By Rayana Tayler Starre, Certified BG5 Career and Business Consultant
We have all felt it. That subtle tension when a teammate walks into the room. That unexplainable resistance that surfaces during a conversation, or the instinct to withdraw when someone speaks. Those moments often get chalked up to personality differences or miscommunication, but in the world of BG5, there is often something deeper at play. These unseen forces are what I call energetic friction, and they are often the real reason for hidden tension, conflict, or even passive disengagement in teams.
What causes this friction? The hidden culprit is triggers.
In BG5, a trigger happens when the energy of one person fixates something in another, consciously or unconsciously, that can feel disruptive, destabilizing, or challenging. These are not flaws in character. And they are conscious or deliberate. They are energetic interactions rooted in how our designs are wired to mesh or clash with others. In the business world, this friction can either elevate to sharpen performance or challenge and cause dysfunction, depending on awareness of the triggers between team members in order to understand their impact and affect.
Triggers Are Not Personal But They Are Powerful
The key is recognizing that triggering does not mean someone is doing something wrong. Triggers are simply natural energetic responses that arise from the way our designs interact. While they can cause discomfort, they can also serve as powerful indicators of growth, leadership blind spots, and untapped potential in team development.
customer I saw this firsthand during my final project for BG5 Certification, where I analyzed a real-life support team of three women working in a cooperative environment. The energetic dynamics between these team members was eye-opening for their alpha leader. In fact, it was the trigger analysis that I did that helped her understand why leading that team was so challenging for her.
A Case Study from a Customer Service Work Group
One of the team members, an Express Builder, was highly defined and brought a steady, grounded presence, but she was part time so her influence was intermittent. Another Express Builder on the team had a competitive and ambitious quality, while the Initiator of the group was inconsistent in her communication and kept disappearing without informing others. On paper, they seemed like a diverse and complementary team. But underneath the surface, triggers were sparking all kinds of unspoken tension.
For example, one of them consistently triggered the other’s sense of identity. Which led her to often feel unsure of herself around that team mate, who had a more fixed and confident energetic expression. The interaction was not hostile, but the impact was real. The triggered teammate would second-guess herself, and her ability to show up with clarity was diminished.
In another interaction, the Initiator’s unpredictability and lack of communication triggered the part time Express Builder’s strong need for consistency and accountability. The Initiator did not just feel irritated. She felt destabilized. Her defined logic and detail-oriented energy were disrupted by what felt like chaos. Without awareness of the trigger pattern, it became easy for her to see the Initiator as unreliable rather than simply different and needing time out to regroup.
Meanwhile, the fulltime Express Builder was really caught in the middle of a lot of the triggers, both elevations as well as challenges. She triggered the Initiator by unconsciously placing pressure on her to engage or be more emotionally available than she could consistently offer. This created subtle avoidance patterns that never got addressed directly, but undermined cohesion in the group.
When I mapped out these triggering dynamics in their charts, the patterns made perfect sense and explained a lot of the undercurrent of tension running below the surface of this small overworked team. Unfortunately, I did this analysis postmortem, after the alpha left the company due to total burn out and health breakdown. But, reviewing my analysis with her, helped her feel vindicated and validated in her decision to leave the company.
Why This Matters for Team Success
In high-performing teams, synergy is not just about having the right roles or skills. It is about having the right chemistry, and chemistry is shaped by energetic compatibility. Triggers are part of that chemistry. Ignoring them does not make them go away. It simply allows them to operate in the background, unchecked. In my opinion, we don’t focus on them enough. They have a huge impact on group dynamics.
When teams are unaware of their triggers, productivity drops due to interpersonal tension or avoidance. Communication breaks down because people walk on eggshells. Resentments build beneath the surface and go unaddressed. Team members silently disengage or exit.
But when teams do understand their trigger dynamics, they stop taking things personally. They learn to pause, reflect, and respond instead of reacting. They build emotional resilience and accountability. They foster greater empathy, tolerance, and collaboration with one another. As BG5 Business Consultants, we can have a huge influence on improving team dynamics by helping clients understand how triggers are affecting them.
Understanding triggers shifts the team conversation from “What is wrong with us?” to “What is happening in our energetic exchange, and how can we navigate it more skillfully?”
Practical Tips for Working with Triggers on a Team
1. Map the Charts Together
Do a detailed trigger analysis to look at each team member’s design and where potential trigger points occur between team members.
2. Normalize the Conversation
Create a safe, neutral space for team members to discuss how they feel around each other. Explain that triggers are energetic, not personal, and that understanding them helps reduce unnecessary conflict and confusion.
3. Use Language that Builds Empathy
Instead of saying, “She is so controlling,” reframe it as, “When I’m around her, it triggers my sense of instability, and I notice I react to that.” This fosters ownership and reflection, rather than blame.
4. Create Team Agreements
If you know someone has a strong need for clarity and another needs flexibility, find shared agreements that meet both needs. Triggers often highlight where understanding and clear boundaries are needed.
5. Make It Ongoing
Understanding triggers is not a one-time event. As the team evolves, new patterns will emerge. Keep the conversation alive and make space for regular reflection.
A New Paradigm of Awareness to Build Teams that Last
Energetic friction from triggers is not something to avoid. It is something to understand and address. In fact, some of the most powerful transformations I have seen on teams have come through triggering - not in spite of it. When people are willing to lean into the discomfort with compassion and curiosity, triggers can become portals to deeper self-awareness, greater respect, and stronger team coherence.
As BG5 Consultants, we have the unique ability to help teams see what is often invisible, the energetic patterns shaping their dynamics. Bringing awareness to triggers can be the difference between a dysfunctional group and a team that grows stronger together through every challenge.
So the next time you feel that spark of tension on a team, pause. That energetic friction may just be pointing the way to something powerful; a growth opportunity for you and your team.
About Rayana
Rayana is an Emotionally Intelligent Energy Advisor who is a Certified Human Design Analyst, BG5 Business Consultant, Business and Career Transition Coach, and Master NLP Mindset Ninja.
With 25 years of experience as a business, career and mindset coach, she specializes in guiding people through life, career, and business transitions by helping them uncover their genetic blueprint and live in alignment with their true design. She uses Human Design as a tool to give people permission to be themselves.
A seasoned entrepreneur, Rayana has started up and grown multiple businesses from the ground up, scaling them to 6-7 figures across industries like real estate, insurance, pet care, art and coaching.
But, when she discovered coaching, she found her true calling, to guide and empower people on their journeys to get from where they are to where they want to be, one simple step at a time, to ultimately achieve their goals and dreams.
Rayana was introduced to Human Design in the year 2000, but it didn't take root right away. It stalked her over the years until she finally felt the calling to accept the invitation into her own experiment. She has been formally studying Human Design for over 10 years. She has found it to be a practical tool, along with NLP techniques, to transform her own life and relationships, as well as to empower her clients to break free from fears and limiting beliefs and the comparison trap. She enjoys witnessing her clients' transformation and feelings of validation when she shares a career analysis with them.
Her mission is simple: to liberate potential, excavate inner genius, and transform the future by helping people embrace who they are truly meant to be, living a life that is not only successful but deeply fulfilling.
