How is the integrity of your team?
There’s a fine line between being creative and cutting corners. Creativity results in synergy, variety, and inspiration. Cutting corners is just laziness.
I recently facilitated a team of teenagers and young adults through a game that was meant to expose their levels of commitment. They needed to carry an object balanced between them for quite a distance to a finish line. It would require careful balance and an overwhelming desire to finish for each team to be successful. But from the start, nearly every team got “creative” with their process.
While I must say, some of the ideas they came up with were unique, every one of them were against the rules.
They were just looking for a quick way to reach the destination without needing to put forth the effort.
One by one, almost every team was sent back to the start — some teams even multiple times! Finally, one team who persevered from the beginning, moving ever-so-slowly, reached the goal. Their hard work paid off!
I always try to debrief the teams after each game to discuss what they faced, how they overcame it, and how they could apply it to other areas of their lives, or specifically to the mission of the team. I hadn’t expected a conversation to brew about integrity.
“But, you didn’t say we couldn’t do it this way!” some had said. Maybe that’s true.
But if I want to reach the top of Mt. Everest, I’ll want to climb it, not take a helicopter.
So, what exactly does it mean to have integrity? Well, it actually has a few meanings:
- A firm adherence to a code of especially moral or artistic values
- An unimpaired condition
- A state of being complete or undivided
In a team, it’s important to be unified. When disunity happens, it’s only a matter of time before it all falls apart if nothing is done about it. Because of the nature of a team of people, there are many things that can go wrong.
But there are steps that you as a leader can make to insure that your team avoids the crumble.
- Establish the core values of your team, and make them known.
As long as the absolutes are in place and well-communicated, a member of the team cannot use the excuse that he or she didn’t know. Discuss them regularly. Post them in your office or meeting space. Include them on your website and internal emails. - Be a leader that is both respectable and approachable.
There’s nothing worse than having a boss that is so over-bearing that others on the team are not welcome to express their thoughts, ideas, or concerns. At the same time if there’s no respect among all members of the team, then eventually someone is taken advantage of. Finding the balance can be tricky, but not impossible. The best way to achieve both is to treat the rest of the team the same way. Respect your teammates. But be willing to build relationship with them that goes deeper than the elevator. - Encourage transparency.
Transparency builds trust. As teammates are open and transparent to one another about situations, it leaves nothing in the dark. Cutting corners is no longer an option. Be open and honest with your team, and expect the same from them.
Oprah Winfrey once said, “Real integrity is doing the right thing, knowing that nobody’s going to know whether you did it or not.”
It’s that kind of integrity that will hold the foundation of your team strong and sturdy.
Aristotle explained that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts — that’s the definition of synergy. When your team realizes that synergy is more important than just reaching results, then you know you have a team that will uphold integrity.
So go ahead, encourage creativity. Inspire your team to think outside the box, and bend the rules of normal behavior! Push them to go beyond their means.
Have more thoughts on integrity, or a great story to share? We’d love to hear it! Share your comments below.
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