Being a Great Team Player

Being a Great Team Player

Good social skills are a plus in a leader, but not a necessity.

Some people make great leaders, and while they can manage the team seamlessly, some have a hard time allowing another team member to take over the leader's role. Do you feel this way? Do you work well with others or would you rather do things alone if you can't be the leader? Being a team player requires a very different mind set.

Yes, good social skills are a plus in a leader, but not a necessity. As a team leader, people have to follow you because you are considered an authority in your field. Though you may not be well-liked by the people on your team, they still have to follow you out of duty or respect.

But to be a great team player is altogether another issue. You need to work well with the others on your team and complement their skills with yours. It's all about getting along professionally and personally. You have to be able to manage your emotions and be able to communicate to your fellow members effectively. You must adapt an intuitive sense of others in order to become understanding of all of your team members. You will need to consider everyone's viewpoints in order to make the good of the collective group stronger and more effective.

The skill set for the Team Captain is crucial to the success of any team, but more than that are the individual capabilities of the players who do all the detailed tasks. The members of the team are usually the people recognized for coordination and hard work.

Sometimes, as a team member, your goals will differ from the goals of others. You must make sure to keep the group's goals as your priority. You also should have the initiative to learn more about the dynamics of the team and what it takes to accomplish the desired results. Try to think about reaching that goal as the absolute destination, and not just a possibility.

Each player must recognize his or her individual strengths to provide for the team effort and which skills are most useful. As a team member, you must establish your strength from the very beginning so that the leader is in a better position to put you in a task where you excel and are most comfortable.

Lastly, be helpful. There may be occasions when another member becomes so engulfed in their own tasks that they fail to realize how well the others are performing - or struggling. The "to each his own" attitude simply doesn't work in a team environment. By being more aware of the things around you, you completely eliminate any kind of weakness and actually become a force to be reckoned with - an outstanding team member - an possibly the next team leader.

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