Question relates to when a Status-Similar Colleague Antagonizes You.

You and Jordan occupy identical status positions in your company. This is true formally (you both lead equally influential teams) and informally (the same junior people tend to seek you both out for advice, and when you need advice, you and Jordan often consult the same older executives). Your colleagues place high value on yours and Jordans skill-sets, but they see also your skill-sets as overlapping. Some have even joked about how the two of you are substitutes for each other, asking playfully does the company really need identical twins? Youre also struck by the fact that three features of interest to social scientists mark your relationship with Jordan(i) the perceived lack of differentiation (theres no clear status-signal indicating whos more valuable to the company), (ii) intense mutual monitoring, and (iii) sharp disagreements about who should defer to whom when youre interacting with each other. For example, in addition to colleagues jokes about how youre twins, you sense that Jordan is constantly keeping score, keenly eyeing your every move and achievement. You find yourself doing the same, having to fight off distraction whenever Jordan receives praise from others. You and Jordan also sit on the executive board of a division of your company, and in board meetings you and Jordan never seem to agree about who should defer to whom. And instead of building esprit de corps with you, Jordan is constantly looking for opportunities to interrupt you, is often muscle-flexing, andat the edges of whats appropriate in your companys cultureJordan does everything possible to reduce your relative status. Jordan wants to resolve the status ambiguity between the two of you by coming out clearly on top. Youre well aware of Jordans desire to sideline you, and youve also been surprised by the strongly negative, and combustible, emotions interacting with Jordan has evoked in you in the recent past. You believe you have a slight edge over Jordan when it comes to important capabilities, but Jordan believes just the opposite.

How will you respond to Jordan? Your strategically navigate situations where status ambiguity threatens to escalate into destructive conflict.