Take a team of people who are lazy, unreliable, uncooperative, and teamwork haters and create an amazing team from them? Is it possible? Absolutely! There are some simple but critical questions to ask and answer honestly. Each step begins with the leader. Never underestimate the power you hold as a leader and the steps you take every day in making the team you work with an unstoppable force.
The first step is to take a long objective look at yourself. What has your leadership style been to this point? How has it affected each person? How has it affected you, personally? Do you have a positive outlook on your job? Do you complain more than you give positive feedback to your workers?
Ask yourself some of these other questions as well...
Do I bark orders? Or do I give my workers a task, answer any questions, and let them get to their business?
How do I address future questions? Do I answer them condescendingly? Or do I give their questions merit and answer them with importance? (even if they aren't the most important or well thought out questions)
Do I let my team complain continually? Or do I let them to voice their opinion, but require they come up with a possible solution to their issue before voicing the problem? (This makes them take the time to think about it and not just complain.)
Do I let their work stand on it's own merits? Or do I make known my appreciation for a job well done?
Do I openly talk about negative gossip in the office? Or do I keep my opinions of negative chatter to myself?
Do I have short (5-15 minute) meetings with key leaders/team members to find out what issues have come up today? Or have I just let the day pass and become aware of issues as they get around to me?
Do I portray being excited to be at work and do my daily duty? Or do I act like I am miserable and cannot wait to leave?
Do I know what kind of personality types my employees have?
Do I require my employees to create goals as a way to stretch themselves and grow professionally as well as personally?
Do I hold team members accountable with positive or negative criticism?
Do I allow and encourage tasteful humor to lighten the stresses of the day? Or do I keep noses to the grindstone at all times? (Work must be accomplished on time and above standard, of course!)
Do I back up my team 100% to upper management? (And, address any issues one-on-one with the team member in private as necessary.)
Then, after determining where you stand with these items, the next step is to take an objective and unbiased look at each team member's personality or character. Use the STAR system to understand more about how they work as individuals. It is most important to do this for the workers who are most often troublesome within the team.
"S" - stands for Structure. These types of people like to know the bigger picture and how they fit into it. Their jobs need to be logically ordered and have structure.
The "T" - stands for Technical. These people are more detail oriented and must have the logic behind everything. They are best at the tedious work that needs accomplished. They are not often the fastest workers, but are best at not missing the fine print.
The "A" - is the Action type person. They are often the leaders of the pack, and have the ability to move the others along when in a slump. This type is not the best at detail, but are excellent at motivation. More trial and error here than with the other groups.
The "R" - stands for Relationship. This type wants to be liked by everyone and tends to be the "yes man" of the team. They also tend to be the peacemaker when there is a negative issue among the workers. Beware, though, this personality from time-to-time will say they can do something they are not sure of just to make the boss happy. I am not sure who came up with this system, but I learned it from one of my employers and it seems to hold very true.
There needs to be a mix of these personalities within the team. Each industry requires a different mix. The good news is, personalities can be developed, changed, and improved. The more you as a leader can create a positive environment, the more your people will want to do what you ask. They will see you putting forth an extra effort to build your character as a more positive leader, and will want to follow you because they see you will make their worklife more bearable. Before you know it, your team will have transformed before your eyes.
When you lead by example, especially, when you are outwardly putting forth an effort to make things better for the team, they will follow you straight to the top!