Mar
5
Written by:
Peter Henry
Friday, March 05, 2010 8:17 PM
What is it about a team that makes it, well, "a TEAM?" How is Hockey Canada able to field such close knit teams with only a few practises and win gold?!
I'm sure you have some MBA definitions/criteria which have some economists techno-mumbo-jumbo, but what's it in layman's terms? Here are two SURE FIRE ways to tell!
- People are willing to get out of their comfort zone and try new things. I'm not talking about changing religions or buying a different car brand. No, nothing so drastic as that! But I am talking about trying out new types of food when some people go out for lunch. I'm talking about trying a new computer program or game you'd never used before. Or maybe simply joining a group of people on a "Timmy's run, "even though you don't drink coffee but you say "I'll go for the company". It doesn't have to be drastic, in fact I would argue the smaller the better (without being negligible I mean) cause the more drastic or dramatic, the less likely it'll become habit. And a really good sign of this going well, is when people stick with it.
- Everyone on the team realizes they each have strengths and weaknesses and that everyone contributes in THEIR own way. Wayne Gretzky in the 80s, playing for the Oilers was arguable the best hockey player in the NHL, but you'd NEVER know it by talking to him! Oh sure, every newspaper would say it, but you'd never hear it in the dressing room! Why? Cause he just KNEW guys like Kuri, Messier, Coffey, Lowe, even Semenko had their place on that team, and every cylinder needed to be firing for the whole thing to work!
If you see one or both of those things happening on your team, then chances are, you've got it good and you should or will soon, be seeing the fruits of their efforts! Just look at what the Canadian Hockey teams can do with very little time together! Individual stars come together, check the egos at the door, and start behaving like one cohesive unit! That's what it takes to excel.
Now that you know how to recognize when a team is gelling, it's time to grab a coffee and get coding!
Copyright ©2010 Peter Henry
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