My 5 success factors for teamwork

Ever since People walk the surface of earth, teamwork has been very important. That is probably one of the reasons why there are soo many books on this topic. As HR manager I was also often developing teams and supporting teamleaders to be solid teams that could achieve goals and deliver results.

Based on my experiences I develop my 5 important succesfactors for effective teamwork. I would like to share them with you.

1.     Be Clear about your expectations. Both as a member or teamleader you need to be clear about what you want to contribute, what other people can expect from you (or not), what are your must have’s and your nice to haves. There should be NO HIDDEN AGENDA in teams. Always be authentic. Hidden agenda’s are like cancer and kill any team over time. Be clear and specific when you give feedback to other teammembers. This will lead to better teamwork.

2.     Be interested. Be interested in others and be interested in what you do. Being interested in other teammembers helps you to get a better understanding of your colleagues. It will also give you more information on what’s going on in the team. When somebody is asking you for information, share it. The more you share, to more you’ll receive. It is a vicious circle that leads to more succes.

3.     Use good manners. Good manners are a sign of respect and make you more honorably. It is about using words like “thank you”, “please”, “sorry”. Sometimes these words seem to be the most difficult words in our language, but when you use them , you’ll get rewarded for it. (if you don’t believe me read “Tom Peters – Little big things”). When somebody says “sorry”, forgive him. But most imporantly, when you use these words, use them sincerely. Don’t fake your regrets !

4.     React in a correct way. Don’t overreact when something happens around you. We all know plenty of situations where people overreacted and said things they regretted afterwards. On the other hand, don’t wait too long with your reaction. The other person is waiting for an answer. Always be assertive. Assertiveness is very different from agressive. Assertiveness is taling with respect for the other one and maintaining respect for yourself. Listen when people talk to you, or you might miss the message.

5.     Be positive. People are more easily attracted to people who live their life. There is a clear correlation between positive leaders and positive teamwork. Remain realistic. Don’t be positive, because I tell you to, be positive because you like what you do. Work in a team you enjoy !

If we would all live by these 5 simple rules, teams would be more succesfull and would deliver better results. There might be other succesfactors, but these are – to my opinion – the most important ones.