Becoming a Team - Common Purpose
“Leaders don’t create followers; they create more leaders.”
Tom Peters
Leaders realize that, in the words of Aristotle, “the whole is greater than the sum of its parts”. Their contribution is measured by the growth of others. One of the leader’s primary responsibilities is to bring people (and their skills) together and maximize their potential for the common good – to create teams.
Team and teamwork are terms that are casually thrown out to describe any group of people coming together for an activity or task. They are buzzwords, like cooperation and communication. From an early age we are taught that the adults like when we use those words. Unfortunately, we often use them out of habit and do not consider their meaning. If I had a dollar for every work group that people labelled a team in my working years, I could have retired a few years earlier. More than a few of those groups were the antithesis of a team – they didn’t respect people in the group, did not really care about the success of the team or the organization and were in it for their personal benefit only. I have seen the same with basketball teams. Fortunately, I have seen enough groups become real teams to give me hope. When that hope gains traction it can lead to change. The transformation of groups to teams can be special. The feeling can last a lifetime and can impact everything you do going forward.
Defining "team" can help us understand the difference between a group of people and a team. There are many definitions – it seems like too many. The definition offered by Katezenberg and Smith, authors of The Wisdom of Teams, makes sense to me. It’s a definition formed from years of research studying some of the most highly effective teams in the world – from all walks of life.
“A team is a small number of people, with complementary skills, who are committed to a common purpose, performance goals, and approach for which they hold themselves accountable.”
Complementary Skills – the combined skills of the players on the team have greater impact than the individual skills of the players alone. A basketball example could be the skills and roles of a center / post player and a point guard. The post player needs the point guard to use her skills and get the ball to the post player in a position to use her skills and score. Each has different skills but the skills complement each other.
Teams also benefit from complementary skills other than technical skills, like leadership skills. The team could have an on the court leader – one who leads by example and sound play and a vocal leader - one who speaks to the issues at hand and holds people accountable to a standard of play.
Committed to a Common Purpose –Individuals on the team organize their efforts to achieve something they all want. While this common purpose represents the collective individual dreams and desires of team members, compromise and sacrifice are essential.
Work Towards Specific Goals & Agree on a Working Approach – Common purpose is aspirational – it’s what we hope to become. When we look, honestly, at our current reality – where we are now – we can see what needs to be done to move towards our common purpose. The gap between our common purpose and our current reality defines the work to be done by the group. Knowing what needs to be done, we can create goals and strategies for meeting the goals.
Are Accountable to The Work & Each Other – If a team member fails to keep her commitment to the team’s common purpose the other team members need to address that team member (see Process - Leadership – Accountability – Having the Difficult Conversations).
As groups work to become teams Common Purpose (competing agendas) and Accountability (conflict is involved) are the most challenging, yet without them teams will fail. This is where we focus our efforts.
OUR PURPOSE
“Follow your heart in pursuit of your dreams”
Coach K
Leaders need to know how to bring people together. They need to build teams. No one can do it alone. To maximize our potential, we have to draw on all the resources available to us – and we are all resources to each other.
When you bring a group of individuals together it’s easy to discover that there is a diversity of ideas, beliefs and talents within the group. Each individual brings something to the group. The leader’s job is to appreciate the diversity of thoughts and ideas and to identify where the group members also have common ground. This common ground is the foundation of common purpose.
Teams are made up of people. Building a team begins with those people. To get to a common purpose, start with the individuals – what do each of them bring to the team.
What they bring starts with the things that inspire them to be the person they are - their purpose, cause or beliefs. Organizational consultant and author Simon Sinek calls this your “why”.
ACTIVITY:
The Lifeline is an activity that helps us explore meaningful moments in our past. Moments that may have been transformative – turning points in our lives. These moments can be positive or possibly even painful, but the experience was a catalyst for personal change or direction. The outcome of the exercise is a statement.
Check out this short video re: finding your Why - https://youtu.be/Qd_ZFf2XHGg
LIFELINE – Tell Your Story
“The two most important days in our life are the day you are born and the day you find out why.”
Mark Twain
OUR PURPOSE, OUR “WHY”, DOES NOT COME FROM LOOKING AHEAD AT WHAT WE WANT TO ACHIEVE AND FIGURING OUT AN APPROPRIATE STRATEGY TO GET THERE. IT COMES FROM LOOKING IN A COMPLETELY OPPOSITE DIRECTION FROM WHERE WE ARE NOW. FINDING OUR PURPOSE IS A PROCESS OF DISCOVERY, NOT INVENTION. IT COMES FROM OUR PAST. IT IS BORN OUT OF OUR UPBRINGING AND LIFE EXPERIENCE. IT’S ABOUT THE STORIES THAT MADE THE BIGGEST DIFFERENCE IN OUR LIFE.
Think about the major milestones in your life – those that made you the person you are now. Think back to memorable events, influential people, when you had success, when you struggled, when you felt good about yourself, when you were challenged to be better. Everything you can think of that moved you in the direction of where you are now. List these things as they come to mind.
