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You learned as early as kindergarten that working well with others will be of great service to you throughout your life.
Teamwork is a widely used practice in organizations for getting specific tasks or projects completed.
Whether you’re currently on a team or will be in the near future, you should strive to become a great team member at work.
Companies respect great team members for making their team look good.
It opens new doors and opportunities for you as people recognize that you have a great deal to offer and are willing to collaborate to achieve company goals.
Here are a few hints on how you can be a great team member at work:
- Be proactive. Great team members don’t wait for others to invite them; they leap in and participate actively.
- You can start by introducing yourself and getting to know who everybody on the team is. You need to know what role you’re playing and what experience you want to gain from being a part of this team.
- Accept responsibility. When you agree to do something, do it well and do it on time
- Others are depending on your piece of the task to get theirs done. Whether it’s setting up a meeting or drafting a final report, attend to each task you do knowing that it has great value to the entire team’s success.
- Listen attentively. We all tend to guess in our heads what someone is trying to communicate and sometimes tune out and make assumptions. This can lead to miscommunications.
- When you work with a team, it’s critical that you listen closely and confirm that the message you received is what the speaker intended. For some people, it’s one of the hardest things to do, but a great team member strives to develop this skill.
- Stay informed. To do your best work, you need to know what’s going on. A great team member doesn’t wait for weekly memos to come around. Talk with your team members
- Find out as much as you can so that you can do your job well. When you receive information, make sure your team members get the same information in a timely manner.
- Spend time with your team. Successful teams form bonds that make the work more effortless and help team members cope with adversity.
- Not only do you need to communicate interpersonally, but it’s also essential to participate in group discussions as well. Regardless of the venue (phone, email, in-person), group meetings provide the space for bonding, sharing vital information, airing concerns, demonstrating support, and helping everyone feel a part of what is going on.
- Seek solutions to problems. When you communicate with your team, be as clear and detailed as you can. This is especially important when it’s a concern that you might have.
- Vocalizing it early with the team will prevent escalation from concern to problem.
- Be flexible. You’re part of a group. Others in the group might have suggestions that counter your suggestion. It’s possible that neither idea is right nor wrong, just different ways of approaching a task.
- Be willing to try things another way.
- Become a good negotiator. Whenever people work together, there are bound to be differences of opinion—particularly around acquiring resources or supplies to assist you in your tasks
- Hone your negotiation skills so that you’re able to barter and get what you need while not completely depriving your teammate of what he/she needs.
- Support team members. Your team’s success is your success, just as your team’s failure is your failure. Technical skills are essential to a team’s success, but so is the ability to motivate and encourage others.
Some team members may be facing challenges through their work on your team.
Check in with them in a compassionate way, and don’t forget to compliment them when they overcome that challenge.
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