How much âdriftâ is OK on your team?
Leaders are constantly wrestling with this question. Part of the leadership task â some would say âtheâ leadership task â is helping a team move together.
In order for that to happen, thereâs got to be a collaboration, coordination, and alignment. And those things donât just happen naturally. Everything in a culture, in a system and on a team fights against alignment. Like the front end of a car, a moving team will naturally tend toward misalignment.
And so this is an ongoing focus for any healthy team.
But how do you know how much alignment is enough?
I once was part of a team where anything was OK. It was sloppy, disorganized, and downright discouraging. It seemed like nobody cared, nobody was in charge, and nothing important was happening. On the other hand, in my current role weâve had seasons when we put too many boundaries in place and created frustration on the other side of the scale.
When you read the New Testament, the Apostle Paul seems to be obsessed with the issue of alignment. He speaks to families, to churches and friends about working to get on the same page. And apparently, he got that emphasis from Jesus Himself, who was equally as concerned about the issue of unity.
Paul says, âBe of one mind, united in thought and purposeâ (1 Corinthians 1:10). He says, âAim for perfect harmony, encourage one another, be of one mind, live in peaceâ (2 Corinthians 13:11). And he says about his relationship with his co-worker, Titus, âWe have the same spirit and walk in each otherâs steps, doing things the same wayâ (2 Corinthians 12:18b). That last one really speaks to me because it describes a working relationship in such detail.
âWe have the same spirit and walk in each otherâs steps, doing things the same way.â -2 Corinthians 12:18b
What if that described the way your team worked? What could change? What would speed up? What problems would go away? And most important, how could you achieve that kind of alignment on your team?
âWe have the same spirit and walk in each otherâs steps, doing things the same way.â -2 Corinthians 12:18b What if that described the way your team worked? What could change? Share on XThankfully, Paul put the answer right inside the sentence: We have the same spirit. Of course, any organizational authority would point out that heâs talking about DNA â vision, mission, and values. And thereâs a good chance if youâre a leader, these things are constantly on your mind. But thereâs a huge difference between having your vision, mission & values worked out and having them actually work. In Paulâs case, they did.
So perhaps the best question is, what did Paul do to drive alignment with Titus? When you examine his life thereâs one inescapable answer: He spent loads of time with him.
TIME.
âOh no!â you might be thinking. âThatâs the one thing I canât afford to invest.â And for all of us, it is here we find the beginning and end of our alignment issues. Weâve got to carve out the time to have the conversations, share the experiences, pray the prayers, instill the DNA, provide the feedback, clarify the why, do the hard things, laugh the laughs, cry the tears, and enjoy the journey. This is the work of leadership, and there is no shortcut. Time-starved teams are not on the same page.
Team health alignment is the work of leadership, and there is no shortcut. Time-starved teams are not on the same page. Share on XIf this dilemma resonates with you, a good place to start might be evaluating your meeting rhythms as a team. When are you together? When do you have fun? When do you discuss the important questions together?
Iâd love to hear your feedback. If youâve got ideas that have worked to build alignment on your team, would you share them with us?
Feeling the tension? Interested in learning more about getting your team aligned? Check out the Staffing and Structure Review portion of our Unstuck Process here.