Team Performance

From gymnastics to swimming to showjumping there have been some dramatic team wins in the 2012 London Olympics. How is your team performing?

Here is a checklist of qualities in a top performing team:

• Full Participation – each member of the team is fully involved and contributes time and energy  (when Ryan Lochte ran out of energy in the men’s 4×100-meter freestyle relay final it impacted the whole team)
• Trust – there is confidence and mutual respect among all team members
• Open Communication – communication involves both sharing ideas and listening well; listening well requires testing for understanding rather than assuming
• Clear Expectations – everyone on the team knows what their role is and what they are expected to do to accomplish the mutual purpose (if Missy Franklin decided she wanted to do the breaststroke instead of the backstroke then the team would not have succeeded)
• Balance Relationship and Results – while it’s critical for teams to do real work and accomplish things together, great teams also need to have real relationships that keep them connected and performing together

As you lead team and participate in teams, perform a “health check” periodically assess your capacity for optimal team performance.

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