Teamwork and Inspiring Others

I spend a lot of time thinking about teamwork, and how to motivate individuals to focus on the goals of the team rather than their own individual aspirations.  To me, the best functioning teams are when individuals put the team’s needs in front of their own wants or needs.  This is especially difficult with younger generations these days that seem to have grown up in a world where the most important things are what they need, not what the team needs.  Unfortunately, they have a pathetic set of roles models in the form of professional athletes where the concept of teamwork is pushed aside by stars searching for individual glory.

A month or so ago, I received a booklet from a collegiate soccer coach that contains a list of inspirational quotes.  The theme of the quotes center around motivation, individual determination, and things that inspire great people and great teams to do great things.  I keep this list handy at work, and I copy and paste one of the quotes outside of my cubicle at work each day.  The goal is to give people that walk by something to read and think about.  I do this in the hopes that people will read the quote, and use it as a way to motivate themselves, and encourage teamwork.

The quote below was one of the ones I posted at my cubicle this past Friday.  It really summarizes how I approach things in my life. 

Care more than others think is wise.

Risk more than others think is safe

Dream more than others think is practical

Expect more than others think is possible

The topic of this blog will focus on the first line of the quote, and focuses on caring when it comes to the work you do.  To me, there are a couple of different levels of caring when it comes to the workplace.  The obvious part of this is caring about the work you do and feeling that the work you do makes a difference.  Not everyone is going to like everything they have to do as part of their job.  However, that doesn’t mean that they shouldn’t care about what they do, and want to be good at doing it. 

More importantly, too often, I think management overlooks the fact that they are responsible for making sure their employees know that the work the employee does makes a difference.  It’s more than just acknowledging the employee’s effort and contribution on a project or task.  The manager also needs to share the broader impact of the employee’s work as it relates to the big picture of the organization.  As an employee, it’s always good to get feedback on your effort and contribution.  However, I find it even more rewarding when management can share with me how something I’ve done contributes to a broader impact on the organization.  It takes your mindset from the day to day task at hand to more of “how am I going to make a difference today?”

There is another aspect of caring that people often overlook in the workplace.  That’s the aspect of caring about your co-workers in your direct team, and teammates on the projects you are assigned to outside of your direct team beyond the tasks and assignments.  Many people don’t understand why you should care about your co-workers or teammates.  They approach work with a mindset that you go to work, do your job, try to get along with your co-workers for the sake of your job, and go home.  That is one approach for doing your job.  However, I don’t think it develops a deeper level of commitment to your co-workers or the organization.

I’ve always approached everything I do with a commitment to a deeper level of caring.  I can’t just go to work, do my job, and go home.  I want to understand the people I work with, what motivates them, and what I can do to make them feel that they are an important part of the team.  This involves a deeper level of caring than most people expect.  However, I have found that this level of caring builds deeper bonds between teammates, and will often cause co-workers to show a higher level of commitment to the organization than they otherwise would show.

To me, this is a difficult topic to explain, and the best way to explain it is through some examples of things I’ve done at work.  Some of the obvious examples are getting to know your co-workers in a more personal way.  Things like learning more about their family and interests outside of work, saying things like “good morning” or “hi” as you pass them in the hallway at work, or even stopping them to briefly chat about something you know is going on in their life like dealing with a sick child, asking about an event in their personal life they participated in, or something like that.  It’s very easy to get caught up in your own day to day activities at work and forget about your co-workers.  However, taking the time to make even the simplest gesture makes a difference.

Related to the above mentioned things, you can do little things for co-workers that make their day brighter.  This might include inviting them for a walk to get a cup of coffee, seeing if they want to join you for lunch or a snack, or even sending a co-worker a quick email wishing them a good day.  This also might include something like surprising them with a cup of coffee “just because you felt like it”.  I often find little impromptu surprises like this will brighten a co-worker’s day and make them feel special. 

There are other things that I like to do that make a difference for larger groups of people.  This involves organizing random events and inviting the entire team and/or organization.  These can often be difficult because you often have a diverse set of co-workers with different interests.  So, it’s important to mix the events up so that co-workers feel comfortable participating in them.  Here are some examples of things I’ve organized.

·      Going to a local bar or pub to socialize.  You can include drinkers and non-drinkers as the goal is to really just go and spend social time with your co-workers.

·      Hosting a breakfast where I’ve made waffles and asked people to bring their favorite waffle toppings to share with the group.  We use a room where people can stand or sit and socialize with their co-workers.

·      Hosing an ice cream sundae making event similar to the breakfast.

·      When I travel, I will often bring small gifts back to share with co-workers.  For example, I went to visit my parents in Lancaster, PA.  I brought back food to share with my co-workers as the food in that part of the country is not available where we work.  It allowed me to share a bit about myself and my history in unique way.

I think the most important aspect of these events are that they are not formally organized by management or the organization, but rather by co-workers.  If the events are organized by management, they often are too formal, and lose their impact.

There is one other aspect that I think is very important.  In today’s work environment, you are often working with co-workers that are in home offices or remote locations.  It’s very important that anything you do makes them feel included.  For example, when I hosted the ice cream sundae making event, I did it on a day that my co-workers from Spokane were going to be in town so that everyone felt included.  You can also use things like interoffice mail or even regular mail to send them things related to an event you are organizing.  In the case of bringing gifts from when I travel, I sent a package of gifts to my co-workers in Spokane similar to the gifts I brought back to share with my co-workers in Seattle.  I can’t emphasize enough how important it is to include remote co-workers in everything you plan to do.

As I said, not everyone believes that caring is an important aspect in work, but I have done these types of things everywhere I’ve worked, and it’s always made a big difference to my co-workers.  It’s about making a difference to people in ways they might not otherwise expect.  Plus, it’s just a lot of fun!