Don’t Strand Your Team on a Mountain – Literally!
You’d think the title of this newsletter would be a no-brainer. But one man found himself stranded overnight on a Colorado mountain after his co-workers made the descent without him, leaving him behind! Readers, there are much better ways for a leader to deal with a team member who isn’t performing to team standards. Let’s look at two ways.
- What is your responsibility as a leader to the success of your team? Are you modeling behavior that makes your team think it’s ok to leave another member of the team on the mountain? Or, are you modeling behavior that brings everyone along. Before we can look at the outlier team member, we must first look at ourselves as leaders. As Michael Jackson advised,
| I’m starting with the man in the mirror I’m asking him to change his ways And no message could have been any clearer If you wanna make the world a better place Take a look at yourself and then make a change Na-na-na, na-na-na, na-na, na-na – Man in the Mirror, Michael Jackson |
- After we’ve taken a look in the mirror, one way to deal with your outlying team member is to evaluate their skills to performance. Maybe they have reached the ‘exit-ramp’ in the project. All projects should have an expiry date. Maybe that expiry date is short, maybe the expiry date will take place many years in the future. Just as projects have expiry dates, the skills related to the project may shift. Make sure your team is well-trained in how to execute your goals. As a leader, it’s your responsibility to provide the training, resources, and expected improvements to help outlying team members rise to the challenge.
Finally, contact me! Reach out to MCG for your team-building and team retreat needs. MCG facilitations are interactive, supportive, and no team-member will ever be left behind!
For more information on ways in which I can motivate your team, follow along on Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok. For more information on board governance and strategic facilitation, follow along on LinkedIn or Instagram. Nikki McCord is the founder of McCord Consulting Group & McCord Speaks, the only choice for organizations looking to energize, innovate, and pursue new paths beyond the status quo.