The Truth about Teams
Teams have the potential to deliver extraordinary results. At the same time, there is no such thing as the perfect team. So what are some real truths about teams?
Truth 1: There Will Be Conflict
Teams will from time to time have periods of conflict. This is just the way it is. The challenge is to make sure that the conflict remains productive rather than destructive.
Truth 2: It Is Hard To Get People to Pull In the Same Direction
After nearly 30 years of working in or with teams, I still see people struggling to pull in the same direction. Remember, it is natural to think about the personal impact on you or your people when team decisions are being made.
Truth 3: Building Trust Takes Time
A team does not just come together and instantly work together. There need to be high levels of trust, which take time to build.
Truth 4: There Is No Magic Formula
There are things that you can do; ways in which you act and structure you can put in place. At the end of the day however, there is no magic formula that works every time.
Truth 5: It Takes a Major Mindset Shift
For most of our life, we are judged on what we do individually. For example, most academic achievement is geared towards individual performance. Moving towards team working requires a mindset shift.
The Bottom Line
If you are willing to invest the time and effort in creating team success, you can achieve great results. Just remember that it is more like middle distance running than the 100 metre sprint.
Duncan Brodie of Goals and Achievements helps accountants and health professionals to become highly effective leaders and managers. For more information click here
About the Author Duncan Brodie
Since 2006 I’ve worked with in excess of 8,000 accountants and professionals in workshops, seminars and one to one helping them land their next jobs and become better leaders, presenters and business partners. Before that I spent 25 years in accountancy climbing the career ladder from Payments Clerk to FD. I’m a CIMA Fellow, Certified Professional Coach and Team Coach Facilitator.