Teamwork or Guesswork?

Alex was asked to lead a team which would develop a sensitive recommendation on whether to consolidate two facilities into one.

The first meeting had been scheduled to begin ten minutes ago and five of the seven new team members were gathered in a conference room. One or two were on their cell phones, a pair was engaged in a lively conversation near the back of the room, and the other sat quietly at the table, glancing at his watch. One of the two missing participants was known for habitual lateness; the other was simply unaccounted for. Alex fidgeted with a white board marker, then cleared his throat. “I guess we’ll begin,” he said…

Mary’s team had been meeting for six weeks, wrestling with issues related to reorganizing staff functions to improve processes and increase efficiency.

While the team had made some progress, it was bogged down because team members were torn between completing team assignments and the pressing priorities at their day-to-day jobs. The effort was in danger of simply fizzling out, and Mary was expected to deliver a final presentation in two weeks. As someone began yet another speech about being overworked, Mary thought to herself, “I guess it’s time to read them the riot act…”

Spencer’s team had developed three proposals to address a thorny customer service problem, and were meeting to choose their final recommendation.

The team was deeply divided and people were beginning to get irritated, interrupt one another, or simply withdraw. Consensus seemed doubtful. Spencer let the dialogue continue for as long as he could stand it. Finally, he stood up, faced the group, and said, “I guess I will make the final decision since we can’t agree. Any of you have a problem with that?” There was a palpable silence in the room…

What do these three team leaders have in common?

They were under pressure, they felt stuck, and they didn’t really know what to do. So, they guessed. In the absence of knowledge, skills or experience people have to guess what action to take. If we’re lucky, everything will work out. Far too often, however, when we guess, we guess wrong.

Let’s take a closer look at some differences between guesswork and teamwork.

If you’re the new leader, what’s in it for them?

When a new leader assumes responsibility for a team, or a department, division or even a whole organization, people react by asking themselves, what’s in it for me?

Productivity can suffer as people sort out who you are, and what that means for them. Conversations occur around the “water cooler” as people compare notes and pass along anecdotes they have heard about you.

Admittedly, much of what they want to learn about you are not things you discuss often. But they are important questions, as people take their measure of you - just as you are taking your measure of them.

What’s the Truth?

There are four kinds of truth, and three sides to every story.

In the movie The Kid Stays in the Picture, Robert Evans offers this thought: “There are three sides to every story: my side, your side, and the truth. And no one is lying.”

I’ve long believed there are actually four kinds of truth: My truth, Your Truth, Our Truth, and THE Truth.

My truth is how I see the world. Your truth is how you see it. In the famous optical illusion, I might see an old lady, but you see a young lady. Who’s right?

In a conflict, I sometimes forget that “my” truth isn’t necessarily “the” truth, and when I persist in that belief, the other guy often gets more passionate about sticking to his truth.

A leader is one who can explore both sides of the story openly, and, while planting his or her stake, can also be open to moving the stake. In an authentic conversation, both parties can explore the common ground - “our” truth.

Whether our truth is really THE truth is probably unknowable - and not all that important anyway. Leaders help people move from having sides to having common ground.