Leading Magical Teams

Nothing of value is ever created by a single person. Teams produce all meaningful achievements in business.

Magical teams are smarter than the team's most brilliant members. They are fun to be a part of, they value recognition and appreciation of their peers more than anything else. Magical teams produce magical results, results that regular groups can never achieve.

So what makes some teams magical? Three seemingly simple things - (1) Trust, (2) Mutual respect, and (3) Confidence. 

You don't get magic without all three, and all three are the job of the leader.

Trust

Trust is built over time with consistency and reliability and yet easily lost with minor mistakes. How do you go about building trust?

• Be radically transparent - when you give trust, you get trust; this is especially true when you face a challenge, a setback, or are aware of bad news.
• Don't pretend to know more than you really do. Being a leader doesn't mean you are the smartest person in the room. If you can't learn from your team, you are letting your insecurity get in the way of magic.
• Avoid blame at all costs. Nothing kills trust more than blame. It creates a toxic environment that forces people to look out for themselves versus focusing on the team's goal.
• Make commitments only when you know that you can deliver. For example, avoid promising a raise or a promotion prematurely; avoid promising an assignment before you're sure it will happen. Don't stretch your praise of someone's work beyond what is authentic and honest, resist the short-term temptation to buy time through false expectations.
• Never entertain a negative discussion about team members behind their backs - shut it down the second it shows up, force it out in the open or not at all.
• Eliminate zero-sum thinking - members of your team have ambitions and aspirations that are healthy and good. You need to help them get visibility and promotions outside the group as well as inside. That way, they can focus their competitive energy in the right direction.

Mutual Respect

Probably the most critical underpinning of magical teams is mutual respect. I'm not talking about politeness, it's respect that borders admiration. Mutual respect starts from the team structure and members, passes through your role modeling - behaviors you don't tolerate, behaviors you ignore, and behaviors you encourage; and is maintained through tactical efforts you put in to create and maintain mutual respect.

• Lead by example - you can't expect your team members to respect each other if you don't show respect to every one of them. Be inclusive and invite everyone on the team to provide input and opinions. Show appreciation for everyone's contribution.
• Hiring - my best advice is to hire people you admire, that makes it easier for you to radiate your appreciation as you help them grow and reach their next level of performance. Hire Lionel Messis, not Christiano Ronaldos, egos big enough to take on any challenge, but not so big to take all the oxygen out of the room.
• Don't tolerate selfish rock stars. You know what I'm talking about, as you've undoubtedly run into people who were allowed to let their ego run wild. You have to set clear expectations of mutual respect on the team, even if you have to manage them out.
• Don't tolerate chronic low performance - magical teams look out for each other when someone has temporary low performance. They actually step in and help out. However, prolonged low performance destroys mutual respect in a team and creates resentment. Nobody will solve this other than the leader.
• Give people the opportunity to shine and celebrate them with the team - magical teams that aren't operating on a zero-sum mentality celebrate each other. Your job is to find performance opportunities and to make sure everyone is aware of outstanding performance. It increases mutual admiration in the team.
• Facilitate personality conflicts thru your own relationships. People trust you. Use that trust to create constructive relationships inside the team.
• Sponsor new team members until the team accepts them. Ask your team members to embrace them and make them successful.

Confidence

I have never seen a team win without confidence, I'm certain you haven't either. Confidence is the leader's job.

Unlike anything else, confidence (or lack of) is contagious. The best way to inspire confidence is to project it thru actions, tone, and behaviors.

• Have conviction - they can't believe if you don't believe. You really can't fake this one, so you must find good reasons to believe.
• Provide clarity - just because you believe, it doesn't mean they understand you - you have to be clear on team goal, as a team, you have to have a believable strategy to succeed, it's ok to co-create it, but it's your job to make sure it's there, and it's widely understood.
• Leverage people's strengths when you assign tasks. People are happier and far more confident when they deliver from strength.
• Have room for failure and imperfection. People cannot grow if they're not allowed to fail. Your job shifts to being emotionally supportive as your team push through challenging tasks.
• Find small wins, celebrate wins early and often. Wins matter at the individual level as well as the team level. They create momentum and a narrative to rely on when you need to find strength after the inevitable set backs that will come.
• Maintain an optimistic view. Your attitude is in your control. If you feel that negativity is taking over, take a time out - I usually take a nap. Whatever you do, don't let negativity creep out - your team relies on you too much to have to nurse you.

Who leads magical teams?

This is the best part. Magical teams have multiple leaders inside the team.

Sociologists talk about two types of leaders in groups, Instrumental leaders -- those that help the group achieve tasks the group needs to achieve; and expressive leaders -- those that facilitate relationships and promote the emotional well-being of group members.

While an org chart might dictate one formal manager, everyone on the team can help the team achieve its tasks and promote the emotional well-being of group members. Everyone can increase trust, mutual respect and inspire confidence.

So next time you're on a team, do your part, make it magical!

A final thought

I lied to you.

I said it's three things, I lied. Three is such a seductive number, all good things in life come in threes.

The truth is, there's a final ingredient - passion. Passion for the destination, passion for a mystical outcome that the team is obsessed with. It could be being a world class organization, it could be building the world's first widget, it could be making people's life better. Call it meaning, call it purpose, if you're brave you might even call it love.

Magical teams love the future that they are creating.

As a leader, you visualize it, you romanticize it - you vocally and repeatedly love it.

May all your teams be magical :-)