Teamwork by Design (Human Design Penta + small team dynamics)
Are you built to work in a small team? 4 Steps to figure it out
There's a reason why some of us LOVE group work and working on a team, and some of us really don't. And we can see some of those potential points of comfort or discomfort by looking at our Human Design, specifically our Penta skills & strengths.
First, what is a Penta?
A Penta in Human Design is how we describe, and map, the energy of a small group (a family, a small business, a team within a larger organization, etc.).
It’s a “trans-auric form” -- an energetic form created when the auras of 3 or more people come together (and as people leave or join the group, it changes).
The Penta/BG5 is the trans-auric form for group of less than 9 people (most commonly 3-5), while the WA/OC16 is the trans-auric form for groups of 10 or more.
Being in a small group of 3-9 people happens all the time in our lives (with our families, friends, neighbours, teams, at work, in masterminds, etc.) and you can feel that the energy of the group is different to how you feel on your own, or even with just one other person.
I found learning about the Penta so affirming and it helped explain so much of my comfort or discomfort in small groups throughout my life. (Which is really like Human Design in general, it gives us so much permission and affirmation of what we already know to be true deep down.)
"We are all born into Pentas, we go to school in them, we work in them–Penta is very much a part of the nature of being. The trans-auric form is something that almost smacks of science fiction until you actually see the analysis of how it operates, and only then do you begin to understand how powerful a force this is in our lives." -Ra Uru Hu
- The Penta takes from us what it needs and ignores the rest.
- The area inside the blue square is the ONLY part of the Design the Penta is interested in.
- Too many differences make it hard for a team to be cohesive and work together, so the Penta “homogenizes” the group
- Treats everyone in the group like a Generator (it’s a sacral form)
Now, are you built to work on a small team?
We aren't all built for small groups. I'm not. There's a bunch of reasons why in my design. In plain language it's: I don't always feel recognized for my true skills and talents when working in a small group and can also feel confined and unable to express my individuality. I like doing things my own way and don't usually like being managed. As someone who is very self-contained and can process information quickly, I often find working in a small group feels too slow. So small groups are generally going to be best for me for short periods of time or for experience -- and that's *exactly* what I can see looking back on my time in corporate and even working as part of other people's small businesses.
I thrive when I'm learning a ton and I'm given the space to do my own thing at my own pace. I feel suffocated once I've "mastered" the job and/or when there's a lot of management, meetings and other bureaucratic red tape.
There are clues in your Design that can give you an idea of your ideal work environment, including whether working as part of a small team is somewhere you’ll thrive in the long term.
There are 4 steps to determining how comfortable, or uncomfortable, you may feel working in a small group environment:
STEP 1: Do you have a Strength (full channel) in the Penta?
YES = You will most likely enjoy working in small groups. Since the Penta is ONLY interested in definition within the Penta area of the body graph, having a channel in this area connects you to the natural flow of the Penta and the group naturally recognizes one or more of your innate skills and talents.
NO = You will most likely not enjoy working in a small group long term. Without a Penta channel defined you may not feel recognized for your true skills and talents within the group. Your strengths are found outside of the Penta.
STEP 2: Where is your definition in the Penta?
UPPER = You will feel most comfortable within a small group when they have a defined (leadership) role. This will mostly happen naturally because the Penta will call you out for a Role. If they are not assigned a Role, it will be difficult for you to feel successful.
LOWER = you will need to be managed in the small group to be successful. How happy are you to be managed? If you are comfortable being managed (by the right leader), you may enjoy working in a small group. If you find it hard to be managed, you will likely not feel comfortable working in a small group.
STEP 3: What Type are you?
GENERATOR/MG =Pentas are designed for sacral beings. You will likely feel the most comfortable in a small group (taking your answers from Steps 1 & 2 into account of course).
PROJECTOR = Working inside of a Penta as a non-sacral, you may feel uncomfortable and exhausted in a small group if you are not able to rest. *Note: Projectors are ideally designed to be the Alpha outside the Penta, leading and guiding it to success.
MANIFESTOR = As both a non-sacral type and someone who is designed to work and act independently, you are not really designed to work in a Penta. A small group may feel uncomfortable and restricting.
REFLECTOR = As a non-sacral type you are not really designed to work in Pentas. A small group may feel uncomfortable and overpowering.
STEP 3: How do you assimilate information? (aka what's your Definition?)
INDEPENDANT (Single Definition) = Because you are self-contained and can process information quickly you may not be as comfortable in a small group. It may feel like the group slows you down.
COLLABORATIVE (Split Definition) = You will likely work well in a small group because you are designed to work with others to bridge your split.
SYNTHESIZING (Triple Split Definition) = You may feel trapped in a small group as you are designed to interact with many different people throughout the day. It may work if you can constantly move in and out of the group or multiple groups frequently.
SUBJECTIVE (Quadruple Split Definition) = You may find it difficult to operate in a small group because you process things slowly and you may have a harder time in adjusting to others (in a sense, it’s more that others need to adjust to you).
OBJECTIVE (No Definition aka Reflector) = You are not really designed to work in Pentas. A small group may feel uncomfortable and overpowering.
IMPORTANT: It ALWAYS comes down to each your own personal Decision-Making Strategy (Strategy & Authority) to know what is correct for you at any point in time. There are NO absolutes. A particular team may be correct for you for a certain period of time in your life and then feel like it is no longer correct. There are also so many ways to work these days, working "in aura" isn't necessarily the bulk of how you spend your day.
WANT MORE? Book a Design Decode session. This is a great starting point where we can explore all the nuances of your ideal work environment.
If you run a small team, a Complete Team Analysis will dive deep into your own leadership style, how people on your team do their best work and any gaps that may be slowing your team down (and how to compensate for them). **these are completely bespoke based on the size of your team and your needs, send me an email or book a chat to explore.
Looking at our own Penta skills and points of comfort or discomfort -- and if we run teams, that of our team members -- is SO illuminating. What's been your experience working in small groups? Love it? Hate it?
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