Moving Beyond "I'm Great, You're Not" Culture

Tribal Leadership is a leadership framework that focuses on the mindset, behavior, and culture of teams. The framework divides team members into five stages, ranging from negative thinking to positive thinking. Stage three, "I'm Great, You're Not," is a common stage in many teams, where members are competitive and only focused on their individual success. However, moving beyond stage three to stage four, "We're Great", is critical for teams that want to be more effective. This post will provide a couple strategies leaders can use to encourage stage four behavior.

Examples of Stage Three vs. Stage Four Behavior

To better understand the differences between stage three and stage four behavior, let's consider some examples. In stage three, team members are often competitive and focused on their individual success. They may hoard information, take credit for successes, engage in negative gossip, resist feedback, and compete with others instead of collaborating. In contrast, in stage four, team members are focused on the success of the team as a whole. They share information freely, acknowledge others' contributions, speak positively about team members, are open to feedback, and collaborate with others to achieve shared goals.

Creating Triads

One of the most effective ways to move beyond stage three is to create triads. Triads are groups of three people who work together to achieve more ambitious outcomes than they could alone. By working in a triad, team members can build stronger relationships and learn to trust each other. This leads to improved communication and collaboration, which can help teams accomplish their goals more effectively.

One technique leaders can use to encourage triads is giving individual team members projects that are bigger than they can accomplish alone, regardless of their previous successes. This pushes stage three team members out of their comfort zones and will help them grow.

Sharing Information

Another essential aspect of moving beyond stage three is sharing information. In stage three, team members may hoard information to gain an advantage over others. However, in more effective teams, team members share information freely, leading to better decision-making and problem-solving. When team members share information, they can identify areas where they can improve and work together to find solutions.

Triadic relationships will naturally encourage this behavior. When team members have more work than they can accomplish alone, they will be more likely to open up and share. Leaders can encourage the behavior by acknowledging and rewarding individuals who demonstrate healthy levels of transparency. The effect is two-fold: The healthy behavior is reinforced in the individual, and others who witness the acknowledgement will be encouraged to behave similarly.

Benefits of Moving Beyond Stage Three

Moving beyond stage three can benefit overall team health and effectiveness in several ways. Teams that move beyond stage three are more collaborative, innovative, and efficient, leading to improved communication, problem-solving, and productivity. By working together and sharing information, team members can avoid duplication of effort and develop new ideas and approaches that can help the team achieve better outcomes. It takes effort, but by following the principles of Tribal Leadership, teams can achieve their goals and thrive.

References:

Tribal Leadership: Leveraging Natural Groups to Build a Thriving Organization

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