The elements of a good team
I’ve been thinking about this lately.
Frequent dialogue
Communication within a team should be frequent. But more importantly it should be a dialogue – there is more than one voice contributing to the conversation. What I often see in meetings is one or two people dominating a discussion and not allowing others to pitch in. It’s especially concerning to me when I see people who simply do not notice that they are taking up more than their fair share of time and that others are waiting for them to stop talking so they can let their thoughts out. Unfortunately there’s no helping people like that, as far as I can see, it’s just something that pisses me off.
Trust; no fear
You can only participate helpfully and with compassion if you feel trusted and respected by your team-mates. The only way to promote that ethos is to trust and respect your team. It makes you vulnerable, but when these qualities manifest in a team great things can be accomplished. So it’s worth it. You must constantly strive to be gracious and humble, sometimes in the face of irrationality. It’s the only way, and this is a life lesson in itself.
A holistic view
A member of a team can do their job well if they only understand their role, but one must understand how they fit in to the larger process in order to excel. With this understanding you can shape your role to better serve the needs of your team and the business – and yourself. It also helps you with the previous point; when you have perspective on the team as a whole you also gain perspective on your individual priorities and assess whether your personal misgivings are truly important or not.
A GTD attitude
Getting Things Done. This is more complicated than it sounds, because it’s important to know what to get done. You don’t want to be micro-managed, and you shouldn’t be, because you’re trusted. Hone your judgement. Pay attention to but do not indulge your ego. Help your team to achieve its goals. Earn the trust and respect you expect from your team. Pick your battles. Map your faults. Strive to improve.
With a group of people who embody these qualities I can’t see how you can go wrong.
