Seven Golden Rules of Cooperation With Outstanding People
I’ve always admired how some teams work well together and how some managers achieve great results, but what exactly makes a team great? From my experience as an employee and now as a manager, I have tried to figure out exactly how to create an effective and efficient team.
Think of me as one of those people who are obsessed with clear communication, passionate about the different ways people express their concerns to each other, and in particular how great managers get great results from great people.
I was on both sides of the management medal – and I was told what to do, and now I was managing others. I am currently the CEO of UpdateZen and in the past I have reported to the CEO. As Product Manager at UpdateZen, I have also done extensive customer service with executives, managers and team members of all stripes. I have found that at the interface between great management and teamwork, there are seven simple truths – or golden rules – about how to effectively and optimally manage great people.
I approach this from a management perspective, but the rules apply to any type of collaboration and teamwork. Let’s dig in.
Golden Rule # 1: Treat Everyone with Respect
Sounds obvious, but you will be surprised. In any case, great management and teamwork starts here. If someone reports to you, you are now accountable for both their productivity and their contribution to your company’s culture. Beyond the fact that you have to treat people with respect simply because it’s the right thing to do, let’s focus on why it’s good business to always treat your people with respect.
In short, when you treat people with respect, they like you better. Imagine this. And if they like you, they will want to help you achieve your goals. And if they want to help you achieve your goals, they will work harder for you, they will work smarter for you, they will be more productive, and, importantly, they will be much less likely to leave the ship when the going gets tough. When you build a team or company, you simply cannot afford to lose great people. Treat them with respect and you are one step closer to keeping them on your team for the long term.
Golden Rule # 2: Encourage Dissent
Which? That’s right … encourage your team members to speak up and disagree with you when they sincerely feel differently about something important.
I always try to hire people who think for themselves, who go outside the box and come up with creative ideas that I would never have thought of. I do this knowing full well that people of this type are also more likely to become troublemakers, so to speak. But this risk is worth taking. While toxic troublemakers are unacceptable on a team, there is a particular strain of problem-creating that is not only rewarding but very necessary if you are running a team or a company that is trying to grow bigger and better.
In all smart businesses, you need people who are creative at the highest level. And to do great things, you and your people need to constantly think outside the box. You need people who feel comfortable disagreeing with you, trying new things, throwing out new ideas, and agreeing that some of their ideas can be downright terrible. But some of these ideas will be successful and wildly successful, and in order to create an environment in which your team members’ best ideas emerge, you need to make sure everyone on your team knows that you got their support when they are not. – great ideas fail, and madly.
You may think that you have some great ideas for sure, but if you can surround yourself with great players, then you know that your people will often have even better ones. This is why you should encourage them to express their disagreement. I encourage my people to fight for their ideas if they strongly relate to them. I want them to present coherent, well-articulated and passionate arguments for why their idea is worth developing, investing, or executing. I don’t want them to throw shit against the wall and see what sticks. I want them to dive deep and really formulate a compelling case for their idea.
There are two simple truths here:
- People feel more powerful if they are encouraged to contribute their own ideas. They feel more responsible if their team ends up implementing some of their ideas. People rightly believe that their contributions are unique to them, and therefore, when their ideas come true, they feel a greater responsibility for the success of their team. Nothing should be higher.
- I need better ideas. I don’t care where these ideas come from. In fact, nothing makes me happier than the fact that one of my team members not only came up with a better idea than mine, but also openly proved that I was wrong. I love it when they prove to me that he is wrong. First, it means that I have learned a thing or two. And secondly, it means that I surrounded myself with people smarter than me, and successfully encouraged them to think freely and express their opinions.
Golden rule # 3: make the final decision and move on
If you are a manager, it is your responsibility to make the final decisions and to do so decisively. So while I encourage discord in my team when it comes time to make decisions, I must evaluate all the options before me, listen to and internalize all the arguments, and ultimately make the final choice. And when I do, I will always explain to my team why and then move on. Even if you disagree as an employee, it can be helpful for you to let your manager call and then focus on what’s next instead of being preoccupied with past decisions.
Some decisions are, of course, difficult; here are three that I often come across when making a decision:
- When I face a difficult decision, I lean strongly in one direction and everyone agrees, great. A simple solution.
- When I am faced with a difficult decision and lean strongly in one direction, but there is a strong dissenting opinion of one or more team members, I urge them to convince me otherwise. I will listen to them and consider their arguments carefully. But if after that I still lean strongly in the same direction as I was, I will follow my intuition.
- When I am faced with a difficult decision and I feel unconvincing, one way or another, I not only ask my team members for recommendations, but I often ask them how strongly they feel about the problem. Sometimes I even ask them to put their conviction number. “How strong is your conviction on a scale of one to ten?” If they give me six, seven, or even eight, I will duly note it and probably go with my intuition. But if a great team member rates her conviction at nine or ten, I will almost always decide in favor of her conviction.
