A quick internet search will tell you all you need to know about the importance of harmony as a pathway to a high-performing team.
I spent a couple of days digging through the first ten pages of a Google search on ‘harmonious teams’. With just one exception (an entry that referenced me), all spoke of the critical need for team harmony. Whether at work or in a volunteer or sports team, the value of liking and getting on with those around us seems self-evident.
Ultimately, team performance is about results. Did we deliver this project on time and within budget, and in a way that delighted the customer? Did our sporting team finish the year two or three rungs higher than last year?
Results are what matter, particularly when dollars and reputations are at stake — and sometimes when enough resources are in play, a carefully selected team of high performing individuals can clinch these results. Most of us don’t get to choose our teams, though. We get who or what we’re given, yet are still expected to deliver the required outcomes.
Cohesion is an important part of any team, but do you achieve it simply by liking one another? Or does it result from a combination of heading towards a common goal, respecting what each other brings to the table and focusing on results? I think the latter, clearly. Hence the central idea of my book “Respect Trumps Harmony”.
You can read about “The three pillars to build respect in teams” in my new book “Respect Trumps Harmony”. These tools can be used in any team setting — business, community or family, with the results showing that implementing them has an immediate and positive impact on teams of all kinds. It ensures people feel valued and heard and builds a sense of common purpose. It helps people speak up when they aren’t travelling so well, or when they have a great idea they’d like to share.
We don’t all have to love each other, in fact we don’t even have to like each other, but we do need to treat each other with respect. Because respect trumps harmony, every time.
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