“The strength of the team is each individual member. The strength of each member is the team.” ~ Phil Jackson
Have you worked on a team that functions as one? These teams have a synergy about them that is captivating. They trust one another and have fun. Other team environments are dysfunctional, where there is a lack of trust and each team member is looking out for themselves, and there is no unity.
Teamwork is more than just working as a member of a team. Being a team player means stepping up when an emergency transpires and filling in the gaps. It is stepping in to do something that needs to be done, whether your job or not.
Leading a team means that you do not do everything yourself. A team leader needs to be a mentor, a teacher, a delegator, and a worker. In addition, team leaders need to include the other team members in voicing their ideas and helping propel the organization forward. Strengthening teams starts with relationship building.
Ways to Strengthen a Team
- Trust team members.
- Trust is the foundation for team success.
- Building trust starts with leaders.
- Transparency is showing accountability through communication.
- Focus on what you can accomplish.
- Each team member has strengths and weaknesses. When you genuinely get to know your team members, you recognize and acknowledge strengths and help one another improve their weaknesses.
- Set actionable and achievable goals.
- Be reliable.
- Celebrate the small steps along the way, keeps the team motivated and moving forward.
- Enlist others to help.
- Great leaders are great listeners.
- Become a good delegator, mentor, and lead by example by doing the work.
Great teams are made up of people with complementary skills and strengths. The trick is to leave egos, pride, and insecurities preventing us from seeing our actual superpowers.
Trust is at the heart of any highly functioning team. Trust includes being vulnerable to one another and being willing to take risks and support each other. Many leadership experts agree that getting the right people and chemistry is more important than having the best idea. Ideas come from people, which means that your people should be the most important.
Henry Ford said:
“Coming together is a beginning. Keeping together is progress. Working together is success.”
By Cheryl Viola, Executive Director/CEO, MBA