I was thinking recently of what makes a team. We all have that image in our minds of a group of people, smiling, working in close proximity, handing each other papers, pointing to lines on a chart while nodding, and usually high-fiving at some point. And yet, how often have we actually seen those images outside of commercials or our own frustrated dreams?
Most of the time, what we call a team is really just the first part of that description: a group of people. It reminds me of the Emma Lazarus quote from her poem inscribed at the base of the Statue of Liberty: “Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free…” Sadly, that sounds more accurate to what we see when we go to work with our so-called teams.
It recalls the image included in this post. We feel like we’re either managing a mopey assemblage of children with their own baggage or like we’re being micromanaged by a callous, overworked, and poorly equipped bureaucrat.
As the saying goes, the first step is recognizing there’s a problem. We have to come clean and admit if we’re managing or operating within a group or if we’re leading or collaborating within a team. A team should have clear, stated, and shared values; it should have a definable, realistic, and timely outcome that excites its members; everyone should have a voice; everyone’s unique perspectives and experiences should be tapped into as one of the team’s advantages; there should be vulnerability, trust, and accountability; and everyone should embrace and even seek healthy conflict over unhealthy peace.
Now, this may all sound Utopian, but it’s not. If we accept that this is how teams look and operate, then we’ll create and foster the very group we’ve designed. There’s nothing fictional or unrealistic about shared values, definable outcomes, utilizing everyone’s gifts, being vulnerable, or having a tough but necessary conversation with someone for their – and the team’s – own good. We live into the future we see coming and seeing is a matter of perspective.
So, I invite you to think about your aspiration for the team, not as a hypothetical, but as a road map. Consider everyone’s role, including yours. And if you need a little help in a shift in perspective, having the right conversations, or gaining clarity, let me know.
Most of the time, what we call a team is really just the first part of that description: a group of people. It reminds me of the Emma Lazarus quote from her poem inscribed at the base of the Statue of Liberty: “Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free…” Sadly, that sounds more accurate to what we see when we go to work with our so-called teams.
It recalls the image included in this post. We feel like we’re either managing a mopey assemblage of children with their own baggage or like we’re being micromanaged by a callous, overworked, and poorly equipped bureaucrat.
As the saying goes, the first step is recognizing there’s a problem. We have to come clean and admit if we’re managing or operating within a group or if we’re leading or collaborating within a team. A team should have clear, stated, and shared values; it should have a definable, realistic, and timely outcome that excites its members; everyone should have a voice; everyone’s unique perspectives and experiences should be tapped into as one of the team’s advantages; there should be vulnerability, trust, and accountability; and everyone should embrace and even seek healthy conflict over unhealthy peace.
Now, this may all sound Utopian, but it’s not. If we accept that this is how teams look and operate, then we’ll create and foster the very group we’ve designed. There’s nothing fictional or unrealistic about shared values, definable outcomes, utilizing everyone’s gifts, being vulnerable, or having a tough but necessary conversation with someone for their – and the team’s – own good. We live into the future we see coming and seeing is a matter of perspective.
So, I invite you to think about your aspiration for the team, not as a hypothetical, but as a road map. Consider everyone’s role, including yours. And if you need a little help in a shift in perspective, having the right conversations, or gaining clarity, let me know.