Copyright (c) 2008 Jennifer Selby Long
Have you ever noticed how some teams have the magic touch? You see their work, and the way they work together and all you can think is, "Oh, I wish I were on that team instead of this one." It's hard to put your finger on what exactly makes them tick, isn't it?
Well, satisfy your curiosity right here and right now. I have the answer.
The reason you can't see the magic is that it's invisible. It's not written down in their mission statement and it's not repeated in the footers of their documents. From outside the team, you can't see it at all.
Here are the five hidden secrets that separate the great teams from all the rest:
1. Trust. The team has developed a high level of trust. This means not only personal trust ("I trust that you are fundamentally a good person who won't stab me in the back") but also competency trust ("I trust that you have the knowledge and abilities to come through for me"). This level of trust takes time and while it may appear to be there from the start, it's not.
2. Conflict. Team members are willing to deal with conflict in a direct, honest, and thoughtful way: not holding things in, not lashing out, and never using conflict for personal gain.
3. Feedback. Team members are willing to call each other on unhelpful, unproductive, or destructive behaviors. They don't chicken out when it comes to giving and receiving feedback at the peer level.
4. Commitment. Most team members are committed to success, even when going through difficult times. They will walk the talk, as the saying goes, no matter how challenging the situation.
5. Values. The team has a clear sense of their shared values. They do not necessarily share all of the same values, but they do share several core values, which guide their decision-making and behavior.
How does your team stack up? If you're not close to a 10 on a scale of 1 to 10 in all five areas, fix it. If it's beyond repair and the leader is unwilling to face this, think about finding yourself another team. Life is too short to be miserable at work. Low performing teams are miserable teams. High performing teams are happy teams. How would you rather feel all day?
Related Articles
How Great Leaders Successfully Jumpstart Reorganized Teams
By: Jennifer Selby Long | 28/02/2008 | Business
When launching new teams, beware of the assumptions you make about people you already know. The steps are the same; it's the nuances that are different. As the leader, be sure to check your relationship assumptions. In this article, you'll find four steps for creating successfully teams.
Making Time for Team Building Relationships
By: Martin Haworth | 27/01/2006 | Business
Whatever else you are doing - STOP! - whenever you engage with someone in conversation. Ignore pagers. Put off interruptions. At the very least make sure that you 'honour' the space that you have when you are in any sort of one-to-one with someone else.
The Value of Teamwork
By: Paula Switzer | 08/03/2007 | Non-Fiction
Achieve greater success by creating a culture that encourages teamwork.
Leadership Skill: Empowerment Uncertainties
By: Harvey Robbins | 18/09/2007 | Leadership
Between the subjects of goal setting and decision making is an enormous crevasse, into which teams fall, then fester and stink up the joint. This is the area of boundary management - or in the case of team failure, mismanagement.
Empowerment is a form of decision making that involves individual, not...
Walls Of Communication!
By: Dorothy Lafrinere | 11/09/2005 | Communication
Back, it
is a
very nice feeling. One should never betray or play games with
that
trust. Those games usually get caught, and a broken trust will
surely
create.
Inspiration of Professional Team Building
By: shijina | 18/10/2007 | Business
Team should be leaded by proper inspiration. Inspiration for team is considered to be the important requirement to generate performance in the team. ...
How To Quickly Build Your Feedback On Ebay
By: Gary Ruplinger | 10/05/2007 | Business
The Fast Way To Become A Trusted eBay Seller
If you're just starting out selling on eBay, you may find it tough to sell your products are decent prices, especially if you're selling high priced items like electronics.
The problem is that when you're a new seller is that you...
Let your Weight Down
By: Timothy Wright | 19/12/2007 | Team Building
No team can succeed without a foundation of trust. Building that trust takes attention, energy, and effort. Here are 5 tips you might try.
Got a Question? Ask.
Ask the community a question about this article:
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I know his the one?
By: juju | 09-07-2008
My boyfriend and I hve 9 months together. How do I know his the one?
Nicole Kidman Sunday Rose Scientology
By: Kimmie | 09-07-2008
Do you think Nicole Kidman named her new baby daughter Sunday Rose to spite Scientology and Tom Cruise in particular,or because the daddy wrote a song called "Sunday" for the baby before she was born?Is this a good name in your opinion?
