Will it be you who betrays the team?
Surely not! You love your team! You’ll support them to the end. They have your back, and you theirs. So if anyone’s going to jeopardise the team, it’s certainly not you!
New teams and processes are fragile things. Establishing them requires trust, consistency and commitment to the common good. We often ask team members to put the interests of the team ahead of their own. Without the right level of trust, this is a big ask.
We may be asking for a simple behaviour change, or a complex process that requires buy in and effort from the whole team. No matter how big or small, in the establishment phase, the wind could blow these new structures over.
Likewise, when our teams are unfamiliar, we hope that we won’t let each other down and that everyone will pull their weight. Research suggests that if you find others are putting in less effort than you, you’ll dial yours back to match. The team’s commitment will often fall to that of the least committed.
Behaviours that diminish trust, effort and commitment
These days the strongest temptation pulling at our level of input is technology, in particular mobile phones and laptops. Punctuality is another one many teams have difficulty with.
- If you are trying to establish a ‘no phones’ rule in meetings, the first person to bring in their phone immediately reduces the chances of that rule being adhered to in the future.
- If you are trying to encourage punctuality with meetings and deadlines, the first person to show up late, weakens the rule instantly. This is especially true if the rule-breaker is not pulled up on it.
The Domino Effect
Who is most likely to bend the rules and least likely to be pulled up by others?
The leader of course! Position and privilege, mean our team leaders are the most likely to reduce the standards of the team and weaken commitment. The rest of the team are less likely to hold the leader to account than they are their peers.
Here I have to put up my hand. As a boss, one of the things I found hardest was not cutting myself the slack I knew my position would allow.
It shouldn’t come as a surprise that the leader is the one most likely to tip over the dominoes. After all, the name ‘leader’ is a giveaway. Their behaviour will lead others to stay committed or allow others to weaken, depending on what behaviour the leader accepts from themselves and others.
In the TED talk below, the fabulously entertaining and super clever behavioural expert, Dan Ariely, shares an experiment about strangers collaborating to benefit the whole team. Collaboration works well until one person puts their own interests before the team. Then, the trust of the whole team collapses. Ariely finds that the most stable state is one of lack of trust. This should ring alarm bells. It means it is also harder than we might think to establish initial trust within a team. The state of trust is fragile and can easily be upset by just one team member. Enjoy.
Don’t be the weakest link
Perform a personal audit. Check in on any behaviours you’re not proud of or privileges you give yourself. Is there anything you do that you wouldn’t encourage other team members to do? For example, if you wouldn’t check your phone in a client meeting, then don’t do it in an internal one. Identify some checks you can put in place to shore up these behaviours and ensure you are the strongest link in your team.
Lead by example. What behaviours are team members tending to slip on? Can you get agreement to hold each other to account – and then do it? Give it a go! Ensure you have a check in planned to see if you followed through.
Pick up the dominoes. Watch the video above and identify other opportunities to put the dominoes back in place.
What are your experiences with team trust? Have you felt the domino effect?
