Play Your "Best Five," Not Your Five Best
Great teams don't just show up fully prepared and ready to accomplish the mission. The best team builders create a seamless alignment among the team members that becomes the glue keeping all of them working together.
The most successful team builders are masters at establishing trust and respect among teammates. At the end of the day, they are the first to acknowledge and celebrate the combined efforts that brought success to the entire group. They are also the first ones to take the blame when things don't go well.
Make no mistake about it: ability matters, and you should do everything you can to attract, develop, and retain great talent. But if you have to choose between talent and chemistry, choose chemistry. In most cases where it takes a group of people to get the job done correctly, I believe chemistry is as important as education, experience, or skills.
In sports, as in business, teamwork trumps talent nine times out of ten. Legendary UCLA basketball coach John Wooden used to say, "I don't play my five best, I play my best five." The "best five" is shorthand for the ones who work best together and achieve synergy and chemistry.
When people combine their efforts and create results that are greater than the sum of their individual contributions, something magical occurs. The entire team benefits and so does the organization. Those people who are committed to the end goal are far more concerned about the team winning than they are about embellishing their individual statistics.
Every person in a leadership role faces the same challenge: which "five" to assign to their organization's most important projects. Effective leaders know that playing your five best (i.e., most talented) employees can be a mistake if they don't work well together. To accomplish your goals, identify your "best five" and play them.
To accomplish your goals, identify your "best five" and play them.
Promote Teamwork, Not Superstars
In the summer of 2015, the largest U.S. television audience ever for any soccer game-30.9 million at its peak-watched as the U.S. women's team celebrated a well-deserved victory in the seventh FIFA Women's World Cup.[7]
After the team lifted the gold trophy in what might very well be the greatest win in the history of women's soccer, the media swarmed the coaching staff and players with questions that consistently sought the same insights: "What makes your team so good?" "What is the reason for your success?"
As the rapid-fire questions poured in, the responses from coaches and players began to repeat a similar theme and tone as well. "We are a team-no heroes, no superstars." "We depend on each other, and we win as a team." "We never give up; we believe in each other."
Indeed, it is the same story and the same lessons, learned repeatedly, regardless of the sport or the country. Even in the world of individual sports competition, the winners, from boxers to golfers to race car drivers, are quick to give credit to their coaches, trainers, managers, and the team of people tirelessly working behind the scenes to help them be successful.
Mentor Your Team for Success
When positive things happen, those moments require a readiness that is more than just effort and determination. There is also an unmistakable element of being ready for whatever life lobs at you. To prepare yourself for additional responsibility, you need a mentor. Whom do you know who can help you learn the ropes? Can you enlist the support of someone who has walked in your shoes and has experience in the same or a similar job?
For example, a new medical intern would be wise to ask for help from a veteran nurse who has worked in a hospital for years. If the intern is fortunate, that nurse may become his or her mentor and likely will teach things that go well beyond what's in books or taught in school. And being street smart is just as important as being book smart. Those people who served for decades on the front lines know best what upper-level managers may have long forgotten.
Because there are many types of business, from startups with only a few employees to multibillion-dollar companies employing thousands of people around the globe, one leadership style does not fit all circumstances. Would the same approach work for a small group of accountants as it would for a professional football team? No, probably not.
In reality, though, the principles these organizations employ may not be all that different. They each are charged with leading human beings-people who have real lives away from the job, personal and professional ambitions, unique talents, and insecurities-toward a stated purpose and vision.
Do Whatever Is Necessary in Extraordinary Circumstances
Organizations are successful because people work together as a team: no heroes, no superstars. They trust and depend upon each other to do the right thing because teammates don't let one another down when it counts the most. The discipline and the will to push through challenges begin with the proper mindset. If you believe you can do it and put your heart and soul into it, you can reach any goal and overcome almost any obstacle.
