Put The "I" Back in TEAM

SUMMARY

You've probably heard it said before that there is no "I" in team.

Hi, this is Grant Herbert, emotional intelligence speaker and trainer of the year and master coach trainer, and today I want to continue our conversation around teamwork and collaboration by helping you put the "I" back into TEAM.

I will unpack for today the five key concepts you need to grasp as a leader and as an individual so that you could be more effective as a leader and be able to work in a team. 

Number one is teams need individuals.
Number two is to celebrate diversity.
Number three is to share your gifts.
Number four is to become your best.
Number five is to win and learn.

No individual is greater than the collective of the team. However, the team is only as great as it is because we’ve brought together the collective genius of those individuals.

Well, that's it from me for another week. Join me again next week when we move into a new competency in the relationship management quadrant, and that is coaching and mentoring others.

I'll see you then.

TRANSCRIPT

You've probably heard it said before that there is no "I" in team.

Well, stick with me because in this week's episode, I want to show you why that's not true anymore.

Hi, this is Grant Herbert, emotional intelligence speaker and trainer of the year and master coach trainer, and today I want to continue our conversation around teamwork and collaboration by helping you put the "I" back into TEAM.

For many years in leadership training, there has been a saying that has been well used, and that is: there's no "I" in team.

And I understand the concept behind it. What it's saying is the team itself is what's most important, and therefore, you don't want to have individuals that go off and do their own thing. However, what I want you to understand this week is that there's no such thing as a team without individuals.

You can take the learnings, memes, and sayings you've heard over the years and let them determine your entire way of thinking when you're putting together teams, working in leadership groups, or whatever it is you're doing as a leader.

However, as a leader, if you focus only on the collective, you can miss out on so much more that you can do to enhance and grow your team.

Now, while it is still true that no individual is more important than the team, what I want to do today is quickly unpack the five key concepts you need to grasp as a leader and as an individual so that you could be more effective as a leader and be able to work in a team.

Number one is teams need individuals.

Now that was rocket science right there.

That's probably not the main thing you get out of today (hopefully, I can bring a little more.) However, it would be best if you started at that foundational level. You need to understand that without individuals, there's no team.

A team is made up of individuals coming together as a collective so that they can work and collaborate (I've talked to you about that over the last few weeks.) However, if you only look at the team and neglect the individuals, you're not going to have that performing team you're after.

Without individuals coming together -- with all they know and all they do -- you won't have a team.

Number two is to celebrate diversity.

Within your team, you will have people who are different from you, and that's a good thing, right? Can you imagine if everybody was the same as you: everyone had the same talents and strengths? If so, then some of you aren't going to be necessary.

When I say celebrate diversity, I'm not talking about diversity in a political way that is being talked about so much. I'm talking about the diversity of ideas, talents, strengths, opinions, and experiences. And you celebrate because your team is made up of all those individuals.

Instead of looking at the differences of others as being a problem, as a reason for conflict, you shift that and look at how having those individuals in your team can make the team stronger.

So, celebrate the fact that not everyone's the same. Celebrate that each person as an individual has something to bring. Without that, if that was taken away from your team, your team would lose some of its strength.

Number three is to share your gifts.

Every one of us on the planet has unique gifts and talents. There are things that you do easily and effortlessly -- they are your genius zone. However, there are other things that you're not able to do as well as others.

Now that you understand that being an individual is an integral part of being in a team, I would like to ask you to bring your gifts and talents to the team. I am asking you to feel confident that they are necessary to the team, bring them unreservedly and say, "Hey, this is what I can put in. This is what I know. This is what I can do."

Bringing all those gifts and talents together is the greatest thing that a leader can do.

Remember, a team is made up of individuals who come together for a collective goal and work together and collaborate in unity so that you can move forward.

So please have a look at your gifts and talents and ask yourself: What could you bring to your team right now?

I'm not just talking about technical skills; I'm talking about your creative thinking. I'm talking about your experience. I'm talking about your ideas. So, make sure that you step up and be proud that there are things you know and do that you can bring to the team.

I've always been taught that my gifts and talents aren't for me. They are there so that I can share them with others. If we all do this, then every team we're a part of will be much stronger.

Number four is to become your best.

Now the keyword here is "become".

So, this isn't about being your best all the time; it's about incrementally changing things in your life, in your day, to bring your best. You bring your own "A-game".

By having that mindset of "becoming," you have something to aim for every day.

When the collective comes together, those individuals all become their best; guess what? The team becomes its best as well.

So, give yourself some space to change some things in your life, to become who you need to be so that you can do the things you need to do so that you and your team can have the results you all want to have.

And number five is to win and learn.

John Maxwell said, "Sometimes you win, sometimes you learn."

As you are being and becoming the best version of yourself and working as an individual in a team, remember to celebrate your wins, learn from those wins, and carry those things forward. It would be best if you also recognised that it is an incremental journey of growth. This means you're going to have some learnings along the way.

I believe you're either green and growing or ripe and rotting. For me, learning is going to be something that I continually do.

I don't think we ever arrive as an individual, and therefore I don't think a team ever arrives. I think it's constantly a journey of tweaking, adjusting, and going through experiences and learning from them, doing things differently, moving forward.

So, get yourself in an environment of support and accountability to win and therefore grow in confidence and experience and learn along the way.

So bring that "I" back into your team. Let you and your team, as individuals, come in with your A-game. Look at what you can do to become the best version of yourself; offer that and your gifts and talents to the team.

No individual is greater than the collective of the team. However, the team is only as great as it is because we’ve brought together the collective genius of those individuals.

Well, that's it from me for another week. Join me again next week when we move into a new competency in the relationship management quadrant, and that is coaching and mentoring others.

I'll see you then.