DENNIS INSPIRATION: 2. TEAMWORK PAYS

‘Helping’ is the motivator that spurs increased productivity and creativity.  As we know, the definition of success includes helping a team to learn together so they might accomplish more than if they were to do it alone.  Keeping this perspective in mind, leaders should not assume too much responsibility for the team as it could make the group dependent, which will then lead the team being unable to manage future efforts without the involvement of the facilitator.

We have to accept the fact that time is precious.  You simply don’t have enough time to do everything.  It pays to share out and work together to accomplish great things.  People who help each other will always accomplish more.  Accomplishing more means:

·         Able to use time wisely

·         Being more focus

·         Have a relax state of mind

·         Sit back and stop trying to be a perfectionist

·         Able to better plan

In order to ensure people are able to work and help each other in a healthy environment, we need to ensure good mentoring practices are in place, such as:

·         Establishing employee accountability where it will help employee to work comfortably with each other, thus avoiding the blame game.

·         Ensuring consistent performance by monitoring on milestone achievements and getting feedback from people.

·         Avoiding micromanagement by trusting the people to do their job and by giving them the freedom to work in their individual styles.

·         Encouragement from the leader is much needed by workers as it works miracles.

·         Recognition given both in private and in public, also in front of their peers and supervisors.

·         Reaching out to the employees just to have a chat about other than work.  It will make employee warm up to you.

·         Conducting teambuilding programmes to ensure bonding are sustained and at the same time they are having fun.

·         Keeping communication channels open where all personnel, big or small, can walk into a senior manager’s room for any other reason.  Listening to the employee should be practiced.  Listen and hear, then understand before speaking up.  It’s another way of getting good feedback on what’s happening on the ground.

·         Train managers to be humane such as being respectful, understanding, firm yet kind, and easy going.  Managers also need to be trained on how to deal with troublesome employees, how to encourage, reprimand and motivate them.  These managerial assets are worth building as it will make a difference in the employee’ productivity.

·         Emphasizing on teamwork and encourage team bonding, and inter-team dependency.  Employees, who feel they are valued, wanted and much appreciated will almost always perform better.

·         Rotating task where employees’ competency can be increased and simultaneously reducing boredom and monopoly.

Alone we can do so little,

Together we can do so much

(Hellen Keller)