The Perfect Team
Doesn’t it feel great to be on a team with people just like you? Everyone thinks the same way. It’s so easy to mingle. But do you get anything remarkable done? Probably not.The perfect team is not one where every team member is the same. Rather it is one where every team member is different, each person brings unique skill sets and yet all know how to effectively communicate. The skill sets relate to ability; however, communication requires willingness as well as ability.
Recently I was reviewing my son’s education records. He was updating his bio and asked me to check a few dates in his file. I thumbed through the notebook that he keeps in the closet of his old room. I was totally amazed how all his old tests and college entrance exams focused on mainly two areas: reading and math. Now reading and math are very important to function in our modern world but there is so much more.
How well have you mastered interpersonal skills? As Rodney King said: “Can’t we just get along?” Time and time again when I am consulting with management teams the biggest concern is getting people to work well together. We go to school and learn how to read and do math but if we don’t learn to communicate well the technical skills are useless.
Abilities
Each person is born with certain definable strengths. The entire area of learning, how the brain works and human intelligence is expanding rapidly. Recent studies have connected cigarette smoking by pregnant mothers to criminal behavior by their grown children. Harvard psychologist Howard Gardner has identified seven different kinds of intelligence. Brain research shows that the brain develops and creates the infrastructure to think and learn well after birth and that environment and external stimuli enhance or inhibit this process.
All people are not equal. Each person has different abilities. A team’s critical needs will be met when you recognize this and strive to pull from each member based on their unique abilities. Having said this, it is even more important to discuss respect.
People tend to value certain abilities more than they value others. Some of the highest paid people in our society are athletes and entertainers. Some people believe a person with lots of money is important. If you went to the right school or come from the right neighborhood you are a better person. Well, all of these ideas have one fundamental flaw. The person deserves respect, not what they have. The key issue is who they are. Respect relates to a person’s behavior not their possessions or station.
Willingness
Your attitude determines your willingness. No one can control another person’s attitude. It is completely a matter of personal choice. You choose to be positive or negative.
If you can’t control the other person’s attitude, how do you motivate them to do what has to be done? The answer is deceptively simple. You really can not motivate another person. The job of the leader or manager is to create an environment where people will motivate themselves. Two elements that help are respect and positive expectations. Respect the individual and believe that they can do it. Believe in them.
Great leaders believe in their people more than their people believe in themselves.
Diversity
People behave as part of a group in certain definable ways. All through history we have been able to recognize patterns of behavior. When you are trying to start the perfect team you should have diverse types of behavior present to develop balance.
The most common model of behavior styles is the four-quadrant model. It is easy to learn and very practical to use in the work environment.
| Direct: Directive and Telling Behavior Impatient Action Oriented |
Steady: Dependable Agreeable Calm |
| Influencer: Talkative Optimistic Persuasive |
Cautious: Talk Oriented Perfectionistic Sensitive |
(Call DGR for a free reference copy of this model)
When working with the perfect team each person will have some of these characteristics. Since each person is different each will tend to bring a different dynamic to the team environment. Everyone has all of these behavioral traits in various amounts depending on the environment and the group dynamics.The Direct will focus on getting the meeting going and push for closure and getting results. This is valuable for any group but needs to be balanced with the needs of the other members.
The Influencer will be most concerned with how everyone is interacting. They want it to be an enjoyable process and desire for everyone to have a good time. This skill is invaluable to present the ideas to management or people outside of the core team group in a persuasive and convincing way.
The Steady is the mortar that holds the group together. They will consistently perform their tasks in a dependable way. Once clear decisions have been made they are excellent at follow up.
The Cautious will analyze each decision more completely than any other style. Fortunately they lean toward perfection so odds are good that the information will reach a higher standard with their input.
This perfect team will function best when the process runs smoothly. Obviously, each of the styles is different and has different concerns and agendas relative to the process. Effective communication is the oil that makes the team machine run cool.
So what makes for the perfect team? First we need to have a collection of abilities in the form of skill sets. This will mean a variety of people with different backgrounds, education, types of intelligence and experiences. Next we must find people with a positive attitude or a willingness to be a contributor to the team. Behaviors will show you who is willing and who is not. Behaviors will also earn respect or cause people to lose respect for an individual. Don’t pay as much attention to what people say as you do to what they do.
Last but not least be sure you have diversity in your people and their behavioral styles. Like the strands of a rope that are twisted closely together, with many people there is strength. Work at learning how to communicate with this variety of people. To be successful you must treat each one differently. If you treat everyone the same way you will be successful a small fraction of the time. Effective communication takes more than talent; it involves trust, respect, understanding, empathy and resolution. Now go build the perfect team.
