Improving Teamwork: People Management
Sometimes it may be overlooked, but when a person is participating in a project involving even just a small amount of other people, it is a must to get to know and understand the people around them before working on the project itself. “Group Project”, notice how the “Group” part comes before the “Project”. The group always comes first before the project.
So, when working in a team environment:
- Rule number one is get to know each other.
- Rule number two is get to know each other.
- Rule number three is get to know what to work on.
If a group member is not smart enough to apply both rule number one and two, then the project will be affected in a negative way.
Getting to know each other is not simply knowing each other’s names, whereabouts, hobbies, etc; it is about understanding each other’s roles, motives, what they’re good at and what they lack, and anything else that could connect to a personal level so each member could empathize with one another. All could be achieved through one thing: communication.
Here are some ways to fulfill the early mentioned rule number one and two, in order to improve teamwork:
- Empathy
Empathizing is different from sympathizing: sympathize is just to “condemn” other people’s struggles, meanwhile empathize is to know other people’s struggle, putting ourselves in their exact position so we could understand what they’re struggling at and possibly, help them overcome it. With this, problems could be tackled easily and the project the group is working on could flow smoothly than ever.
- Set The Tone
Set the tone for communication among the team. This will help to keep everyone on the same page and communication flowing. Try to keep the intonation as expressive as possible so other members could understand the context of the situation they’re in. Example when under work pressure, casual conversation, spare time, etc. Make sure others understand what we’re feeling by setting the tone of our communication so there will be no misunderstandings.
- Listen
Many don’t realize that listening is as important as communicating. Always listen to fellow team members and consider their thoughts before coming up your own. Even if you don’t come up with the best response to them, the person can appreciate you enough for listening to their story (or struggle).
- Sharing
Set daily meetings between fellow members. Members shouldn’t have to wait for a weekly catch-up meeting to get together. When face to face meetings would be hard to do knowing the situation we’re at right now, this could be done with various online communication tools such as video conference calls or a simple group chat. With meetings that are more consistent, members are able to catch-up with one another and also able to keep track with the work they are doing.
- Take A Break
Taking a break is a must. Encourage the team to enjoy their spare time. Taking breaks together can result in a higher level of productivity rather than nonstop working. Do something together: grab a drink, take a walk, play video games together, so on. By this way, if the members within the team don’t recognize one another, they can see each other as “equals” rather than formal, unknowingly workmates and most importantly making friends along the way.
By doing the above, you can establish a better relationship within other members within the group, improving the quality of your team environment: leading to a more successful, comprehensive finished product.
Reference Used:
https://blog.jostle.me/blog/12-easy-ways-to-improve-workplace-teamwork
