Building a team to win

Building a Team to Win

 Participation trophies are an embarrassment. The reason you keep score is to determine winning and losing, and the winners should be rewarded, and those that didn’t win, should go back to the drawing board, practice harder, work at improving to get better, and come back to try and win again. But under no circumstance should simply trying to do well be rewarded. Not in little league, not in professional sports, and most certainly not in business.

In my career I have been fortunate enough to have been surrounded by some great leaders. Not every stop along my journey was I lucky enough to come across them, but the ones that I have had, were gracious and humble enough to keep working together with me, be mentors, and teach, teach, teach.

The greatest lesson I have ever learned was how to build a team to win. Whether in sales, sports, other business functions, etc. there are traits that the best teams display, as it is in the fiber of all team members.  These characteristics seem intrinsic to all team members, and they are put-off by others who do not seem to share these mindsets.

In today’s world of hyper-sensitivity, and the desire to make everyone happy this has become increasingly difficult. I have outlined what I find to work incredibly well when building winning teams, that help mitigate the obstacles presented by organizations more focused on feelings than results.

1.    Document, and utilize the exact same character traits in every hire on the team as you scale. For me, what I specifically look for are these traits:

a.    Grit – Are you mentally tough, and willing to do what it takes to get to the end goal. Do you grind every day, or are you always working for the weekend, a vacation day and as much time off as possible?

b.    Mental Toughness – Are you soft and sensitive, or do you understand that business isn’t always easy, decisions aren’t always made by all team members, and that being coached is about making you better and can sometimes be tough love. Do you have thick skin, or do you get offended easily?

c.    Desire to learn – Do you want to be coached, continuously evolving, and never feel entitled to anything that you haven’t earned through consistent overachievement. Do you have goals, and a desire to build a plan to achieve them? Do you want to be the best, so you work like every day someone is trying to take your job?

d.    Desire to help – Are you willing to help coach, to share your successes, and make those around you better? Do you celebrate your teammates success more than your own because you have the self-confidence that you need no affirmation, you simply want to make everyone around you better?

e.    Competitive by Nature – Are you the most competitive person in the room? Is your fear and hatred for losing far greater than your desire to win?

2.    Hide the names on the resumes you review – Make sure on paper the skills you need match

a.    Look at the accomplishments and resume as an indicator that the individual you’re looking at may be worth a phone call without bias. Make your decision on moving a person forward to a conversation without knowledge of anything other than this.

b.    This helps with the “Diversity and inclusion” push of many companies, without forcing it. It enables you to hire the best person for each role, without exclusion of anyone. The best of the best receives an offer. If you aren’t the best, you shouldn’t receive the offer.

3.    Stick to your guns- Trust your gut

a.    If you are building a team, and a candidate doesn’t have 100% of the traits you need, they will not fit with what you are trying to build. Remain consistent in your approach, do not waiver, and do not hire just to “add bodies” Settling is among the worst decisions you can make when trying to scale.

b.    If you think the candidate may not fit – don’t hesitate, trust your gut and move on.

4.    Interviews are hard

a.    If done appropriately, the interview is hard. Do not DQ a candidate for their nerves, or difficulty with certain questions, if you feel they meet the mold for your team. You have a defined set of traits you are looking for, and if you feel the candidate meets those traits, but perhaps has difficulty with articulation, certain topics, etc. this is a coaching moment for them. See how well they take critique during the interview, and trust yourself (see 3)

5.    It’s not a popularity contest – being liked isn’t of value

a.    Being a fit with the team is hugely important – HOWEVER, strong teams, will have strong personalities. It is not about how well the candidate is “liked”. It is about, can this candidate fit in professionally and be able to be a good teammate when it comes to driving results. Do they offer something to the team that makes them an asset and the organization better for having them?

6.    Hire FAST

a.    There is no sense in losing the “A” player to another organization because you suffer from analysis-paralysis. If you find someone you think is the goods, make them an offer. Don’t wait around. Chances are, if you think the candidate is a can’t miss, “A” player, so does someone else. Plain and simple, time is important. Making “A” players understand you find their value in what they will bring is important. Any attempt to elongate the interview process not only shows them that you aren’t 100% sold on them, but it also allows other organizations to swoop in and grab them.

At the end of the day when building a team, look around you at your teammates. Are you surrounded by results focused individuals who care about the financial success of the business? By a team of individuals who are not happy if they are not the most valuable member of the team in their own estimation? Are you surrounded by a group who would rather have 3-day weekends, or by a group of people, who understand that when you take that extra day off, your competitor isn’t, and they want to bury you?

Surround yourself with these people, build a team of them. They are winners, and do not know how to lose… they don’t accept it, it is not in their fiber. Surround yourself with people who do not understand pressure, as it truly doesn’t exist if you know what you are doing. Surround yourself with those that need to be the best that ever lived at whatever they are doing, and you will win. This team isn’t sensitive, they are tough as nails, and will never feel entitled to anything but what they have earned…oh by the way, they will all be the future leaders of your organization building it further with people who believe the same thing.