Originally published: August 2, 2017 - LinkedIn

What makes the perfect team? I’ve been thinking about this a lot recently. As a Tech Lead, one of my main responsibilities is ensuring that my team is as effective as possible. Until recently, I didn’t understand exactly what that entailed. I used to believe that a team’s effectiveness was proportional to its technical ability. Thus, when I was promoted to Tech Lead, that was my focus. I spent a lot of time reviewing code, explaining best practices, designing systems, and writing documentation. All these things are important; they bolster the team’s technical prowess. However, ability does not guarantee performance — it’s not even the driving factor. This is certainly true in the world of sports. I played on many teams during my 14-year soccer career. Were the best teams the ones with the greatest collection of individual talent? No. They had something better, something that enabled them to become greater than the sum of their parts. What was this X-factor? It’s simple: the best teams were full of people who had a team-first mentality.

Having a team-first mentality means valuing the success of the team over the success of the individual. When a group of individuals collectively adopts this mentality there is synergy in their efforts and abilities. Their dedication to a common goal creates an alignment of purpose. The sport of rowing illustrates this idea. If you watch a race, you’ll notice that each rower pulls in near perfect unison. Is this because they all have the same strength and speed? Absolutely not. It’s because a single individual rowing out of unison detracts from the force generated by the others. If everyone were to row in a free-for-all, the results would be disastrous. Instead, successful rowing requires careful coordination. Rowers must prioritize the speed of the boat over the speed of their own pull — the success of the team over their own output. This idea is obvious and yet easy to overlook.

Total adoption of a team-first mentality sparks fierce camaraderie within the team. This camaraderie has the power to elevate teams to new heights. If you want to find an example of what camaraderie looks like, look no further than the Golden State Warriors. Those guys love each other and it shows when they are on the court. Everyone fights for one another and looks for opportunities to encourage their teammates. Even the bench is involved. In fact, it oftentimes feels like they are more involved in the game than the opposing team! Sure, the warriors have talent, but so do a lot of teams. What makes them special is their selfless commitment to each other. They truly embody their mantra, “Strength in Numbers”.

Camaraderie isn’t just important for sports teams, it’s important for all teams. It provides encouragement, confidence, and most importantly a motivation to succeed. When you know the person next to you is going to give their all for you, you want to do the same for them. Camaraderie is what converts a group of individuals into a highly effective team. As leaders, we need to prioritize cultivating camaraderie and team-first mentalities within our teams. What better place to start than with ourselves? Do the dirty-work. Praise your teammates. Be positive. Smile. Let’s lead by example.