Is it something to worry about?
By: coriandermay | 09-07-2008
me and my boyfriend just got back together a couple weeks ago and like the 4th of july he couldn't find his phone for like a day or 2 so wasn't able to talk on the phone with him like usual and he hadn't come online either so it has been weird not being able to talk to him and we were supposed to hang out if he wasn't to late getting home from work but he didn't even call to let me know if he could or not so I am not even sure when he got home and like I said he hasn't been online the past few days........ I tried to call a few times to see if I could get a hold of him to see how long he was working and the first time it just rang and when I tried again later his phone was off or the battery died. with all that went on when we were broken up I kinda worry cause I don't want it to happen again ya know(if u have read my previous posts about that u know what happened)...... if not he broke up with me for some stupid reason them a couple days later went out with this other girl and had sex with her and all that crap it was all messed up and she stopped the relationship so they r not even talkn right now or anything so he got over her and eventually asked me back out and told me he knew I was the one for him so............ is it alright to worry or should I not even think about it? I am not really sure what to think really cause I don't know if he just went to sleep when he got home whenever that was and just turned his phone off and forgot to call or what?! I don't want to go crazy or anything over it I just want to make sure if It is something I should keep an eye on to make sure nothing is going on or just not do anything about it.
Mens dictionary
By: Liliana | 08-07-2008
what a men tried to say when he says you are a very special person?
Secret Lover/Friend
By: MiamiTemp | 08-07-2008
I'm a 25 y/o female from Miami. I've been involved with a man romantically for a year and a half but nobody knows about our relationship. I can't go into detail about why we have to keep this a secret. He's not married or anything but if people found out then it could hurt his career, etc. I had known for a few years before we started anything sexual but had fallen for him way before that. When the opportunity presented itself I took it and things have been very hot with him since then. However, he has no idea how much I care about him. We were always friends, so I know he gets that much but I'm scared that if he found out that I was in love with him our relationship would change. It kills me not to be able to tell this guy that he's everything to me. I've had my share of relationships, whether it has been boyfriends, friends with benefits or whatever but this is completely throwing me off track in my life. I know he recently started seeing another woman, but the terms of our current relationship are strictly "friends with benefits" so I can't really say anything. The other woman has no idea that me and him have the type of sexual relationship that we do. She thinks we are just friends. I love having this secret, but at times it gets difficult. I get sad at times when I think that he is waking up next to her and not me. He'll swing by my house, we'll hook up and then he'll go over to her house for a movie. It sucks and I'm not quite sure how to handle it. I don't want it to end, I want him to know how I feel but I can't bring myself to tell him. Anyone got any words of wisdom?
Relationship continuned or not.... I DON"T KNOW WHAT TO DO!! HElp!
By: chriscross04 | 08-07-2008
hey thereok im in this situation in which... my boyfriend loved me and really showed it. our relationship lasted 2 months and a half.... yes i know it was a short time but i have known him for longer since we have been good friends.. but when we broke up i was very upset... even though it was a mutual break up and we have agreed to remain friends im still crazy about him... i don't how he feels and im not sure how he feels after we broke up... i wanna get back together with him and i don't know what to do... also when we broke up he was always very busy... thats what i think the reason was that when we broke up. he said that his wasn't really a good time to be together... he most def wants to be friends with me though... what shud i do?please post some help!! :(
Q&A Powered by:
Latest Business Articles
The Basics of Creating a Filing System That You Can Benefit From Starting Today
By: Tracey Lawton | 19/07/2008
In my brand-new article, I'm going to share with you 7 easy steps for getting your filing system in place. The summertime is generally a quieter time with a more slower pace of business, so use this time to get one of your core office systems in place.
The 9 Things You Will Want to Include in Your Email Newsletters
By: Katrina Sawa | 19/07/2008
You probably get numerous newsletters across your desk each month. How many of those do you really read? I am sure that you scan certain newsletters for valuable information, while you just toss others. Then, of course, there those like mine (chuckle), which you read every last word of.
How to Establish yourself as an Expert
By: Katrina Sawa | 18/07/2008
Establishing yourself as an Expert in your field is a great way to get added exposure, publicity and credibility for you and your business which will ultimately bring you more sales and more money!!
