There's no great secret to creating a team that works well together. If you want innovation, creativity, and high productivity and performance, it starts with three simple steps.
1. Safety
People will not work well together if they don't trust their team members and leader. Safety comes from knowing that each person has the well-being of the others in mind when they do their work. This allows people to feel safe in the knowledge that as they take risks, explore, debate and push one another to grow, their won't be dire effects. Without safety, people will waste energy protecting themselves and second guess the intentions of others.
2. Belonging
You know when you are the odd one out; when you are standing outside the circle. When this happens, you pull back with your ideas and energy. You doubt and lose trust. To belong is a deep human need. Strong teams are built on a foundation of belonging. Team members understand where everyone fits in the group. When a team strives to maintain high levels of belonging, there is better communication, lower stress, higher confidence and collaboration.
3. Purpose
People need to know what they are working towards. Time and energy need to have a purpose. Strong teams have a clear mission. They understand how their daily tasks connect to a lager goal and have a leader who maintains this alignment. People pull together and are driven to work as a team through hardships when they understand what they are working for.
Team Human Conversation
Fight workplace zombies in your organization and join Team Human! Gather a group of fellow workplace zombie hunters to discuss our most recent blog post. Use the questions below to kick-start your conversation.
How do you foster an environment of safety within your team, where individuals feel secure in taking risks, sharing ideas, and challenging one another without fear of negative consequences?
How do you actively foster a culture of belonging within your team, ensuring each individual feels valued, supported, included to the collective goals?
How do you effectively communicate the purpose and mission so that everyone is aligned and energized? How do you maintain this alignment over time?