The three basics of a successful team.

There is a big difference between a group and a team. Every time there are more than one people at the same place, it becomes a group. However, they do not constitute a team till they fulfill some basic requirements. (Refer my previous article 'Why Great Teams Fail To Achieve Great Results' dated 16 Dec 2020)

Forget about becoming great or even the best in whatever they do. The first step has to be to BECOME a team. Once this is done, they can start aspiring to greatness or success. I have seen people working in the same office on the same projects but not achieving their optimum potential as they did not fulfill the basic criteria of becoming a team.

So, what are the most basic three requirements for becoming a team? They are as follows: -

1. They should understand each other - It is not enough to just know each other. The members of a team need to understand each other. By this I mean they should understand the person that they are dealing with. Team members are human beings and there should be a connect at a human level. The team members should understand what drives and motivates their teammates. They should understand what inspires and puts them off. They should understand the drawbacks of the others. (Understanding does not mean acceptance of the drawbacks. It helps us to know the dos and don'ts while dealing with them.) In short, the team members should be able to predict the response / behavior of the others to a fair degree of accuracy.
2. Do they accept each other - There will always be differences in opinions, views and working styles. The idea is to be able to override these differences and accept each other as a teammate. There should be an ability and a willingness to override the differences and accept the other person as a teammate. If the differences are sharp as may be the case, the team leader or other team members may need to step in and help out the concerned team members to reconcile.
3. Do they compliment each other - A team is supposed to be able to complete the given task irrespective of the absence of one or more member. For this, it is necessary that the members compliment each other's efforts and skills. This needs multiskilling and also multitasking ability. One member should be able to take over the role of another in their absence. Here too willingness is as important as the ability if not more.

If you are a leader or in the process of building a team, make sure that the team in making fulfills the above mentioned conditions. This would be the very first step in making a team. It is only after this that you will be able to aspire for success followed by greatness as a team.

Do let me know your views on this.