Team Building- Part One

There might be no "i" in team but if no one takes charge of managing the team, is there really a team?

Ok- so this might sound like the question "If the tree falls in the forest and no one hears it, does it make a sound?" and yes, teams do manage themselves, but to get to a place of effectiveness as well as healthy interaction, hands-on team management is absolutely necessary.

As the person who is supposed to be able to clearly and quickly articulate about a mission, vision, programs and offerings at a moments notice, I have found myself often in the position of needing a team that I can rely on. Having this constant need for clear and consistent communication flow, it's become apparent to me that the first place I need to start with any team is listening.

Creating Listening Spaces There are lots of ways that you can go about increasing your listening at your workplace. From attending meetings as an observer, to asking for 10-15 minute information interviews with key stakeholders, to creating a comment box, to emailing everyone and asking for responses. Depending on your organizational structure, hierarchy and politics in can be tough to even start figuring out how to listen effectively and get a holistic sense of the challenges and successes of the organization.

Asking Questions One of the best ways to start the process of expanding your listening is to bring out your inner journalist. Getting to the Who, What, When, Where, Why and How may not give you a deep sense of the underlying issues or even really tell you anything you don't know already, but in asking, in being open to receiving that information, you are placing yourself in a space of openness and understanding. It can create connection and/or deepen your interpersonal interaction so that you can dive deeper.

This style of inquiry also works well when you are tasked with work that doesn't seem to make sense or asks you to work on a project outside of your scope of expertise. By asking questions of the project, spending time understanding how your information contributes to another's work process and product not only helps you become more fully intergrated into the team environment but also builds rapport in that you are increasing your knowledge and respect of your coworkers.

Being a Good Listener is Not the Same as a Problem Solver

Because I want things to run efficently, decisions to be made in a timely manner, people to be accountable for their words and actions, and generally want to get along with my coworkers I have often made the mistake of transforming listening in to trying to get action taken. If you find yourself suggesting solutions, stop. Unless you have been given the power to transform the organization, you are simply taking someone else's stress and adding it to your workload. Now, this may sound counterintuitive since after all you were just looking for a solution. But in actuality you are encouraging people to come to you to solve problems in the future. That's when you need to think about the interaction as a time of learning and inquiry while you let go of needing to find the path forward. You can certainly encourage people, recommend resources or ask reflective questions, but avoiding the path where people learn to run to you for problem-solving is imperative.

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