Working in teams requires a lot of patience and abilities, especially people skills.

We have randomly asked a few regular citizens with different professional

backgrounds: “What is your biggest challenge when working in teams?”.
Among all the answers we have received we selected the five most common
dilemmas shared among the respondents. This article is useful to anyone who
has to work in a team for school, work, or events, especially if you have a
leading position within the group.

Ownership

One of the concerns that most of our professionals shared is the fact that team
members continuously fail to take ownership of their responsibility and role. This
one seemed a little hard to swallow. However, this is the reality which most of
them are facing. To avoid it from happening there are a few things you should
consider. First things first. Make sure you are really working with professionals! Not
everyone who calls themselves one is truly an expert. Let their actions be the
judge of that. Each project should have a list of role and responsibilities clearly
defined. Sometimes it is best to have it documented and distributed among
team members. If you are putting it in writing it is best to include the activities
you are expecting from each one of them in order to have measurable
objectives. Finally, team members can start showing initiative by creating a brief
plan of action of their assigned activities. A plan of action that aims to success
includes both a suitable strategy summary plus a feasible timeline.

Hands-on

Talking about a timeline, a project needs one as much as human beings need
oxygen. Without a timetable there is a great chance that your project will have
little or no advancement at all. But then again, there is an even greater chance
you already knew about this, right? The problem at hand for most of us is not the
absence of a schedule. It is about the lack of commitment to meet the terms as
planned. Increasing the number of meetings will not increase one’s level of
productivity. In order to boost a team’s performance you should provide regular
and crystal clear instructions that can be followed through without your
presence. You already have a lot on your plate to deal with so you cannot
afford babysitting sessions. Please do not take this the wrong way. As a project
leader, you absolutely should do follow-ups on a regular basis. By failing to do so
you are as guilty as the one in charge. The strength of mind of one person to act
in accordance with set goals.

Lack of trust

Another aspect people seem to have trouble with is the lack of trust. Lack of
trust in another member’s skills and qualities as well as in the person you have to
work with. In case you are in the position to assemble your own team, may be
advantageous since you will be able to recruit people that you are already
acquainted with and trust. If you are working with a person for the first time
perhaps it is best to strengthen the teamwork by genuinely ask “how and when
questions” instead of questioning one’s work. It would show interest from your
side and you will automatically have an overview of what is going and what is
still pending. This way you will also be able to provide proper guidance and
suggestions if necessary. Let’s not forget, that building a relation based on trust is
something that takes time. Hence, it would be handier and efficient to be
proactive and constantly feedback with your team.

Collaboration

Perhaps you have already noticed that not every issue is due to lack of trust.
Have you ever been in a situation where you end up doing most of the work? Or
are you one of those who take a free pass during times of hard work? One thing
is for certain, even though you trust your fellow team member you might end up
doing everything if you do not know your people. You may even end up having
both situations. One where some are simply not active and one where some are
doing just too much. Rumor has it, that you do not want to have neither one of
them! Do not be ashamed, it is completely rational. Those who are taking ALL for
the team will eventually burn out and become unproductive. And those with a
free pass are simply a baggage that will eventually become too heavy to carry.
Being in a leading position, you are the one who has the overall view you should
at all times make sure that the workload is evenly distributed and that the input
from members is evenly as well.
Communication

As you can see, we have saved the best for last. Communication seems to be
the biggest problem that team members are facing day in and day out. For
companies it is best and highly recommended to have a well thought
communication strategy in place. In regards to long-term projects such a plan is
also useful. Opposite of enduring developments, short-term projects requires one
to focus more on a to-do list instead of planning activities. Hence, investing time
in creating a communication plan is not worthy of your precious time. If you time
you can always create one, otherwise you could just have easy and clear
agreements. For example (1) what is the official communication channel that
will be used, (2) who is responsible for external communication (please assign
just ONE person), (3) who is in charge of distributing information internally, and
(4) where will all information be stored and accessible. Finally, communication is
more than sharing information, it is also about making sure you have been
understood correctly. One way to ensure this, requires one to implement the
one thing that has been working for centuries now, which is to cut the BS and be
straightforward. Facial expressions tells a lot but can be very deceiving as well,
so the best way to reassure you have been comprehended appropriately is to
ask and explain again and again until everyone start acting in accordance with
set goals. As has been said before: “When you are making sure you are on the
same page with someone, also be sure that you are in the same book and that
all parties now how to read.”