There’s No ‘I’ in Team

Nothing diminishes a leader’s credibility faster than statements like “I did…”, “I accomplished…”, “I made…”, and so on.

As leaders, we lead teams; we do very little of the real job; it is our teams who do the heavy lifting, who perform the hard work that produces the results, or who go the extra mile to ensure that targets are met.

But with the use of the word I, we undermine their contribution, we restrict the sharing of the credit, and we imply that we were the key reason for the success.

Leaders who use the statements, We did…, We achieved…, We made…, and so on are showing their teams respect, they are sharing credit. They are increasing their credibility, and the trust that the team has in them, and ensuring that the next time that the going gets tough, the team will be there to help them achieve success again.

Leaders who hoard the credit for themselves will find themselves potentially standing alone the next time things start to go wrong.

‘We’ is such a small word but it can have significant benefits.

If you want to learn more about creating highly engaged teams or being a better leader click the link to make an appointment to talk about how I can help.