Here are the Top Reasons your Team are Not Performing as Well as they Could Be
Team building is a term that can encompass a lot of different things. When some people hear this term, they groan and grumble because they think they are going to have to undergo pointless exercises that do not do them any good.
Other people become boisterous and excitable because they are excited about the excursion and see it as a positive movement. If you want to make sure that your team feels the latter, then this is the guide for you.
Lack of Leadership or Direction
If you want your team to be high-performing, then you have to ensure that they have strong leadership. You also need to make sure that they have a strong vision and direction too. If you know that your individuals are not being shown a clear idea of where they are headed or if their contribution does not contribute to the bigger picture, then they may become somewhat disillusioned and directionless.
This can lead to intense feelings of frustration, and it can also make the simplest tasks way more challenging. This is the last thing that you need when you are trying to motivate your team to get a good result out of their productivity.
Reasons Team Are Not Performing: Not Being Open to Change
Change can come out of nowhere and it can also happen when you are least expecting it. You have to make sure that you are willing to adapt and that you are able to overcome these challenges too. This will help you with the ongoing success of your team or your team. If you need to make some changes across your team, such as by making redundancies or even by merging teams with one another, then make sure that you focus on this being positive as much as possible.
If you don’t then you may find that you end up compromising your team and their motivation. This is the last thing that you need, so make sure that you always have a level of transparency with changes that are going on, and be open to making adjustments if it is what you feel as though your company needs.
Refusing to Listen to your Team
There is a high chance that in your career, you have experienced somewhat directorial or autocratic managers who see their way as being the only way. If you have ever worked with someone like this then you will know that it does not foster a positive working environment.
If possible you need to try and harness the more unique points of view that come from your team and you also need to embrace everyone’s opinion well. If you can do this, then you will soon find that you are able to have a happier, healthier, and more productive team.
Closed and Suppressed Thinking
Some influential individuals will only see one way of getting a task done and they will not pay attention to what everyone else thinks. It may even be that you have implemented processes in the past and that you don’t think they need changing. If you can allow room for more creative ideas, then this will help you to ensure that your team has a higher chance of success and is able to beat the competition in general.
Poor Communication
Every person will have a different style of communication. They also have needs when it comes to exchanging information. Teams also often fail when they are not openly honest or when they do not feel heard. If you have one team member who is talking over everyone or if everyone is talking and not listening, then this will not keep everyone moving. It will also make it much harder for you to achieve the results you need.
Projects that are Too Easy
There is a very fine balance between a task being boring and it overstretching an individual’s capabilities. Psychologists often say that there is a peak state that you should be aiming for. This peak state essentially puts confidence and the challenge faced at an optimum level.
If you can find this balance, then you will soon find that your team is challenged and therefore pushed to achieve their potential without knocking their confidence. You can only achieve this if you understand the individuals who are in your team and if you know where they are on the challenge and capability spectrum. From there, you can then work to their limits.
Not Working Towards a Greater Cause
There is truly nothing worse than feeling as though your contribution just doesn’t matter. If you feel as though what you do just does not have a positive impact on the lives of others, then this will hinder your professional capability.
If possible, you need to make sure that your team knows what they are working for and that you set them personal goals as well as team goals. If you can do this, then you will soon find that they have everything they need to become the professionals they want to be.
Reasons Team are Not Performing: Poor Balance
This might be more of a selection process for managers and team leaders, but it is still a valid point. If you are a leader then you may feel as though you are drawn to hiring people who are just like yourself. After all, it is easier to communicate and then understand people who are the same as you.
This is not always a good thing though. Sometimes you need people who can complement your team and who can offset your own weaknesses. If you can do this, then you will soon find that you have a way to make anything work.
Zero Fun
If the pressure is on and you have a deadline looming, then you will soon see that the first thing to be sacrificed is your team’s happiness. It doesn’t matter how great the banter is or how happy your colleagues are because when the pressure is on, all of this will go out of the window. It is vital that you try and maintain an upbeat atmosphere even when you are facing challenges or adversity.
You also need to make sure that you push your team beyond their comfort zone, but you do not do it so much that it compromises their mental health. Challenges are and should be fun. They should push the boundaries without seeming impossible, regardless of how much effort is put in. If you want to help yourself, then it would be wise for you to try and look into employee wellness initiatives.
Reasons Team Are Not Performing: It’s Time to Make a Change
Do you see any of these signs or these symptoms in your own team? Maybe you see some signs in a team that you manage, and you want to make a positive change. Either way, a team-building activity could be the solution, but at the end of the day, it is also important to look at the challenges that you are setting for your team as well. It may be that the problem is not with your tea but in the process.
If this is the case, then you have to know that a simple team-building activity will not be the solution to your problem. You will need to make a systematic change to your process, and you will also need to make sure that you put in the work to understand your team and the approach they have to projects. If you can do this, then you will soon find that you see a huge improvement.