Women Owning the Workplace: Tips to Guide Female Entrepreneurs
By: Melissa Mashtonio | 18/07/2008
Women are taking the business world by storm, and it doesn't look like they're backing down. According the Womenentrepreneur.com, women-owned firms are the fastest growing in the country. Women are looking beyond the traditional roles and moving ahead to a new role: entrepreneur. This does not necessarily mean women are...
Getting Ahead in the Construction Industry
By: Duncan Freer | 18/07/2008
With new regeneration and Government housing targets, the construction industry is facing the toughest challenges yet. With new projects in commercial and residential developments, growing pressures for sustainable and low impact development and the need for low cost housing, better and faster results are being expected from everyone involved in...
Getting Ahead In The Rail Industry
By: Duncan Freer | 18/07/2008
The rail industry is a greener alternative for travel than any other method at the moment, and as a result is beginning to see an increase in investment and public interest. With the Government and business regulators placing such a huge emphasis on offsetting personal and private carbon emissions it...
Getting Ahead in the Utilities Industry
By: Duncan Freer | 18/07/2008
The Utilities industry is currently facing rapid change and is having to adapt to the many new demands made on it by existing and potential customers. Once dominated by state-run monopolies, the utilities sector of the twenty first century is shifting to respond to emerging competitors who are increasingly savvy...
Recessions Require Leadership From the Core!
By: Axel Meierhoefer | 18/07/2008
When things are going tough, leaders need to step up and deliver more than every. LEading fomr the core is what we need to succeed
More from Jennifer Selby Long
Five Easy Ways to Spot an Introvert at Work
By: Jennifer Selby Long | 09/07/2008 | Business
Now that you know introverts and extraverts can work together, let's walk through ways to identify who's who.
Feedback as a Competitive Sport
By: Jennifer Selby Long | 08/07/2008 | Business
A common roadblock to success is the use of feedback to win, to dominate the person seen as the opponent. Dealing with this can affect your happiness and your sanity. Organizations in which leaders and managers routinely share high-quality feedback are easier to scale and have fewer nagging problems and less operational drag.
How to Have a Lousy, Miserable, Failed Tenure as a Volunteer Board Member
By: Jennifer Selby Long | 16/06/2008 | Business
Nearly all leaders extend their leadership beyond the workplace to head volunteer organizations throughout their lives, often as board members. It doesn't take long in your first volunteer leadership job to realize things are different from your paid leadership job. There are seven root causes of poor volunteer organization leadership. It's not complicated and anyone can identify, understand, and prevent them.
Traveling Light: Literally
By: Jennifer Selby Long | 31/05/2008 | Travel
Traveling with carry-on luggage for 19 days. Can it be done? Why would you do it? The Wall Street Journal recently reported that this summer is projected to be the worst ever for congestion and delays. No checked luggage = one less line at the departure airport. It's another way to avoid all the extra fees for checked bags, which means more money to spend on your vacation.
Extraverts and Introverts: You Can Work Together Without Going Nuts
By: Jennifer Selby Long | 29/05/2008 | Business
We all essentially fall into one of two camps: extraverts get most of their energy from the outer world of people, while introverts get it from the inner world. How does this play out at work? Plan for both and you reap the benefits.
Hold a Successful Meeting: at Last!
By: Jennifer Selby Long | 17/05/2008 | Business
Meetings have a bad reputation. It's unfair, really. It's not the meeting's fault. It could be good, if only people would let it. You can vastly improve the outcome of a routine meeting simply by using a mere five of my favorite tools.
The Five Best Ways Improve Your Organization During a Recession
By: Jennifer Selby Long | 15/04/2008 | Business
With so many companies bracing for a recession, beware of acting rashly when it comes to leadership development and training budgets. Learn how to intelligently stretch your development investment during a downturn and avoid the problems caused by indiscriminate budget cuts.
You're not a Loser...and Other Deep Insights You May Have Missed Along the Way
By: Jennifer Selby Long | 27/03/2008 | Self Improvement
Wondering why you got that promotion or assignment? Wondering why they picked you? Maybe you're better than you think. Maybe it just doesn't matter. Now's your chance to show them what you can do.
Business 
