Photo by Hc Digital on Unsplash
You can’t and won’t be everyone’s cup of tea.
Human nature, with all its variety, means that we warm to some people and not to others.
If you’re a leader or manager, some of the people you lead and work with may, on the face of it, not be your cup of tea.
And for some in the team, you might not be their’s either.
It’s what makes management so tricky and at the same time, interesting.
The challenge,
How do you get a group of people containing optimists, pessimists, the obstinate, the impetuous, the loud, and the quiet to not only work together, but to achieve great results?
It’s not easy, but as many businesses and sports teams prove, it is possible.
When I first became the Managing Director of a business, I was amazed at how much time I spent on people issues.
From pay rates to dress codes, recruitment and promotions and disputes between department heads.
I also discovered how some “colleagues” were definitely not the beverage of choice for each other.
Petty disputes came to light almost immediately.
It seemed there was little time for me to spend on more “creative” and, as I thought, more profitable pursuits.
However, I soon realised that people and everything related to that subject were the most important part of the role.
Bigger than product launches, cash management, acquisitions and pretty much anything else.
At least to start with.
Without the right people in the right roles and the best possible conditions for them to thrive, all of the above on my goals list were unlikely to be achieved.
Once I got to work on the team (and stayed working on it), the business moved to a steeper growth trajectory than had previously been seen.
Does that mean that all the rivalries went away? Or that the business was filled with happy campers 100% of the time?
No, but directing attention to the team and the individuals within it did make for a highly successful business.
It was also, for the most part, a very invigorating place to work.
Team building is the subject of the next issue of The Quietly Good Newsletter, which is out next week.
If you’re looking to reinvigorate your team and your results, you might find it very helpful.