Individuals On The Team Are Not Individual Teams

Luke Waite
Aug 31, 2018 · 4 min read

One of the things that I am most excited about currently are teams of people all working together in unison to accomplish a unified goal. For this to happen, the goals and aspirations of teams have to be good for everyone in order for this to happen otherwise people will feel trampled on. That is not to say that everyone has to love what is happening all the time but simply that everyone on the team has to understand that success individually means that the team has succeeded collectively. Put differently, the goal of the team is that if the team wins everyone wins and if the team does not win then no one wins. The issue here is that the team has to establish what priorities are of most importance to the success of the team as a whole.

How does a team go about this? It is simple, each member of the team has to understand that they are not an island but rather for the success of the team they have to be willing to sacrifice for each other so that the team can win. Unfortunately, this is simply not a something that comes naturally to most of humanity but do not lose hope as this can be a learned trait. There is one caveat to this learned trait. Some people simply do not want to be team players. This is a decision that a person makes and then usually does not look back from for a long time.

For the person who does not naturally engage with the team as a team player they may need a nudge to become a team player. In my experience, telling people to get on board with the team does not work quite as well as inviting them to join the team in what is already happening. The difference is not that the destination is different but rather the part that they are allowed to play in the journey is different. Telling people to get on the team puts them in a position where they are not desired but rather replaceable. However, an invitation to be part of the team communicates that the team member is desired for what they bring to the table. This offers a part for the desired member to play in what is happening on the team rather than simply being a cog in a machine.

When I was younger, wide eyed, full of fire and angst, I remember being on a team where I was told that I had a voice. That felt great until I realized that it was simply just words and not reality. Soon after I was told that the team I was on would operate as a team, there was a circumstance where one of the senior members of the team made a decision that heavily affected the entire team. This decision was also made without consulting any of the other team members. I approached this senior member of the team after the fact and calmly asked why they made that decision without anyone else? The response I received was: “I’m the senior member so it’s my prerogative to make these kind of decisions and you cannot be upset that I did not consult you”. This communicated to me that I was not invited to be part of what was being built but rather that I was simply a cog in the machine. All of this could have been avoided by members of the team being welcomed into the decision making process. Perhaps the same decision would have be made but it would have been made as a team. Conversly, the negative outcome would have also been carried as a team.

Final Thoughts

As a leader, you have to make decisions but that does not mean they have to be made in isolation and especially not if you are trying to cultivate a team environment where all members are, at a base level, involved in decisions. So, regardless of whether or not a team member will have the final word on a person that is about to be hired, bring them into the process. Or perhaps a large purchase needs to be made for your team. Bring other members into the decisions and this will foster an even more healthy team environment. This is a win-win for leaders because they get another persons perspective on a potential candidate and the other team member sees what these sort of processes are like. This way of operating also helps to aid team members to begin to think and function as a team.

Stay Together for the Team

Keep your team together. Don’t pit certain members of the team against others. If we are on a team, then we are on the same team. Leader, keep your team together, they will create better content if you do.

Win and Lose Together

Win and lose together. Part of being a team means that when the team loses we all lose and when the team wins everyone wins. That said, DON’T isolate people when loses occur and DON’T isolate people when wins occur.

The best teams are just that…teams. Seems silly but it’s true. Teams who work together, lose together, and win together are the ones who get the most done. So much time is spent hating the person who messed up or did the wrong thing which is simply wasted time and effort that team members could spend rooting for each other and picking up slack where it is needed. So be a team member not your own team.

L

Luke Waite

Written by

Trainer | Manager | Writer | Architect of Empathetic Experiences.

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