Team culture is one of the most powerful forces on the earth, and its influence is everywhere from star enterprises to champion teams. Harvard University's follow-up analysis of more than 200 companies found that a strong team culture can increase the net income of enterprises by 75.6% within 1 1 year.
However, building a team culture is a headache. Usually, it is more common that the team friction is constant or inefficient. Members may be elites, but they can't be twisted into a rope.
Where does the strong team spirit come from? How to build cohesion so that one plus one is greater than two?
A sense of security is usually regarded as a regulatory working atmosphere, but in fact it is the basis for building a strong team culture. A common feature of successful teams is a high sense of security. The study also found that the most important indicator for predicting team success is not the skills, experience or past achievements of members, but their sense of security.
The reason why safety has such a great influence on team performance lies in the design of the human brain itself. In order to survive, the brain pays great attention to interpersonal phenomena and is good at capturing and understanding social relations signals. In a safe environment, the brain can stop worrying about danger, drop its guard, turn to connected mode and concentrate on its work. All kinds of clues and signals sent by human beings to establish a secure connection are called "attribution cues". A team leader, in order to build a sense of security in the team, needs to constantly give "attribution hints"
The author summed up six skills:
Listen carefully.
A member has the right to speak in the team, and his opinions are valued, which naturally leads to a sense of belonging. So team leaders can make rules or simple mechanisms to ensure that everyone can make their own voice.
Try to express gratitude.
Research shows that a small thank you can make people more generous to strangers. The word "thank you" is an important attribution hint, which makes the other person feel connected. In a successful team, the frequency of team leaders expressing gratitude to subordinates and members is much higher than the average.
Create more fun
Obviously, a team full of fun and laughter always makes people feel relaxed and happy. Because laughter is not only laughter, but also the most basic symbol of safety and connection.
Pay attention to the entry time of new members.
When a person joins a new organization, the brain will quickly judge whether to take the initiative to contact the team. Therefore, successful enterprises will use this moment to add as many attribution hints as possible in the induction training.
Zero tolerance for "rat shit" behavior
The study of organizational behavior has confirmed that "rat excrement" behavior will reduce team performance by 30% to 40%, so we should adopt a zero tolerance attitude towards it.
Through the design of the system, create a space suitable for communication and collision.
It is found that one of the main factors affecting team cohesion is the distance between members' desks, and the closeness between them is an important indicator of attribution suggestions. There is a famous "Allen Curve" theory on this point. According to this theory, the communication frequency is the highest within 8 meters apart, and the communication frequency approaches zero when it is 30 meters apart. Even today, with the development of social media, people are more inclined to communicate with people close to them in reality. The company has a cafeteria or roof garden, and the connection will happen organically.
Research shows that showing vulnerability often stimulates trust and cooperation between people, especially in group interaction, because it is contagious.
As a team leader, we should take the lead in "showing weakness".
Showing vulnerability will stimulate interpersonal trust and cooperation. And when the leader admits that he has limited ability or made mistakes, it is the time when this kind of motivation is the strongest. If team leaders never show weakness, then everyone will try to cover up their weaknesses, thus interfering with and affecting the completion of various tasks.
Train the "fragile cycle" through specific activities.
This is to integrate the cooperation of vulnerability and connectivity into all aspects of team culture. SEALs are most famous for their "Hell Week Training", which makes the cooperation of vulnerability and connectivity integrated into all aspects of SEALs' training and become a set of iron values. Players always pay attention to each other and provide support at any time, so the high cooperation between them is not unexpected, but inevitable.
Encourage a "help-seeking culture".
Successful teams don't advocate working alone and making a big splash, but explicitly encourage others to seek help in their daily lives.
Establish an effective dialogue mode.
For example, the SEAL action evaluation meeting will focus on five issues:
What is our expected goal?
What are our actual results?
What caused this result?
What shall we do next time?
What can be done to change the status quo?
Focus on two critical moments.
The cooperation norms of any team can be traced back to two key moments in the early days of the team. One is the first fragile moment when the team faces challenges; The other is the moment when the team has the first disagreement.
Selected target
No matter whether the goal is ambitious or specific, most successful teams will list "priorities", that is, key goals. Generally, there are no more than five "key points". Too many are easy to distract people and can't see one thing clearly. Coincidentally, many teams put the relationship between members first, because they know that a successful team must first ensure its normal operation.
Good at using aphorisms and aphorisms.
The working environment of a successful team is often like a bowl of giant chicken soup. Looking around, there are warm or enthusiastic or wise aphorisms everywhere. There are words on the wall of Meyer's restaurant: "If you want to be hugged, hug others first", "When others are angry, think positively" and "Observe carefully and act sincerely".
Use meaningful symbols
Symbolic objects are as useful as slogans and slogans in conveying a sense of purpose. The stones and sledgehammers in the Spurs' training ground embody the motto that the team coach likes-"The stone finally split in two because the masons beat it consistently".
Input and evaluation are consistent with objectives.
There are many indicators involved in job evaluation, which sometimes drown out the key points, which is not conducive to establishing a clear sense of purpose.
The reason for investing is the same as the evaluation. A team needs to invest manpower and material resources in many projects. If the choice is improper, it is not conducive to establishing a sense of purpose.
Generally speaking, the formation of elite team culture depends on system design and careful operation. From schools to animation studios, from special forces to NBA star teams, all kinds of team stories prove that anyone can build an elite team as long as they have scientific ideas and practical operational guidelines. Whether it is a business or a family, whether the team is big or small, you can use the secret formula given in this book to condense their independent members into a powerful whole and make great achievements together.