Willingness to Work

This, the last component in our ARROW equation on strong team alignment, is probably the easiest to grasp.

On an aligned team, the members of the team are all willing to roll up their sleeves and actually do the hard work to get a positive outcome. It is one thing to understand roles, be respectful, act like you own the outcome, and even be a positive, supportive teammate who cheers for others.

But on an aligned team, there is also agreement on the level of commitment to doing the actual work. On an aligned team, everyone actively contributes. You can do all the other things required in ARROW. And you can openly take joy in the success of others. But that cheerleading will eventually ring hollow if you don’t match that by also, tangibly, contributing to the bottom line and by taking a fair share of the workload.

As team leaders and team members, we need to carry our fair share of the work load, and seek out teammates who will do the same. We need to make sure that the burden of performance and workload does not fall disproportionately on any subset of the team. Everyone needs to contribute. Does everyone need to contribute an equal amount all the time? Of course not. But everyone needs to contribute substantively. Managing that delicate balance is part of the challenge of leadership, but good team leaders will have a keen sense of when the workload is getting out of balance and when a member or members of the team are no longer doing their fair share. Grossly disproportionate workloads will quickly become divisive and toxic within the team.

Good luck.

Photo: Daquella manera