Why Team Building is Only the Beginning

Why Team Building is Only the BeginningWisdom can be found everywhere when taking in life experiences with an open mind. What will you choose to see and hear today and how will it positively impact your business? My son Alex and I just got back from a father/son weekend with other senior football players, their fathers and the varsity coaches. I learned many things that are very applicable to small business owners and wanted to share.

Below is a small sample of my takeaways:
1. Players, coaches and dads had tons of fun bonding with each other! This entire weekend was a memorable experience and microcosm of what the head coach is doing to strengthen his varsity team, the entire football program from youth through high school and the football community at-large.
2. Meandering through a hiking trail while blindfolded taught us that with specificity of communication comes the ability to accelerate trust. With Alex’s help, I ran through the woods while blindfolded.
3. Reflective thinking and sharing helped strengthen the team’s bond with each other, coaches and their fathers. Each coach, dad and player committed with specificity how they will contribute to the team’s success.

Below is the business application of each metaphor described above:
1. Find ways for employees, leaders and key customers to bond and strengthen relationship with one another. You will build a super-team of employees and customers that are committed to your company’s success.
2. To accelerate company growth, begin by accelerating trust between employees, leaders and customers.
3. At employee meetings, give each person an opportunity to express what they will do to help create hero experiences for their co-workers and customers. When an employee’s greatest fear is not letting him/her-self down but instead letting the team down, you have succeeded in creating a strong bond amongst the team that is nearly unbreakable.

The big lesson and what I REALLY learned was that team building is only the beginning. Building a system that sustains itself from year to year is what transforms a team into a program. Creating a culture that connects coaches, players and parents from season to season is the same culture that connects leaders, employees and customers from year to year. Focus on doing the right things and you will build a business that thrives. Have fun!

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4 Comments

  • Jeff Hora

    August 18, 2014

    Great post, Earl.
    Trust and authenticity are the foundation for strong, enduring relationships, and require time and care to grow. All involved also should be aware of the obligation implied, especially since broken trust takes so very long to rebuild, if it can be.
    Trust, as you pointed out with your story of running through the woods blind-folded, also requires risk first. As trust grows, risks confronted may also grow, but the trust grown to each point helps mitigate the risk.
    Thanks for the stories! Sounds like a good time….

    • Earl Bell

      August 18, 2014

      Hi Jeff,
      Thanks for your comments and I appreciate your pointing out how risk and trust are inter-related. So true and relevant! I didn’t really think about the risk of running into a tree because level of trust was so high. Can’t imagine doing that exercise with someone who I didn’t trust…

  • David Ranney

    August 18, 2014

    Someday, you just might post something that I don’t agree with. I think many employers know this stuff, but don’t do anything to create trust and bonding. Maybe hearing it again from you will help. Again, another great post.

    • Earl Bell

      August 18, 2014

      Hi David,
      Thanks for jumping in with your observation. I agree and often hear how building trust and creating strong relationships are merely given “lip service” within most companies; and without consideration of the tremendous value both provide towards building commitment between employees at a company and their customers!
      Earl