Teams That Team - Safer Being Braver

In my previous newsletter, I shared that the most significant shift teams made to flourish was to identify and align to a common purpose - they discovered their power in purpose.

The second most empowering shift teams that transitioned from floundering to flourishing, was to make the team a safer place to speak more of their truth. They made it safer by being braver.

Teams that transitioned to flourish, developed 3 common attributes:

1. They committed to shared ways-of-working – they made an unconditional commitment to how they engage, relate, and team together. For example, one executive team I coached in the financial services sector, pledged to:

- Ask what others think when proposing a solution.

- Seek commitment before taking to action.

- Explain reasoning when disagreeing.

- Invite feedback on how their behaviour may be part of the problem.

- Hold themselves accountable for both actions and results.

- Admit when they’ve contributed to the problem.

- Generate solutions with the team’s needs in mind.

- Stay curious, seeking to understand before reacting.

2. They shifted from being cautious to curious – instead of staying safe in silence, they leaned into curiosity. Rather than insisting on being understood, they sought first to understand. When team members felt heard and understood, they felt safer to speak more of their truth.

3. They shifted from being in judgment to acceptance – rather than judging each other’s differences, they leaned into the learning from them. They focused less on seeking agreement from one another to being in acceptance of one another – they valued the learning in and possibilities from their differences.

INVITATION

Above all, these teams developed a new relationship with conflict, challenge and criticism. They came to see that collaboration always dances with difference. When teams relate with care for one another and accept their differences, they access the hidden gifts in conflict, challenge and criticism. Teams that flourish trust each other’s intentions – they know they care about and respect each other. Their intentions are unarguable.

I invite you to be braver, first declare your intentions and then share your truth.

No one can make it safe for you; only you can choose to be braver.

May you flourish.