Building a team

 There is nothing more important than having the right team for leveraging success. Even the greatest "individual" accomplishments were never done in isolation. A team should be a collection of people working together from a common purpose towards a common goal. That sounds like it should not be that hard, considering most teams are put together with people that have chosen to be at that place and do that activity. But, humans are human! Ego, pride, biases, past experiences, hidden agendas, and all kinds of other issues get in the way of teams being successful.

The first administrative team I was on had 5 people on it. Three of us were all in on the mission, ready to tackle issues and have difficult conversations to make change. One was close to retirement, so really was just coasting out the last couple of years and not willing to do much of anything. And one publicly to the team was on board, but privately to key people we were trying to lead would undermine us at every turn. That one individual fostered so much animosity between the staff and the leadership that is was a daily grind just to make it through the day, and change was impossible. After a year of this, thankfully that person was relieved of their duties, I took their spot, we hired an excellent new team member, and we took off.

Another team that was a leadership level above mine was constructed of all like minded individuals, and went along with whatever idea the boss came up with. A team full of "yes" people, without someone willing to play devil's advocate, leads to ideas that are not fully vetted, with plenty of holes. This leads to confusion on many levels, people needing to go back, re-communicate, alter plans, try to save face, and lose both leadership and personal capital each time this happens. Teams need someone that will challenge the thoughts in a respectful manner, bring different viewpoints to think through unintended consequences, and come to a complete and full resolution that will truly achieve the mission. A team of people that only agree with the boss will make that person feel like the smartest person on the planet, but lead them to making a series of bad decisions.

The last team I was a part of, which is starting over with 40% of the team being new, was incredible. We understood the mission from the top two, who worked incredibly closely and would openly question their plans with each other before bringing them to the team for more open conversation. The team all developed into friends that trust each other, and welcomed each others viewpoints. Changes or modifications were seen as positives, not challenges to anyones intelligence or authority. The plans we rolled out lead to positive change because they were thoroughly vetted and then well communicated. Without meaning to, we really had a "yes, and" mentality. I believe we have hired excellent people to fill the roles, and that this team will move forward in much the same manner.

A team must have diversity, and those viewpoints must be all welcomed, acknowledged, and leveraged. Coming from a place of asset based beliefs, and recognizing that diversifying your team, just like an investment portfolio, is the best way to maximize growth and minimize risk.