The Essence of a Winning Team

I just spent the last few days at my daughters second dance competition of the season. She absolutely LOVES dance; partly because of the dancing itself and partly because she is part of something bigger. Her studio is her home away from home. It is more than a place where she goes for instruction to get a result, it’s something bigger – it is a united, engaged team working together that has a lot of pride in what they do and how that reflects upon “their brand” – Essence of Dance.

Most businesses would do anything to achieve this type of engagement from their people because they understand when their people are engaged, they get results. 

So what lessons in leadership can you learn from this example to build your own winning team?

People – The number one and most critical piece of any successful team is ensuring you have “the right bums in the right seats.”  Meaning you have to recruit, assess, move, train or eliminate people from your team so that you are confident that everyone can work together and bring value to the team as a whole.

Vision – Once you have the right people in place, you need to clearly communicate your vision. Imagine your team sitting in a dragon boat. If no one knows where you are going, they may all row in different directions, making your job as a leader much harder. When there is a clear understanding of the vision, they will work together to get to where you want them to go.

Roles –Just like in a beautifully choreographed dance routine, each member of the team needs to understand their role in helping the team get to the vision. Too often employees see themselves as workers who come to an office from 9-5 and get paid so much per year. Helping each member of your team understand how their contribution brings value to the team and how that is critical to the overall success will ensure a whole new level of engagement.

Development – Just like dancers who train for many hours each week, employees require continuous growth and development in order to be engaged. Without growth people become stagnant. Learning and development ensures your team is most current in their skills and knowledge and just as important engaged in their work.

Heart Centered Leadership – Old school, fear based or directional style management is not an effective style to achieve sustainable results because it does not engage employees. Heart centered leadership values each and every employee for their unique contribution.  It involves truly understanding your people as individuals and what motivates each of them. When you have a clear understanding of each team members strengths and desires it is easier to build a winning strategy.

Measurement – Just like your team needs to know where you are going, they also need regular check- ins on how they are doing. By measuring your progress at certain points along the way you can identify areas of adjustment that will help you achieve your goals. It also provides an opportunity for you to recognize the achievements of your team and individuals along the way.

Something Bigger – For the team at Essence of Dance, their “something bigger” is the sisterhood that has developed as a result of their pride in what they are accomplishing together. People naturally want to be in connection. When employees are connected to something more powerful than just showing up to work each day to reach their targets and get a pay cheque, they thrive. When they can find meaning and purpose in the work they are doing it engages them and great things happen.

Under the exceptional leadership of Talia Belzil and Sonja Jensen, Essence of Dance Inc. has not only built a sisterhood that will last a lifetime for many young women; their purposeful work of developing dancers who are women with strong self-esteem and values, has resulted in a thriving business. In the past few years they have more than doubled the size of their business and continue to grow.

How can you apply these learning’s to your team to increase engagement and get better results? What is your “something bigger?” Like they say….”Go big or go home!”