Remember that it is your responsibility as a manager to do what you think is best when making key decisions. This is your job. If you ultimately decide that your passionate team member is wrong about something, and you are right, then you must make the final decision and act according to your intuition. And when you do, be decisive, clear, explain your decision … and then move on.
Once a decision is made, your passionate team members should listen to your decision and implement it, but perhaps most importantly, treat it as if it was their idea, even if they disagree. Passive-aggressiveness is not allowed. If I feel even a hint of passive aggressiveness, I am ready. I welcome and encourage dissent on my team and we will respectfully discuss this matter for as long as warranted, but as a manager, once I make a final decision, we both need to move on and you need to step back for the decision, sincerely …
The same is true if you make a decision that you don’t quite agree with; the decision has been made, so find a way to move forward.
Golden Rule # 4: Always Tell Them Why
Old-school managerial thinking tended to be more of an iron fist; you ask the employee to do something, and if he asks why, you can simply say “because I said so.” The employee is reluctant to do the job.
It might work for your kids, but it will surely appeal to your team members. Your team members need to know that they are part of a larger goal. They need to know that whatever task they are performing, they are linked to the goals of the larger company. They need to know that their work matters. I cannot overemphasize this. If you think a motivated and happy employee is the best employee, take the time to explain to them why you are asking them to do something, rather than just asking them to do something. And when you make a difficult decision, explain to them why you are making a certain decision, rather than just inform them about it.
Plus, you can’t – and shouldn’t be – with a member of your team every second they work on a project, right? They will make macro and micro decisions throughout any project. If you want them to make the best decisions at the best time, explain to them why. The project will run faster, better, more efficiently, and with fewer changes than if you hadn’t explained why.
Golden Rule # 5: Keep Messages Concise
In management and communication, the benefits of brevity so far outweigh the benefits of verbosity that it needs to be incorporated into these golden rules of governance and collaboration.
When you assign something to one of your team members, it is imperative that the communication is crystal clear, right? They need to understand exactly what they need to do and why. And if it takes you too long to explain something, it’s probably because you didn’t take the time to get it to the point at first. If you are a manager, it is your responsibility; say what you need as effectively as possible. Of course, give your team members some color, some background, and of course any necessary context. But the more effectively you can communicate to your team what needs to be done, the more likely they are to know unambiguously what is expected of them and why.
Once you have received an assignment or assigned it to your team, the person in charge should keep the manager informed as effectively as possible throughout the project. Encourage them to take the time to bring their project updates to the core of what you need to know, and just as importantly, encourage them not to mention what you don’t need to know. They shouldn’t waste their time writing detailed two-page status updates at one interval, and they shouldn’t damn well waste your time asking you to read them.
Keep in mind that brevity can sometimes be confused with brevity. Some people still wonder about email etiquette, so be careful not to accidentally sound rude when you’re just trying to be short.
Golden Rule # 6: Deal With Toxic Troublers Immediately
Not all of you are able to fire people or change teams, but when someone is unable to cope or creates unnecessary chaos, you need to try to eliminate them.
In the past, even in the most recent past, I have had to deal with my share of troublemakers. And, truth be told, I was ruled by troublemakers too. I explained earlier that there is a certain kind of “problem causing” that is absolutely necessary for a healthy, successful company that wants to grow. But there are also a number of issues that are totally unacceptable, and I’m talking about people whose personality or actions can be characterized as disrespectful, toxic, disloyal, and ultimately counterproductive to your team’s goals.
If you have toxic individuals on your team, get rid of them as soon as possible. You will never regret it. If they don’t fit your team, there is probably no choice but to remove them. And guess what? They probably know they are not perfect. More importantly, the rest of your team probably thinks the same way. It would be unfair to your truly great team if you retain a personality that interferes with their ability to work . And if you do not have authority to change the team, talk to someone who has authority , and clearly report the problem.
Golden Rule # 7: Have Fun
If you are in a knowledge-driven business, you pay special attention to the thoughts and thinking of your team members. And you acknowledge that their enthusiasm, creativity, and self-motivation are more important than anything else. And I really hope that you also know that your best team members have more career opportunities than you might imagine.
So guess what: you better work with you in a fun way. And I’m not talking about going out for a drink after work or bringing sushi for lunch – I’m talking about the work they do for you day in and day out. Better to make it fun, challenging, and interesting so that the team doesn’t burn out just because it’s hard to work with you .
Have a goal. There is a mission. Have a goal and articulate it clearly, state it with enthusiasm and shout it from the proverbial mountain peaks in your office. Tell your employees why it matters, why it matters, and that your project will change the world. Give your people the freedom – and support – to go outside the box and think outside the box. Make the work they do for you, the team, and the company fun and exciting.
First of all, wake up in the morning wanting to come to work. Make sure they care about your mission. They might be able to make more money elsewhere or have a nicer office with a different job, but the only thing you can give them that no one else can is the opportunity to work on a project that makes you and your company unique in the world. … The most creative minds want to work on something unique, special, important, and meaningful. Give them. Formulate a mission. Tell them all about why and what . And then give them the freedom to do their job however they see fit. If they enjoy it, the work will be beneficial.