Unlocking 6 Secrets to Sure Shot Team Success
There was once a new manager, Jack. Jack was all about teamwork and effective team collaboration. He scheduled meetings after meetings and thought he was doing all he could to make an all-inclusive environment for his team.
He was handed a small project and his team’s job was to provide a name for a new product. He handed every person in the team a piece of paper to write a catchy sentence about the product. He was expecting Robin and Anisha to have the best answer.
But to his surprise, the quietest person in the team, Tarun had the best answer. Jack then realized how the performance of 2–3 people overshadows the performance of all others.
It was then that he was convinced that he had to give a voice to all his teammates, in order to get the best out of his whole team.
Hearing this story firsthand I understood that the shortest way to team success is making an environment safe enough for everyone to feel included and heard. Giving a voice to your team increases the understanding between team members and helps us managers appreciate the good and guide the bad.
Success is Near When you are Open to Hear
What we gathered from Jack’s story is that teamwork is important, but everyone grows and learns at their own pace. It is a leader’s job to help his people improve and learn individually.
There are certain problems that managers face just because they can’t see the whole picture.
This is why you need to know your employees in order to help them flourish. Here’s how you can make that possible:
- Giving your team members a chance to talk can help you understand their strengths and weaknesses.
- You need to be listening to what your team has to say to develop a good relationship with them. A good relationship will hence promote transparency and increase understanding.
- Listening would directly influence the efficiency with which your team works.
- Leaders who are good listeners and compassionate people get more out of their employees.
- In fact, in many cases, it has been observed that leaders who listen to their team also show their care for employees.
Two-way communication is how you get to know about your team members’ hidden talents and you get to understand what does and what does not work for them.
Working in a management position, I have had the chance to pick up several lessons on team success on my way to the top.
I have also learned in the process of managing ProofHub that everyone’s talents should have a chance to grow so as to achieve team progress as a whole.
How I Practice my Mantra for a Successful Team
At ProofHub, you would find me engaging in matters that are important to the people and when I listen to them I tell them to elaborate their points and put forth their perspectives. This makes them feel heard and cared for. The following are the ways in which I effectively get more out of my team using communication:
#1 Brainstorming Sessions
A number of companies schedule brainstorming sessions. The concept behind these is to get the best ideas out in the open. Although according to my mantra, brainstorming sessions are conducted so that everyone gets to participate and put their thoughts forward.
I encourage my team to be open by asking them questions and telling them to speak up about their perspectives. These sessions help in motivating the team to better while also providing a direction to the project at hand.
#2 Round Table Meetings
The next great habit all managers can adopt is to have round table meetings for critical thinking so that there is space for judging everyone’s ideas and giving feedback about them. This helps my team be prepared and understand their individual goals for the project.
Needless to say, this process has drastically reduced the chances of error and misunderstanding. Also, by having a two-way conversation you can provide your team members guidance on their ideas hence allowing them to learn and grow.
#3 Feedback Sessions
Feedback sessions are the best way to get your people to know their shortcomings, however, they can also be a way for leaders to show their team how valuable they are. Two-way feedback sessions can be a way for you to garner the trust of your employees.
This can be a way for you to let your people know that you are aware of their strengths and which factors work in favor of team success on their behalf. Letting your guard down this way can drive productivity.
#4 Setting Meeting Agendas
One more thing I do to simulate the learning process of my team is to have a meeting at the start of every day with defined agendas.
Talking over these agendas can help you understand every employee’s thought process and can provide you an insight as to what works best for them.
This also gives my team a chance to come prepared hence providing them a learning curve. Going over the agendas gives my team a detailed analysis of their shortcomings and their strengths.
#5 Reflect Sessions
This is another thing I have recently implemented. These reflection sessions are conducted at the end of every project.
The whole team sits around the table to discuss the low and the high points of the project and every member discusses how he affected the growth of the project and what could have been done differently.
With reflection sessions, my team has benefited a lot since these discussions lead to the betterment of the team as a whole.
#6 Shared Goals
Using ProofHub I get to make my team realize that they share the same goal. Since good tools for communication are essential for efficiency. We also need effective communication so that there is no room for error.
In my experience, I have found that ProofHub acts as the best communication tool as it has features for leaving comments and providing feedback. And, with it, you are also able to look into all projects and see the progress of every task which promotes my goal for transparency.
Conclusion
In my experience, team success is guaranteed when you work on the individual parts. Giving a chance for everyone to grow at their own pace and time can show brilliant results in your project.
A team is only as strong as its members. Creating an atmosphere where everyone has the chance to improve themselves is what leadership is all about.
So if you find yourself assigning tasks to your team in accordance with their skill sets, you are on the right path for team success.
Focus on the best qualities of your team members and help them learn to promote their growth. Take it from a Leader who has had several successful projects with a well-functioning team, success is for those who seek to improve.
Thus, if your management style needs improving, accept and adapt.
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