Leadership Series: It’s My Fault Because…

People have many misconceptions when it comes to working in a team.

First of all, is that the onus of whether the team achieves its objectives or not lies solely with the leader.  Not so.  The team leader steers the direction of the team, but ultimately, everyone in the team needs to play their role so that they can achieve success.

The second misconception is that each individual is only responsible for their own little part of the team.  Again, this couldn’t be further from the truth and a very myopic view of the big picture.

Your job may only encompass a very small part in the team, but nevertheless it is still crucial and at the end of the day, will affect the team’s performance.

Think of it like a clock and each individual person in the team is a part of the clock.  Even if a tiny screw is missing, it will make the entire clock stop working.

So definitely, when your team doesn’t perform it is your fault.

It’s your fault because you only saw your own little world.  Like we established above, a team is not about an individual’s personal performance.  It is about how the team performs as one entity.  You need to see how what you do contributes to the big picture.  This will allow you to see where else you can contribute and help.  Otherwise, you’re just doing a job.

It’s your fault because you don’t hold your team members accountable for their actions, or lack thereof.  Team members need to remind each that their actions affect everyone.  If someone is slacking then work doesn't get done.  So if you do your part consistently, always meeting your own personal deadline, it wouldn’t matter because if your team members aren’t, the team isn’t achieving.

It’s your fault because you don’t remind your team members to always overachieve and over deliver.  Just like when non performance slows down the entire team, when everyone works well and are passionate about the parts they play, the team benefits.  This cements and nurtures the passion and enthusiasm of each member to consistently strive for more.

It’s your fault because you leave it to the leaders to resolve any conflict.  The reality of working in a team is that we are working with people with varying personalities.  There will be conflicts in the process, whether it’s from differing personalities or style of working.  When you see a conflict brewing, do you voice out or do you wait for it to blow up?  Just because you are not the leader of the team doesn’t mean you cannot step up and try to resolve a conflict.

There is no such thing as “I” in a team.  There is only “We”.

Therefore everybody needs to make themselves accountable for the success of the team, regardless of the role they play.  As Andrzei KoliKowski once famously said, “If not YOU, then WHO?”

If you would like to learn effective communication skills as well as learn leadership skills that you can put in practice immediately, join us for our bi-monthly meetings on every 1st and 3rd Wednesdays of the month.  Please refer to our Next Meeting page for information on our next meeting or contact us directly to see how we can help you achieve your goals.