One challenge I have run into in my new assignment is that members of the team did not know each other. By that I mean, they did not know each others role, communication style, personality traits etc. In my work environment, in order to work together you must take time to know as much about each other as possible.
My team seems to fall into groupthink too often. I am always trying to bring in minority viewpoints.
I've seen where both ends of unhealthy self-identity work against the team. Some team members resort to monopolizing time in an effort to ensure that others are fully convinced that they deserve to be on the team. This is the person with very low self-worth. I've also seen individuals monopolize time because they are convinced they are the only valuable resource on the team. This is the person with the over-inflated ego. Both usually lack a sense of self awareness that significantly impedes team identy and subsequently slows progress to a standstill.
Hi Jon,
You make an excellent point about the impact of teammates with unhealthy self-identities. Besides low self-worth or megalomania, sometimes these types of individuals act the way they do because they are trying to mask the fact that they don't have the expertise or social skills needed to contribute to the team.
In the examples you gave, what strategies were used, or could have been used, to minimize the negative impact of these individuals on the rest of the team?
Recognizing different personalities and how to deal with them is the key to a successful team. Everyone has a different moral compass that they see the world through. Once you understand how your team members react with each other you can start the process of building a team. Just having people on the same project, working toward the same goal does not necessarily create a good team. Teamwork happens when you’re more concerned with making the team successful and not worrying about individual accomplishments.
Excellent point! When individuals can be inspired to put the good of the team ahead of individual interests, you definitely have the making of a good team. We have all been on teams that had talented people that spun their wheels because everybody wanted to be individually recognized by "the boss." I love the quote, "imagine how much we could get done if we didn't care who got the credit!"
Thanks for your insights.
Jamie
Some common challenges that see impeding team progress are: misleading comments, not being an active listener, not asking for input from all participants, and lack of follow through. These are major aspects that have occurred unfortunately in the majority of team work groups that I have been. In undergrad I took a course in Outdoor Education/Teambuilding and loved it. I try to use it when I teach through various examples in order to better the work groups that will be in charge of most companies as we as a population grow older. Hopefully, through my own misgivings, I will be able to influence them in order to make a more productive team environment. And we too must act and conduct team activities the way we are trying to pass on to the younger generations.
Megan,
You make excellent points! Communication distractions are some of the most difficult for a team. Sometimes, holding a brainstorming meeting, which is clearly outside of the normal meeting patterns for the group, can enable team mates to contribute because they have less fear of being judged. Then, moving forward, they are more likely to participate.
I also appreciate your comment about learning from our past. Learning from our uncomfortable experiences makes us much more aware of the perspectives of others and makes us more attuned teachers.
Well done!
Jamie
Personal conflict and ego can be significant to slow team progression. I have worked with people who seemed to enjoy hearing themselves speak without saying anything.
Cultural clashes can impede progress as well...misunderstandings and communication problems. Something as simple as making eye contact or not, can be misconstrued as a threat or a lack of integrity, depending on the cultural background. Language barriers or impedences can disrupt communication which in turn would slow down team progression.
People getting too used to "the way that things have been done before" or "the way that I've always done it."
And as I tell my six year old daughter, we have two ears and one mouth :)
Gregg,
Your comments are directly on point. Personality conflicts can definitely impede progress and stifle creativity of the group. One strategy for dealing with this is to set ground rules for the meetings. If the rule states that nobody can speak for more than 5 minutes at a time or that every point needs a counterpoint by another team member before the original speaker presents another idea, it is harder for one person to monopolize the meeting.
Thanks for the thoughtful submission.
Jamie
Hi Thomas,
You are correct that having team members that only think about how things have been done before or how they feel is best can definitely be a challenge! One way to redirect team members that do that is to host a brainstorming session where no ideas are out of line and no idea can be criticized. Sometimes having a meeting of this type away from the office stimulates creativity and out of the box thinking.
What other strategies have you seen work?
Jamie
I really like the activity that you shared about brainstorming with freedom and no criticism, I can see this working in my current workplace. Another strategy that I have seen is for the supervisor to remind people that although norms are created, that every day and every week is a new opportunity to create not just change, but progress. Sometimes people praise change but change can also be a backward movement instead of a forward movement of progress.
Having a supervisor who is open, direct and honest is incredible. I have seen it work with one specific supervisor but otherwise it is hard for some other supervisors to be confident enough to have this open approach since control is the means that some use to manage others. I believe in creating an environment that is based on servant leadership and influence (follow my lead based on what you see in my character) versus a command and control type of leadership.
Thomas,
I love the book "Servant Leadership." I agree with that approach as well. A good leader is the first one to pick up a broom or a box of donuts and the last to leave when there is a critical project due. Do you feel that managers can be trained to be servant leaders? I'm interested to hear your perspective.
Thanks,
Jamie
Trying to find the time to complete the projects at hand. We are often strapped with tutoring and teaching class that becomes a priority over other projects
Dave,
You are correct that it is difficult to make a team's priority the top priority when people are worn thin with other responsibilities. One suggestion is to block time on your calendar and put your DND button on your phone for 30 minutes, a few times a week. It is much more daunting to tell yourself that you need to work on the project for "several hours" because often times, we don't have several hours to give. Scheduling yourself for shorter sessions will help make the team's goal a priority and management. Give it a try and let me know if it works for you.
Thanks,
Jamie
In my experiences in management. I believe the biggest challenge does come from taking people who are doing a job, such as department heads, and bringing them together to work on a business project. It seems that at some point the team splits into separate groups all with their own agenda. all hoping to leverage the project in some way so it may better their departments.
I have different age groups in my team that work well with there peers, but not well with the different age groups. this is a common challenge that I have not been able to overcome this dynamic.
Steven,
You are correct in that the dynamic across generations can be strained, especially when the team is working on high profile projects that results in promotions or other rewards.
One idea would be to create sub-teams that you assign, making sure that you separate the generational clichés. Learning to cope with and trust one or two people to start with is easier than getting along with the entire team.
If that doesn’t work, perhaps you could have your HR department set up a training related to age bias and tolerance.
Hope that helps.
Jamie
