Tiago Daniel http://www.flickr.com/photos/bazik/395792175/
When Maddie and I have workshop participants take our Collaborability assessment, we frequently ask them which collaboration aspect surprised them. The most frequent answer is Pausing to allow time for reflection.
Pausing is most important when you have an instant and negative reaction to a collaborator’s suggestion.
When I notice that I have a strong negative response toward an idea, it’s a sign to me to slow down and check out what’s really going on. More often than not, I find that my reaction has more to do with me than with the idea itself.
The pause allows you to develop awareness about your own areas of resistance or automatic response. Once you’ve paused, you can ask yourself “How could this work?” or “How is that idea connected”? If you take the time to consider the merits or opportunities of an idea, it may lead to a solution that will work well.
Debbie
Collaboration Pays Off 
Great post! This is an extremely interesting and neglected aspect, and I would like to know if you have published a paper or something with these results (number of participants, percentage of people who believe this phase crucial, etc.). Laura
I have not published a paper but may in the future. Thanks for the suggestion.