How Do You Create a High Performance Team?
A high performance team is not just a group of individuals working together. It is a united group with a common vision and goal. These people collaborate and challenge one another to achieve exceptional results. They communicate with one another effectively and share a healthy professional relationship. Their leader successfully controls conflicts that may arise, and distributes responsibilities equally.
How is this even remotely possible? How can an organization bring outstanding individuals together and push them to their limits, all for the sake of reaching the same destination?
The Common Factor
All high performance teams share one common factor – a brilliant individual who seamlessly creates an environment that enables them to perform better. This leader functions in a systematic and organised manner that allows him to repeat that success wherever he goes.
Effective leadership is not making employees do what they have to do; it is making employees do what you want them to do, as if they wanted to do it in the first place. It is the responsibility of those at the top to instill the following attributes in employees, thus creating a high performance team:
- A shared objective- There is no doubt that someone at the top establishes the direction for the team. However, individual members should have the privilege to share their opinion on the team’s direction.
- High performance- You only want the best top serve you. Leaders should inspire their subordinates to be among the best, brightest, and most creative in their field. They should create a healthy atmosphere of competition to keep everyone on their toes.
- Effective and transparent communication- Good communication prioritizes the interest of the whole team, instead of just one person. It is your responsibility, as a leader, to make sure that everyone in your team shares important information freely. Backstabbing, hateful emails and nonsense gossiping should be discouraged. If one of your team members feels wronged, then you should talk to him or her in private to sort things out. Most importantly, it is everyone’s responsibility to keep the others informed of the latest developments.
- Shift negative statements – Negative remarks won’t help you and your team. It will eventually bring your team down. Negativity affects people’s motivation and momentum, thus delaying work even more. Don’t let negative remarks stick around- turn it into a challenge or positive reinforcement instead.
With these tips, you can turn even the most unruly team into a dedicated and organized group. It will take time of course, but your efforts in implementing these strategies will eventually mould your team together. Remember that a united team works better and faster than any one employee does.
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