When you’re under pressure to perform and achieve the targets needed, your team must be effective. But it’s not always easy to motivate your employees to get the results you want out of them. You may have inherited the people you work with, or you may have put the team together yourself. Without the right skillset and the proper motivation, the team may not be able to work cohesively together.
There are several skills that most employees need to be able to work well as part of a team. The first is listening skills. That refers to your staff member’s ability to understand the point rather than just being able to hear it. There are lots of reasons why this skill is essential. You may have to communicate a lot of information in a very compact way. You need your team to be able to read between the lines and deliver what you need of them.
Communication is also essential. Each member of the team should be able to identify what needs to be communicated and deliver that message effectively. Effective communication provides everybody else with a clear understanding of their intentions. And the message needs to be prompt and concise in a fast-paced work environment.
Most communication in the workplace is done by email these days. Not everybody is great at writing or composing communications in this way. Encourage more face-to-face exchanges. It’s good to get up away from the desk and speak to somebody. The telephone also requires a good manner to use effectively. You may use it for customer service or for sales. Tone, rhythm, and cadence can all mean different things to different people. It can be tricky to learn a good telephone manner. Encourage your team to listen in to examples of good calls.
Assertiveness is another skill that is really important. Most team leaders want their people to deliver great ideas. It doesn’t matter whether they contrast with common practices. If the idea is right for the moment, you want your team to have the courage to stand up and put their point across. There are many training courses available like the one from Activia, to help your team become more assertive.
Presentation is really important for your team to master. Now they have become more confident and assertive, it’s time to share their ideas with the wider company. Being able to present yourself and a project idea is really important to help the business progress and grow. And there may be times when clients are keen to be a part of that presentation. Give your team a chance to develop a great presentation.
The ability to share tasks and support other people in the team can help everyone work better together. If the team is competitive with each other, this can sometimes be lost. Finding the best way to work together in a supportive work culture can often make the difference between a team that thrives and one that fails. A good working relationship can be nurtured with team sports and social activities.
Closing a sale is one of the hardest skills to learn. A lot of it comes from a natural sense or ability. If your team is sales oriented, then you need everyone to be a good closer. Without sales, your company could fold. Regularly meet the team together. Have them talk about the sales they’ve made and how they completed the deal. No two closers are alike, but tips from each other can help the team develop a good sales style.
Interpersonal skills are difficult to develop sometimes. We tend to get stuck in our ways. And there are many other reasons why some people come across as more charming than others. But when we work as part of a team, it is important we get on with each other as well as we can. One of the best ways to develop better interpersonal skills is with mindfulness. Better self-awareness can help us ensure we’re not making off-the-cuff comments. Thoughtless actions can cause friction in the group.
Learning to accept other people as they are is another way to develop better interpersonal skills. Workplace relationships need to be carefully managed. After all, many working people spend more time with their colleagues in a day than they do with their spouse. And you can’t just walk away from a colleague you have to work with! Patience and consideration are hard to draw when you’re in a high-pressure environment. Help your team find the right balance at work. What are the most important skills your team needs?