Dr. David Rafeedie

Some things are just necessary for success. No brainers—can't succeed without them. If you want to have a smooth drive on the highway, you need tires. If you're going to fly from Phoenix to Los Angeles, the plane needs wings. A circus needs congresspeople, and congress needs clowns. Wait, I may have that backward. Tough to tell. I am just kidding! You get the idea; some things are indispensable to success. That is true for teams too.

 A team can be successful minus specific characteristics. For example, a team can be successful regardless of if the individual team members like each other or not. They can come together and work with excellence and then go their separate ways at the end of the day. They do not have to be best friends, but they do have to be professionals.

 But there are three specific characteristics or truths that are indispensable for the success of any team. As vital as wings on a plane for flight. As you read these essential characteristics, answer the questions for each as a quick evaluation tool.

1. Alignment around the agenda.

There are few things more destructive to a team's cohesion than individual agendas that do not align with the team goals, or perhaps worse, hidden agendas that militate against the team's success. Here are a few things to keep in mind.

a. Pulling in the same direction is essential for the success of the team. A tug of war will always slow a team down and sometimes derail achievement. Making sure a team is pulling together requires diligence from the leader and peer accountability.

b. The right people have to be on the team to eliminate agendas contrary to the team's success. Hiring and firing well are two sides of the same coin. The process for each is a critical component to success.

c. One key to getting the right people are on the team is the proper hiring process if they do not come from in-house. Do not hire for skills only, unless those skills are unique, but also look for a good match with the team's culture.

d. Another key to making sure the right people on your team is a good firing process. Knowing when to let someone go and doing it well (and legally) should be included in your path to success.   

Question: On a scale of 1 – 10, how aligned is my team around our agenda?

2. Effective Internal Communication.

Good communication is difficult under the best of circumstances. Miscommunication and misperceptions because of personality differences or poor written or verbal skills get in the way of effective communication. There are a couple of non-negotiable elements to effective internal communication, or any communication for that matter.

On a team, you must speak to one another in ways the other person understands what is being said. Situational communication, that is, changing how you communicate depending on whom you are speaking with, is the key to understanding.

Clarity is another essential factor in effective communication. It is necessary to be precise and concise to get your point across. If it takes you 100 words to say what ten will say, you have already lost the clarity battle. If you do not have clarity, you have confusion, and confusion is antithetical to accomplishing your plan.

Question: What is one thing I can change to improve the communication on our team?

3. A Continual Drive for Excellence

The dictionary defines excellence as the quality of being outstanding or extremely good..

No one appreciates mediocrity. For one thing, it is boring. And maintenance mode is the enemy of progress, while excellence is the ally of progress and success. If your team is not striving for excellence, you will fail to adjust to a fast-changing environment that organizations find themselves in today.

Hard work and flexibility are vital ingredients to excellence, and the team leader must model them. Striving for excellence is a mindset that is developed and nurtured by the team leader. He or she is the poster child for excellence, and she demands it of the individual team members.

Characteristics one and two above are necessary prerequisites to accomplishing characteristic number three. You must have the right people aligned around the team's goals and mission, and you need clarity of communication to communicate the mission and your goals.

Question: How will I know when our team is operating at a level of excellence?

These three essential characteristics of successful teams are sometimes difficult to assess. We often take things for granted or do not take the time to think through them because of our day's busyness. It is worth your time to improve these three crucial areas of your team.  

I have the right tools and experience to help you and your team grow in each of these essential characteristics.  Working together, we can identify and break through any barriers that are hindering what you want to achieve.

Change takes work. Profound and sustainable change requires help because you need fresh eyes and thoughts to see new possibilities for you and your team. Partnering together, you will discover the improbable is probable, and what you thought unlikely is possible. Coaching will empower you to discover and attain the goals you set for yourself and your team. Please email me at info@davidthecoach.com, or text or call me at 520-709-1860, and let's start the conversation.

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