Patrick Lencioni is a master when it comes to teamwork and team building. In his book – The 5 Dysfunctions of a team, he outlines the 5 things which most commonly go wrong in teams.
Patrick has devoted a lifetime to studying behaviour in hundreds of organisations, so I will try to do his overview justice!
The first thing we need to happen is TRUST, and by that we mean vulnerability-based trust. Where you can make a mistake and tell teammates/manager without fear of retribution. Where you can be vulnerable enough to show even you can get things wrong. As a leader in an organisation the responsibility lies with you to show the way – and demonstrate vulnerability first. Once your teammates see this then they are much more likely to follow your lead and show vulnerability themselves. Leaders go first!
Without the ability to trust we will struggle to engage in CONFLICT. Conflict is quite an aggressive word, I prefer to think of it as the ability to speak up and say your piece – make your voice and opinion known and heard , even if it challenges the status quo. As long as its for the greater good of the business.
Without being able to do this and have your say, you run the risk of the discussion/decision going in a different direction from what you believe to be correct.
If this is the case you are less likely to COMMIT to the course of action, as you won’t feel invested in it, you won’t feel your voice has been heard, therefore you are unlikely to take ACCOUNTABILITY.
If you don’t take accountability, then the chances of the RESULTS being optimal, or even on track… are slim.
How are the trust levels within your team?
