A team of true team players consists of individuals that have many characteristics, four of which we have previously explored: Competency, Commitment, Adaptability, Communication, and the topic of today's article: Awareness.
Achieving a balance between objectivity and subjectivity can be a struggle, especially because who we are and the experiences we've had - are valuable. On the other hand, our background can make us biased in ways that interfere with our ability to remain open-minded, which is why a level of objectivity is also advantageous.
Think of it like this: let's say you were part of a basketball team, and you were asked to reflect on the interaction and communication of the players on the court. Now, if your information intake only included your experience in the heat of the game, on the court, you would be missing a whole other perspective. But, if you never got off the bench, again, you wouldn't have much personal experience of the players' interaction to assess the actual participation.
Only taking into account your experience isn't beneficial, but never considering it is also a problem. It's all about balance. An all-or-nothing approach isn't an appropriate way to achieve awareness.
There are two different degrees of awareness. The first level includes the ability to monitor your own behavior and modify it accordingly, so that you can maximize your performance. The second level involves your capacity to contribute to your group's performance process. This requires a mature perspective that it's not all about you, and a humble acknowledgement that you also influence the group's performance (positively, and in some cases, negatively).
Are you willing to recognize that you're part of the process, without being solely subjective or overly objective? Ask yourself a few questions to get an idea of how you form your impressions:
If your manager approached your entire team and disappointingly reported that a deadline had been missed, what would you do? Would you hope to find the guilty member to blame for the mishap, so that you get off the hook? Or would you encourage your team to take responsibility together?If an approach that you suggested your team take suddenly went wrong, would you be willing to change the strategy or would you be determined to demonstrate that it wasn't your suggestion that was wrong, but rather it was the way your team executed it that was?
Awareness includes a willingness to acknowledge that which you would rather ignore.
Doug C. Watsabaugh, senior partner at WCW Partners, understands how to meet your unique performance challenges. With more than 20 years of experience, WCW Partners is a performance-improvement company that helps businesses revitalize their results and achieve record-breaking performance.
If you are looking to excel in sales, service or leadership, let Doug develop the capability in you! http://wcwpartners.com/.