A mouse and an elephant were best friends. One day they crossed a wooden bridge causing it to bow, creak and sway under their combined weight. After they were across, the mouse impressed by their ability to make such an impact said to the elephant, “We sure shook up that bridge, didn’t we?”

Teamwork truly is a powerful thing. The truth is that we are better together. One is too small a number to achieve greatness. Everyone needs someone. Teamwork doubles our effort more than we could have ever done on our own. All great achievements happened with the help of others. A team that cannot work together will not win together. However, a team that can work together can make a significant impact together.

Here are four traits that KILL teamwork…

1. EGO

Teamwork is created when you concentrate on WE instead of ME. The more shared vision and values there are the greater the team will be. A leader is a team player, not the ball hog. If a leader secretly wants all the attention they will never truly empower others to do great things. No one wants to be around, or work for, ego-driven leaders. Ego is a natural repellant of teamwork.

2. INSECURITY

One will never rise above their level of insecurity. They will be limited to their fears and apprehensions. Insecure leaders are scared to give power away. They fear it will cause themselves to appear smaller than everyone else. Teamwork cannot occur when the leader or players are always questioning everyone’s motive. Being critical is another repellant of teamwork.

3. DISTRUST

When trust is violated, teamwork is decimated. Trust is the hinge on which the door swings for opportunity and winning environments in the workplace. The more trust a leader has, the more doors open. The less trust a leader has, the more doors shut. Trust is built when what a leader says and does match up. Lack of trust will shut down teamwork instantly.

4. CONTROL

Leaders that want to always be in control will have a hard time modeling teamwork. Those that want all the power tend to fall apart in the end. People do not want to be controlled; they want to be led. President Woodrow Wilson said, “We should not only use all the brains we have, but all that we can borrow.” The more the team is involved and takes ownership the more productivity will go up. Controlling leaders make others buck against them, thus creating friction that eliminates teamwork.

Always remember the famous acronym for T.E.A.M. is…

Together

Everyone

Achieves

More