Less ‘Me,’ More ‘We’: Why it’s All About Team Success

“Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence wins championships.” – Michael Jordan 

If arguably the greatest basketball player of all time understands the power of teamwork, we should probably pay attention.

It may sound unrealistically altruistic, but the truth is that the more we focus on team goals over individual goals, the more successful we will be. I have witnessed this many times and independent studies have proven that team performance drives business performance. After all, teams of people are what drive results in companies, not the lone mavericks who try to tackle everything. And here’s a nice bonus – when you remove your personal aspirations from the picture, it’s both liberating and a significant opportunity for personal development.

Simply put, by putting the team’s needs first – less “me,” more “we” – everyone wins. But not all teams are built on a solid foundation of trust, leadership and alignment.

In order to achieve team success, you must first be a cohesive team. How do you make sure that all your teammates are on the same page? And that you are all working towards the same goal? Here are a few basic questions to ask:

• Do you truly behave as a team? By this we mean, do members meet on a regular basis? Do they share common goals, and they are collectively responsible for results?
• Are team members willing to invest time and emotional energy in building cohesiveness?
• Do you have a strong leader who believes in the power of teamwork and is prepared to lead the effort in terms of setting an example and dedicating time to building a cohesive team?
• Do members have the time necessary to devote to building cohesiveness (if there are too many looming and conflicting deadlines, most likely the team won’t be able to focus on this initiative)?

If you’ve answered yes to these questions, then you are ready to dig in. The next steps to building stronger and more cohesive teams are to build trust, learn how to engage in productive conflict, commit to decisions, hold each other accountable, and focus on achieving collective results. Ready to get started?

If your team is ready to come together and achieve more “we” and less “me” than they ever have before, give Powers Resource Center a call or click here: Five Behaviors of a Cohesive Team.