’t always detrimental.

Positive Examples:

- A student wants their group project to earn the highest grade in the class.
- A team member really wants to get to know the others involved on a project and develop a strong personal relationship with them.
- An employee strives to break sales records to receive a bonus.
- A team of scientists conducts research in hopes of winning an award.

Personal agendas are not always easy to identify. We typically don’t communicate our personal agendas. Sometimes we’re not even aware we have a personal agenda! A lack of awareness and understanding of personal agendas can lead to miscommunication and conflict.

What drives personal agendas?

- Competition
- Ego
- Personal perspective – believing you have the “right” perspective for meeting the team goal
- Personal desire for a particular outcome
- Need to personally excel
- Particular learning style