We’ve all been on teams, whether in sports, at school or at work for a project. Even your family and community is a team. Every member of the community has a function and some do more than others. While identifying community members that do not contribute to the community is difficult because it’s such a large group and since their contribution will be amongst multiple people, it can be noticeable if you are close to that member. The same when it is set in a work environment and the projects are with a small team. Identifying who is not pulling their weight is evident.
Most of us can relate how it feels to have team members who didn’t do their part, found excuses to not complete their work on time or blamed others. This caused pressure and stress within the team. The reoccurring inactions from the team member came to be annoying and frustrating. Depending on that team member was a lost cause.
You might even admit that this was you for a particular project where you created excuses why you could not complete your tasks on time. That’s okay, as long as you learn from these experiences. The most common excuses from people is they were dependent on someone else to provide them information. If that is the case, next time, you can keep that in mind and factor this is the timeline. Ask sooner and you will get the information on time. This definitely doesn’t mean it’s an ideal situation. So what is an ideal situation? It’s working with great team members. But what is a great team member?
A great team member is someone who loves doing their job. They want to learn and continue to learn once they’ve mastered the essential of their job. A great team member is someone who embraces changes, collaborates and gives their honest opinion whether they agree or disagree. They are someone who wants the best for everybody else on the team including themselves, who take responsibility for their mistakes and has a great work ethic. They bring a sense of joy to the team. They are someone who does not hold on to ideas because they are scared someone will steal it. They openly share and are happy to do it. They are just fun to be around. A great team member is someone who shows their authentic self in the workplace and accepts everyone else as they are. It is someone who is honest with other team members. For example, if they can’t meet a deadline, they will tell their other team members and supervisor they won’t make the deadline in advance. They don’t wait until they are prompted by the other employees asking for the result.
Strive to be that employee everyday. Keep learning and trying new things even if there is a possibility you will not succeed. You’ll be better for it. Of course, you are human and therefore not all days will be sunshine, happy, go get it days. You will have bad days, and that’s where other great team members pick up the slack. Appreciate the help and know that the bad day is only temporary. As long as the team is balanced everyday, most of the team members are engaged and inspired with the work they are doing, that’s going to be a great team and generate great team members.
Take care.