Become The Winning Team (Future-SYNC.com, 2016)
Have you ever been a part of a winning team? Being on a winning team is rewarding. Practices are fun, the team camaraderie is powerful, and you believe you will win the game before it even starts. How about a losing team? Have you ever been on one? There isn’t much worse than being on a team that cannot get a win. Practices aren’t much fun, camaraderie lacks, and the team often shows up expecting to lose the game.
Have you been on a team at work that isn’t working? Have you been able to identify why this team cannot seem to get a win together? Here are a few ideas to help identify obstacles that are hurting the team.
#1 – Team Maturity. If a team lacks maturity and the ability to act professional, they will not win together often. Take time to investigate the maturity of the team’s communication, necessary skills, and knowledge of the work, including the mission/vision/values.
#2 – Team History. Norms set out of past practices tend to influence team members’ current behavior. Take time to learn about the past and be intentional about what is being taught as today’s norm.
#3 – Mixed Motives. An individual’s motives are almost never purely cooperative. Identify what is at play when it comes to team success and personal satisfaction. Many people strive to be a star and secure individual rewards, as well as help a team succeed. Be careful to identify an imbalance.
#4 – Obstructive Behaviors. A team’s effectiveness is affected by team members that talk too much, argue too often, intimidate others, wander from the topic, become unnecessarily obsessed with details, acquiesce too soon, stubbornly resist, and act out of self-preservation. These issues need to be identified and then addressed in an honoring, but firm fashion.
Take time to identify what is holding your team back, put a plan together to become unstuck, and begin the journey to becoming a winning team.
For information about team intelligence, leadership development, and winning with each other contact the FutureSYNC consultants at (406) 254-2326.