How to Get the Most From Your Team: 10 Leadership Lessons
Just about everyone wants to work for a great boss and be a part of a great team. One where roles and expectations are clear, and team members are encouraged to leverage their talents and abilities to make a positive impact on the organization. But, as a recent Gallop poll published in January 2024 explains, “employees in the U.S. continue to feel more detached from their employers, with less clear expectations and less connection to their organization’s mission or purpose. They are also less likely to feel someone at work cares about them as a person. The lack of engagement is costing U.S. companies approximately $1.9 trillion in lost productivity nationally.”
So, which individual does this fall to within the organization? Who in the employee’s professional life becomes the conduit, the arbitrator and the hub of company culture, job satisfaction and performance? It’s their leader, of course.
Have you ever been part of a team plagued by unhealthy competition, infighting or disrespect? What about one where team members were entitled or exhibited a general lack of motivation? It’s awful. Negative dynamics like these can sap the energy and enthusiasm out of even the most dedicated team.
In 2001, I was a staff sergeant in the United States Air Force sent to leadership school to learn how to lead others effectively. The school introduced us to concepts like Tuckman's stages of group development: Forming, Norming, Storming, and Performing and stories of heroic patriots like John Levitow, who risked his life in sacrifice for the greater good. The training and the stories molded my view of leadership. As time passed and I left the military to start a company, then later entered the corporate workforce, I found myself placed in leadership roles. So, I spent years trying to crack the code on how I could become the best leader possible. This included devouring books like those from Tony Blair, General Stanley McCrystal and John Maxwell.
Despite working hard to learn leadership, I initially struggled to align team members with differing backgrounds, goals, personalities, and temperaments into a cohesive, high-performing unit. I swung from being overly controlling in one case to being overly friendly in another, from disconnected to too involved, and from leaving no room for creativity to providing far too much license. The missteps reinforced my belief that teams and organizations rise and fall based on leadership.
Through trial and error, I eventually struck the right balance, and the results began to speak for themselves. At one company, my team and I helped grow the company from $3 million to $65 million in just four years. At another, we triple revenues annually, setting the company up to eventually be acquired by a mega brand. Today, my fractional marketing team at AH Marketing is helping to achieve similar growth for our clients.
In this article, I'd like to share some insights to help you improve your effectiveness as a leader and as a result, transform your team into a cohesive and dedicated band of world changers.
Practical Impediments to Great Leadership
Before diving into what effective leaders do right, I think it's important to acknowledge factors that stand in the way of great leadership. Experts cite a range of impediments, these include:
1. Insufficient training
Many executives are promoted into leadership roles because of their technical expertise or job performance without having received adequate training on how to lead and manage people effectively. As a result, they may be missing key skills in areas like communication, delegation, coaching, and emotional intelligence. According to research by Zippia, 83% of businesses believe that it's important to develop leaders at all levels, but just 5% have actually implemented leadership development.
2. Lack of time and competing priorities
As a marketing leader, I can attest that balancing the demands of driving revenue with the need to develop people is no easy feat. The constant pressure to hit targets and manage day-to-day operations can make stepping back and investing in leadership development challenging. In a survey by West Monroe Partners, 44% of managers said they felt overwhelmed at work. These people leaders reported feeling pressure to spend time on business development and revenue-generating activities rather than on coaching and developing their teams.
3. Overemphasis on short-term results
The pressure to deliver immediate results can lead executives to adopt a transactional, directive leadership style focused more on telling people what to do than empowering them to perform at their best. Building a high-performing team requires a longer-term view and investment in people development.
4. Underestimating the importance of culture and engagement
Some leaders may view team culture and employee engagement as "soft" issues that are less important than hard metrics like revenue and profit. However, research shows that engaged, motivated teams are more productive, innovative, and likely to stick around - all of which directly impact business results. Gallop reports that teams with high employee engagement rates are 23% more profitable.
5. Ego and resistance to feedback
Can we admit that the majority of us do not have this leadership thing down? It’s a work in progress for most. That’s why leadership requires humility, self-awareness, and a willingness to acknowledge one's weaknesses and blind spots. Some executives may struggle to admit they don't have all the answers or to seek out and act on feedback from their teams. Ego can be a major barrier to growth as a leader.
Executives who prioritize their own leadership development and are intentional about cultivating their team’s potential are better positioned to build high-performing organizations. It is my experience that, with the right focus, busy executives can overcome these obstacles and become the kind of leaders who bring out the best in their people.
10 Proven Ways to Bring Out the Best in Your Team
1. Be someone worth following
Teams rely on their leaders for wisdom, excellence, honesty, and fairness. Model the qualities, behavior and values you expect from your team.
2. Align individual and organizational goals
Take time to understand each team member's personal and professional aspirations. Show them how their goals fit into the bigger organizational picture. Help them see their work as part of something larger than themselves.
3. Provide a clear vision and purpose
Rally the team around a shared mission that inspires them to bring their best. Articulate a vision worth sacrificing for so the hard work feels meaningful.
4. Create an environment people want to be part of
Cultivate a team culture of belonging, psychological safety, and shared pride. Make it a place where people are excited to show up and contribute.
5. Ensure the team has ample resources
Don't let a lack of tools, budget, or manpower hinder performance. Advocate for the resources your team needs to succeed.
6. Challenge them to stretch and grow
Keep the work engaging by ensuring everyone is tackling appropriately challenging tasks. Boredom is the enemy of motivation. Provide opportunities to learn and take on increasing responsibility.
7. Offer praise, credit and criticism as appropriate
Celebrate wins and acknowledge great work. Give credit where it's due. But don't shy away from constructive criticism when needed. Thoughtful feedback is essential for growth.
8. Solicit ideas and input
Make it clear that you value your team's insights and perspectives. Actively seek their ideas and incorporate them whenever possible. If your team feels ownership of a problem, they will actively contribute to finding solutions and then feel a sense of accomplishment as challenges are overcome.
9. Make space for mistakes
Create an environment where reasonable mistakes are viewed as learning opportunities, not cause for punishment. If people are afraid to fail, they'll be unwilling to take intelligent risks and innovate.
10. Grant autonomy and independence
Empower your team to take ownership of their work. Provide support and guidance, but resist the urge to micromanage. Autonomy fuels motivation and enables people to do their best work.
As leaders, we seek to make a significant impact on our people and organizations. I am confident that if you put these tested leadership principles into practice as I have, you'll be on your way to improving your leadership abilities and helping your team achieve remarkable results.
