What is teamwork?
Teamwork is not just a group of people doing something. It’s the ability to work with others and to help others attain their full potential and achieve the shared goals. As well, teamwork is one of the most desirable skills an employer can seek in its employees. The main reason why teamwork is so important in the workplace is that it builds trust among co-workers. This is true for a variety of reasons. Good teamwork increases productivity and makes your employees happier.
Advantages of teamwork
The benefits of teamwork are countless. When people belonging to different work areas and different experiences join heads together to perform a task, it brings significant advantages. So, let’s discuss some benefits of teamwork.
1. Improved efficiency
2. Stress reduction
3. Better ideas & improved problem solving
4. Boots moral & motivation
1. Improved efficiency
Simply imagine a carpenter working on a cupboard and another cupboard where there are 5 on duty. Which one will finish first? It’s obvious, the latter one. Teamwork improves the quality of the efforts, which increases the efficiency of work being done
2. Stress reduction
Teamwork reduces stress in a number of ways. When you work alone, it puts you under pressure, and you can make mistakes due to nervousness or deadlines that are challenging for you to meet. With teamwork, you share responsibilities, and each person gets to do what he/she is best at.
3. Better ideas & improved problem solving
Working as a group can make things easier for a venture as there are multiple brains to calculate the solution to a problem. An individual, no matter how high caliber they hold, can offer you a very limited set of solutions, but in the case of multiple, you get the best possible and optimum solution in less time.
4. Boosts morale and motivation
Each group member has something unique to offer, and when you do so, it makes you feel valued and important. When you contribute towards the betterment of something, it improves your morals and motivates you to perform better as an individual and a team member.
Disadvantages Of Teamwork
Just like we have advantages, there are also some disadvantages to teamwork. Sometimes developing a team can create complications, which can cause problems and can affect efficiency if not appropriately handled.
Tips for better Team Work
There are some tips for better team work are as below :
Top 10 Teamwork Skills — Examples
1. Communication
The ability to get your point across, and truly understand what other people want to tell you is the cornerstone of effective teamwork. And it doesn’t matter if you communicate in person, via email writing, instant messages, or on the phone — the exchange of information must be effective regardless of the medium. Plus, the nonverbal aspects of communication are just as important. Great teams nurture a culture of openness and mutual trust. Everyone must feel safe enough to speak their mind.
2. Conflict resolution
Conflict is part and parcel of any team effort. What matters most is how adept you are at dealing with issues as they arise. Remember, it’s crucial not to let any conflicts escalate — that’s why the best team players are also great mediators.
3. Rapport-building and listening
You can only build rapport if you’re listening to other people’s voices. Mind you — it’s equally important to pay heed to their enthusiasm and the lack of it. Rapport and listening skill go hand in hand, one can’t exist without the other.
4. Decision-making
Making decisions may seem like a pretty straightforward thing to do. And that’s the case when everyone agrees on the course of action. But everything changes when opinions start to differ and you need to make an unpopular decision. What distinguishes great team players from the average ones is the ability to see the big picture, put their egos aside, and work towards the common goal.
5. Problem-solving
The very idea behind organizing a team is to solve a problem. That’s why problem-solving skills are fundamental for each and every team member. The ability to look at an issue from multiple angles and utilize your time management skills on the basis of individual team member’s skills drive the entire team’s performance and success.
6. Organizational and planning skills
To solve any problem effectively and efficiently you must be able to devise a master plan that every team member understands, follows, and knows where it leads to. Once the plan is agreed upon, all team members will be able to organize their tasks, establish deadlines, and orchestrate their efforts.
7. Persuasion and influencing skills
Being persuasive isn’t a character trait. It’s a skill you can learn. In the context of teamwork, this applies mostly to team leaders who must inspire everyone to contribute to achieving team goals and objectives. A good start to build such leadership skill is to hone-in on your presentation skill.
8. Reliability
Teams form because they can achieve more than each team member could on their own. That’s obvious, isn’t it? What people tend to forget, though, is that when working together as a team you depend on the others as much as they depend on you. Show your reliability by sticking to deadlines, delivering your tasks, and overcommunicating any obstacles along the way.
9. Respectfulness
Being respectful towards other people doesn’t mean you have to like them or agree with them. Show your respect by not taking anyone for granted, and listening to them actively. Don’t know where to start? Learn your teammates’ names first!
10. Tolerance
Tolerance and respectfulness go hand in hand. Be open-minded and eager to learn. People of different ethnicities, religions, or minorities are what makes this planet such a fascinating place to live. Again, you don’t have to see eye to eye with everybody.