3 People to Throw Off the Team
Teams have more potential than individuals, only if individual members make them function effectively.
Danger:
Poorly functioning teams:
- Waste time.
- Squander resources.
- Discourage talent.
- Drain organizational energy.
The power of one:
One distracting team member – bad apple – has more power to distract and plunder than many who embrace the power of teams.
Lubricate team effectiveness by reforming or removing bad apples.
3 people to throw off the team:
#1. Throw off those who give up quickly.
Great solutions come from hot debate. Pulling together is most meaningful when fiery collision precedes it.
- Develop structures that make constructive dissent expected. Ask your entire team to argue for or against a suggested plan of action.
- Honor people who offer alternatives.
- Thank people who engage in constructive dissent.
- Ask, “What are you trying to achieve?” when alternatives are offered.
Those who give-in quickly end up with mediocrity.
#2. Throw off those who can’t let it go when they don’t get their way.
Team success is more important than individual wins. Successful teams pull together after vigorous debate.
Expect team members to pull with gusto when an imperfect solution is chosen. Anything less degrades the team. Confront Self-serving team members who take their toys home when they don’t get their way.
Standing aloof points to arrogant immaturity.
#3. Throw off smug know-it-alls who are content with their own growth and discontent with others.
Learning-teams have individual members who are dedicated to personal growth.
Leaders who lead the way always lead themselves first.
- Reject people who talk before listening.
- Include readers. Ask teammates to share ideas from books they’re reading.
- Honor team members who say things like, “I used to think, but I’ve learned.”
- Eject individuals who always need to look smarter than others.
How have you seen bad apples disrupt teams?
What types of people should be reformed or removed from teams?
We just went through this at my work. Once two people were fired, the energy changed DRASTICALLY. People get themselves fired. How long you keep negative people around lies on you…. unfortunately sometimes legal reasons may keep you from getting rid of them😐
Thanks lightsparks. A classic mistake leaders make is waiting too long to deal with negative issues.
I think we’re concerned about making things worse and hope they will work themselves out. Perhaps this is justified in small issues.
When you start feeling like you’ve been over this before, it’s time to intervene.
Poor Performers DO need to be addressed. A few are there only for their own reasons, the sociopathic kinds of personalities. Some of them can be confonted and shifted if they see their behavior as a problem for THEM if it continues. On the other hand, some of them really ARE simply sociopathic. The car cannot run well with a bad valve or spark plug and you need to replace them.
On the other hand, some are just disinterested and disoriented. Those can be realigned and engaged. Lots of ways to do that.
And SOME are simply counter-sorters who process information differently. You say yes and they have to take a negative position just to see things from a different perspective. USE that — appoint those counter-sorting information processers into your Devil’s Advocate and REQUEST that they sort from that perspective, looking for downsides and similar. But at some point, ROTATE their role to demand that they look at things from a different perspective, like the future or past or totally positive or some such other position and appoint someone else to play DA.
Acknowledge their style and that it has benefits, and then ask them to support the team later by using a different thinking style. Behavioral flexibility. You do NOT need a bunch of psychology or personality preference studies or any of that stuff. Just DO it! Think Differently…
How about those who do just-enough to stay off the radar but slowly drag the team productivity down? Those are much harder to identify but are insidious. Interested about your thoughts on what to do if you see this but you’re just another apple on the team rather than the leader.
Dana is probably talking about more than half of the people in most organizations, actually. Statistically, about half of the people WILL be “below average” by definition and stats keep showing only about 30% are engaged and involved. The gravity and pull of those at the low end of the curve (even ignoring the actively dis-engaged rabble-rousers) does pull down things like performance, quality, motivation, innovation and all sorts of things. — WHO wants to work harder than the people who do the minimally acceptable amount of work? Only those mentally ill ones we call exemplary performers, who operate with a whole different motivational construct. Courage. And a focus on teamwork. (Peer pressure is a very powerful driver, BTW.)