Leadership - Will You Lead - 5 - Continued

Subject - Leading Wherever You Are

by Rick Welbourne

Luke 6:39-42 (NKJV) 

39 And He spoke a parable to them: "Can the blind lead the blind? Will they not both fall into the ditch?

40 A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone who is perfectly trained will be like his teacher.

41 And why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye, but do not perceive the plank in your own eye?

42 Or how can you say to your brother, 'Brother, let me remove the speck that is in your eye,' when you yourself do not see the plank that is in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck that is in your brother's eye. 

Understanding and Overcoming The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lecioni

Dysfunction 1: Absence of Trust

A. Trust lies at the heart of a functioning, cohesive team. Without it, teamwork, is all but impossible. True with church, business, or home.

Lecioni - In the context of building a team, trust is the confidence among team members that their peer’s intentions are good, and that there is no reason to be protective or careful around the group. In essence, teammates must get comfortable being vulnerable with one another.

B. Characteristics of teams who trust one another.

–They admit weaknesses and mistakes...they ask for help. They accept questions and input about their areas of responsibilities.

–They give one another the benefit of the doubt before arriving at a negative conclusion.

They take risks in offering feedback and assistance.

–They appreciate and tap into one another’s skills and experiences. They focus time and energy on important issues, not politics.

–They offer and accept apologies without hesitation. Forgive and be forgiven. They look forward to meetings and other opportunities to work as a group.

How does this Absence of Trust connect to Dysfunction 2 - The Fear of Conflict?

–By building trust, a team makes conflict possible because team members do not hesitate to engage in passionate and sometimes emotional debate, knowing that they will not be punished for saying something that might otherwise be interpreted as destructive or critical. Respect is key.

Dysfunction 2 - The Fear of Conflict

A. All great relationships, the ones that last over time, require productive conflict in order to grow. This is true in marriage, church, parenthood, friendship, and business.

Lencioni: It is also ironic that so many people avoid conflict in the name of efficiency, because healthy conflict is actually a time saver. Contrary to the notion that teams waste time and energy arguing, those who avoid conflict actually doom themselves to revisiting issues again and again without resolution.

B. Teams that engage in healthy conflict have lively, interesting meetings. They extract and exploit the ideas of all team members. They solve real problems quickly.

Connection the Fear of Conflict has to Dysfunction 3: The Lack of Commitment

–By engaging in productive conflict and tapping into team member’s perspectives and opinions, a team can confidently commit and buy into a decision knowing that they have benefitted from everyone’s ideas.

Dysfunction 3: The Lack of Commitment

A. In the context of a team, commitment is a function of two things: clarity and buy-in.

Lencioni: Great teams understand the danger of consensus, and find ways to achieve buy-in even when complete agreement is impossible. They understand reasonable human beings do not need to get their way in order to support a decision, but only need to know that their opinions have been heard and considered.

B. A team that commits creates clarity around direction and priorities. Aligns the entire team around common objectives. Develops an ability to learn from mistakes.

–Takes advantage of opportunities. Moves forward without hesitation. Changes direction without hesitation or guilt.

C. The leader must be willing to make mistakes and then show strength by a willingness to admit it and then change direction with confidence.

Connection to Dysfunction 4: Avoidance of Accountability

–In order for teammates to call each other on their behaviors and actions, they must have a clear sense of what is expected.

–Even the most ardent believers in accountability usually balk at having to hold someone accountable for something that was never bought into or made clear in the first place. More information is better than less.

Dysfunction 4: Avoidance of Accountability

A. In the context of teamwork, accountability refers specifically to the willingness of team members to call their peers on performance or behaviors that might hurt the team.

B. Great teams are willing to push past their own comfort zone to confront a team member with their performance...this is scary for some. Nathan and David:

2 Samuel 12:1-10 (NKJV) 

1 Then the LORD sent Nathan to David. And he came to him, and said to him: "There were two men in one city, one rich and the other poor.

2 The rich man had exceedingly many flocks and herds.

3 But the poor man had nothing, except one little ewe lamb which he had bought and nourished; and it grew up together with him and with his children. It ate of his own food and drank from his own cup and lay in his bosom; and it was like a daughter to him. 

　

4 And a traveler came to the rich man, who refused to take from his own flock and from his own herd to prepare one for the wayfaring man who had come to him; but he took the poor man's lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him." 

5 So David's anger was greatly aroused against the man, and he said to Nathan, "As the LORD lives, the man who has done this shall surely die!

6 And he shall restore fourfold for the lamb, because he did this thing and because he had no pity."

7 Then Nathan said to David, "You are the man! Thus says the LORD God of Israel: 'I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul.

8 I gave you your master's house and your master's wives into your keeping, and gave you the house of Israel and Judah. And if that had been too little, I also would have given you much more!

9 Why have you despised the commandment of the LORD, to do evil in His sight? You have killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword; you have taken his wife to be your wife, and have killed him with the sword of the people of Ammon.

10 Now therefore, the sword shall never depart from your house, because you have despised Me, and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife.'

C. This is especially difficult for teams who have been together for long periods of time because of fear of jeopardizing friendships.

D. In reality, the better friend is the one who is willing to point out areas of weakness and then be willing to help you through it.

E. As politically incorrect as it may sound, the most effective and efficient means of maintaining high standards of performance on a team is peer pressure.

F. A team that avoids accountability:

–Creates resentment among team members who have different standards of performance.

Encourages mediocrity. No expectation - no production.

–Misses deadlines and key delivery. Places an undue burden on the team leader as the sole source of discipline. The leader becomes the bad guy or the fall guy.

G. A team that holds one another accountable:

　

–Ensures that poor performers feel pressure to improve. Identifies potential problems quickly by questioning one another’s approaches without hesitation.

–Establishes respect among team members who are held to the same high standards.

Avoids excessive bureaucracy around performance management...avoids favoritism.

H. One of the most difficult challenges of a leader is to allow the leadership team to serve as the first and primary accountability mechanism.

Connection to Dysfunction 5: Inattention to Results

–If teammates are not being held accountable for their contributions, they will be more likely to turn their attention to their own needs, and to the advancement of themselves or their departments. 

–An absence of accountability is an invitation to team members to shift their attention to areas other than collective results. The good of the whole.

Dysfunction 5: Inattention to Results

A. The ultimate dysfunction of a team is the tendency of members to care about something other than the collective goals of the group...lack of unity.

B. An unrelenting focus on specific objectives and clearly defined outcomes are

requirements for any team that judges itself on performance.

C. The results mentioned here are not just measured in financial terms but also is

determined by out-come based performance.

–Not just were we within budget but was our goals met.

D. A team that is not focused on results:

–Stagnates or fails to grow. Rarely defeats competitors. Loses achievement oriented employees.

–Encourages team members to focus on their own careers and individual goals. Is easily distracted.

E. A team that focuses on collective results: 

–Retains achievement oriented employees. Minimizes individualistic behavior. Enjoys success and suffers failure acutely.

–Benefits from individuals who subjugate their own goals/interests for the good of the team, the business, the church. Avoids distractions. Parable of the talents.

F. How does a team go about ensuring that its attention is focused on results? By making results clear, and rewarding only those behaviors and actions that contribute to those results.

G. The team leader must keep the team focused on results and model this diligence before them holding them to the same standard.

–Ultimately teamwork comes down to practicing a small set of principles over a long period of time embracing common sense with uncommon levels of discipline and persistence. Also, they must be bonded together by the Holy Spirit.

–The 120 on the Day of Pentecost is a great example of unity combined with Holy Spirit!