A strong sense of community within your organization is one of the best indicators for the success of your business. When your team works together towards shared goals, productivity, efficiency, creativity, and overall performance all get a huge boost. If your team is pulling together, they’re focused, supportive, and have each other’s backs – and yours too!
And it’s not just good for motivation and morale; a cohesive, committed team benefits your bottom line. This survey from Gallup highlights a 21% increase in profitability when teams are highly engaged.
The Dangers Of A Disengaged Team
On the flip side, a scattered and disengaged team creates serious problems for your organization. You’ll end up repeatedly explaining yourself at every turn, defending decisions, putting out fires, and jumping in to defuse conflicts. No one is leaning on or supporting anyone else; it’s all on you.
That’s not just mentally draining and physically exhausting; it’s pulling you away from where your attention should be – on those critical needle-moving tasks you need to focus on to grow your business.
And let’s not forget, being part of a disjointed team is hard frickin’ work! There’s no clarity over who does what, what to do next or where to go when you need help. You’re not sure where you fit into the grand scheme of things, who your work supports, and why it matters. And who can do their best work under those circumstances?
“Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.”
— Helen Keller
The Best Way To Create Camaraderie Among Your Team Members
To perform to the best of their ability, your team members need to understand:
- What they’re doing
- How to do it
- Why it’s important
Without that clarity and sense of connection, work becomes a box-ticking exercise with no greater purpose or motivation. And that’s certainly not the atmosphere or approach you’re looking for as a leader with big plans for your business.
So what can you do if that sense of connection and camaraderie is missing from your team?
Let’s talk about the three core areas you need to work on to turn your team from a collection of individuals into a tight-knit community.
#1 – Set And Communicate A Clear Vision And Set Of Values
Do you know where your company’s going and what you stand for? If the answer’s yes, that’s great! But have you shared that with your team?
Defining and communicating a clear vision and associated set of values for your organization brings meaning to the work you ask your team to do. When we know we’re working towards a common goal with a clear “why” behind it, we’re far more likely to put our best efforts into accomplishing it.
You can achieve this with consistent, repeated messaging. Put your vision at the center of everything that happens in your organization. Take time to discover which key characteristics or repeatable actions really matter to you – and you will actively create a sense of unity.
Try This: Define the top 5 values your company holds and how you know you’re living up to them.
For example:
“Partnership. We actively work together internally and with our clients to create outstanding results.”
The most efficient way to turn your team into a community is to set standards of behavior. To do this, you need to translate your vision and values into specific, practical actions for your team. That’s what takes them from aspirational words in the company handbook to a connected, expected approach that’s woven into the fabric of every action that happens throughout the organization.
If you need to do a little more work on your company vision and values, read this article to help you find some clarity.
#2 – Give Credit Where It’s Due
When was the last time you congratulated a team member on a job well done? Being too stingy with praise is one of the quickest ways to end up with a lackluster, demotivated, just-getting-by-on-the-fly team. If you don’t appreciate and acknowledge the value your team members are bringing, why should they continue to give their best efforts for your company?
Make positive feedback and recognition for outstanding work the norm in your organization. If giving praise is not your jam, and you’re feeling a little uncomfortable, try experimenting with different ways to recognize your team’s achievements:
- Put it in writing – send a thank you note
- Send a small treat
- Give them a raise or promotion
- Say thanks in a 1:1 meeting
Remember – it doesn’t always have to be a grand gesture to make an impact. Sometimes simply saying, “You did a fantastic job on project X. I really appreciate your efforts,” will do so much more for someone’s morale and motivation than you realize.
#3 – Stay Open To Alternative Perspectives
Are you guilty of having too many one-way conversations with your team members? If your first instinct when someone makes a suggestion is to immediately pour cold water on it and say “it won’t work,” switch your perspective and encourage a discussion instead.
Constantly dismissing your team members’ input means you’re potentially missing out on opportunities for fresh solutions and great ideas. But you’re also sowing the seeds for resentment to fester if your team members start feeling like their contribution doesn’t matter.
You’re working with your team because they’re great at what they do, so capitalize on that!
Let them bring their unique insights and experiences to the table. Even if you don’t use them at the time, highlight the contribution and have a system to collect and capture them for follow-up later. People will be more compelled to participate in the future if they think their suggestions are being considered and taken on board.
A Strong Culture Of Community Starts With You
Community starts with you. When you lead by example and set clear company values for others to follow, you’ve taken a huge first step.
Invest in your team by caring about them as people, not just focusing on what they produce. If you make the effort to understand what’s going on in their lives and what makes them tick, they’ll be far more likely to repay you by doing their best to contribute to your company’s success.
Building a solid sense of community in your team is just one of the four key pillars you need to address to create a high-performing, self-managing team that gives your most important resource, your people, the space to thrive. For more on this and to learn about the other three pillars and how to implement them into your organization, download our free Team Action Plan now.