When you have listed as many as you can think of, go back and put them in chronological order.
Now draw a line on a piece of paper or flip chart paper. At the left end mark your date of birth. At the right end write – “the future”. In the center write the current date.
Above the line mark significant life events that are school /sports related. Below the line mark significant life events that are personal.
Educational, athletic milestones, relationships, events
D.O.B._______________________________TODAY______________________THE FUTURE
Personal milestones, relationships, events
List at least ten events that occurred from your date of birth to the present and write them on the lifeline. Choose the 5 or 6 significant events that made the biggest difference in your life.
Is there a thread that connects the memories / events? Look for the Themes?
COMPLETE THE CHARACTER STRENGTHS SURVEY BELOW. CHECK OFF ALL THE STRENGTHS THAT APPLY TO YOU.
CHARACTER STRENGTHS SURVEY (VIA Institute on Character)
WISDOM:
Creativity – You think of new ways to do things
Curiosity – You like exploration and discovery
Judgement – You think things through and examine them from all sides
Love of Learning – You have a passion for learning new skills, topics, and knowledge
Perspective – People who know you consider you wise
COURAGE:
Bravery – you do not shrink from threat, challenge, difficulty, or pain.
Honesty – You live your life in a genuine, and authentic way.
Perseverance – You work hard to finish what you start.
Zest – You approach everything you do with excitement and energy.
HUMANITY:
Kindness – you are kind and generous to others
Love – You value close relationships with others.
Social Intelligence – You know how to fit into different social situations.
JUSTICE:
Fairness – One of your abiding principles is to treat all people fairly.
Leadership – You excel at encouraging a group to get things done.
Teamwork – You excel as a member of a group.
TEMPERANCE:
Forgiveness – You forgive those who do you wrong.
Humility – You do not seek the spotlight and others recognize your modesty.
Prudence – You are a careful person.
Self- regulation – You are a disciplined person.
TRANSCENDENCE:
Appreciation of Beauty – You notice and appreciate beauty and excellence in all domains of life.
Gratitude – You are aware of good things that happen and do not take them for granted.
Hope – You expect the best in the future and you work to achieve it.
Humor – Bringing smiles to other people is important to you.
Spirituality – Your beliefs shape your actions and are a source of comfort to you.
Take a free Character Strengths Test at - https://www.viacharacter.org/Survey/Account/Register
Refer to the survey and answer these questions
1. Why is it that you do what you do?
2. What does a great day look like? What would you be doing?
3. What makes you the happiest in your life? What excites you?
4. What does real success feel like for you?
5. What is your belief about how the world should be?
6. What impact do you hope to have on the world?
Review the Lifeline exercise, the Character Survey and the answers to follow up questions. You will see the events, relationships, values, beliefs and aspirations that are most important to you. The information can help you identify your purpose - your contribution to the world. Create a statement that speaks to your contribution and the impact of that contribution to the lives of those around you.
To _______________________________________ so that _________________________________.
Your contribution to the world Your impact on the lives of others
EXAMPLE:
TO inspire people to do things that inspire them SO THAT together we can change the world.
Now list 5 events that will happen in your future if you stay true to your purpose (your why). Place them in chronological order on your lifeline between “TODAY” AND “THE FUTURE”.
“Don’t ask yourself what the world needs; ask yourself what makes you come alive, then go do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”
Howard Thurmon
FROM OUR PURPOSE TO OUR COMMON PURPOSE
Your why is your purpose. It is what motivates you to action. It is what keeps you focused each and every day. While your “why”, your purpose, is yours, many can share your purpose. Aligning shared passions, shared beliefs, and shared values is how teams find Common Purpose.
If you are constantly stressed, demotivated, unfulfilled, pessimistic of the world, or feel your life lacks meaning then these are clear indicators that you are not living your purpose.
And if your teammates do not appreciate each other, the culture is negative, the focus is on personal achievements or wins, it means your team has not yet aligned around a common purpose.
Purposeful leaders leverage common purpose to inspire, unify, and drive collective action to achieve their goals and desired outcomes.
THE SYNTHESIS OF OUR INDIVIDUAL PURPOSES IS OUR COMMON PURPOSE.
COMMON PURPOSE EXERCISE
Have each team member post their individual purpose on a flip chart or all together on a document that can be shared.
Have the team review all the statements and underline / highlight similarities. Discuss the findings.
Create a draft statement that speaks to the similarities the team noted. Write it in the same format as the individual why / purpose statements.
To ______________________ so that __________________________________.
What the team strives to do The impact of what the team strives to do.
For example, the Class of 2019’s statement read,
To make the most of our time together by playing unselfishly for each other, giving 110%, and staying positive through the challenging times, so that we respect our program’s tradition and model for the players who come after us, our fans and each other.”
It took several drafts, some wordsmithing and some negotiation to get to the final statement. In the end it had meaning for them.
Discuss ways the team’s common purpose statement can be displayed where the team can frequently reflect on their commitment to each other and assess their progress.
Bob Peterman
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