North to Alaska
Although UPS has been around since 1907, we did not deliver to all states until 1975. I was a division manager in Seattle when Jack Casey (no relation to Jim Casey), the district manager, called me into his office one day and asked me to head up a team that would open the state of Alaska for UPS. He said to take plenty of warm clothes and to be prepared to stay there for at least a year. A year in freezing Alaska, thousands of miles from home? That certainly made my day.
Setting Up the New Operation
I quickly put together a diverse team with members who each had a different skill set and, with the help of several staff departments, began making plans for the opening. We prepared the normal operating plans necessary to open a new business, including a detailed market analysis showing volume estimates. All the expected necessities, people, delivery vehicles, and facilities were based on the planned volume; leaving nothing to chance, we forecasted around 50 packages per day for the first month, with a gradual but steady increase thereafter.
A few weeks later, our team arrived in Anchorage and began to set up the new operation. We rented a small portion of a building at the airport, hired employees, leased a few small vans, and signed up as many new customers as we could.
Opening Day! Great!…Uh Oh
Opening day came upon us fast, and we were confident that we were ready to launch our new business in the great state of Alaska. After the ribbon-cutting ceremony with employees, local VIPs, and the media present, we proudly watched the first UPS aircraft land and taxi to just a few hundred feet from our building. The cargo doors opened, and the crew unloaded one air container from the plane onto a dolly, followed by another, and then another, and then another. I began to lose count and started to feel sick to my stomach.
My mind flashed back to that market study that indicated we would get around 50 packages per day for the first month. We were staring at far more than 1,500 packages on the first day alone, a full year ahead of the original estimate.
We Urgently Needed Our "Best Five" Team
In an instant, we realized just how bad our projections were. I say our, but I was the one in charge and I really blew it. We were caught off guard and unprepared and had to make some things happen fast. Our small team of drivers and trainers did the best they could and worked late into the night.
Knowing that the initial flood of packages would only increase in number as the days went on, and realizing we had vastly underestimated the need for our services in the area, I called Jack and pleaded for help. After a few minutes of silence, followed by a few groans, he said he would call me back.
An hour later, he called and said the cavalry was on its way. Six large UPS package cars were being loaded with bedding and supplies, including food and water, extra tires, and plenty of tools and spare parts. He told me there would be two drivers per vehicle and they would drive straight through from Seattle to Anchorage, stopping only for fuel. One driver would sleep while the other one drove.
A few days later, at 3:00 a.m., there was a knock on my door. When I opened it, there stood a dozen tired and ragged UPSers who had just driven more than 2,000 miles almost nonstop, including 1,400 miles on the rugged dirt and gravel road called the ALCAN Highway. After sending them off for some badly needed showers and sleep, I got dressed as fast as I could and headed to the parking lot, anxious to check out the newly arrived package cars.
As I neared the parking lot, I could not believe what I saw. Those six package cars were mostly gray primer with just a little bit of brown paint here and there at the roofline. They were badly dented, and most of them had shattered windshields. The brutal beating they had endured during their long, grueling trip was obvious. I was tempted to call Jack and tell him "thanks a lot"; but at that moment, I wasn't sure how secure my job was, so I left well enough alone.
A few hours later, we dragged our weary new arrivals out of bed and welcomed them to America's last frontier by putting them to work. After a quick briefing, I sent a few of them to take the beat-up cars to local body shops, with instructions to pay whatever was necessary to make the cars roadworthy and looking like new. Of course, we needed the work done yesterday. I assigned the HR manager and one of the local supervisors the task of hiring additional, permanent drivers from the local area as fast as they could.
We sent the others to rent as many vans as they could and meet back at the UPS building, where they became our delivery drivers and trainers for the immediate future. It was a fire drill for sure, but I knew we could pull it off because that is what Brown-blooded people do.
Within a few weeks, we were back on our feet with a fully trained workforce driving newly painted UPS package cars. Although we really missed the mark on the initial volume projections, we learned some valuable lessons. In the end, our dedicated Alaska team, with the help of our partners from Seattle, proved that determined people working together can accomplish anything. We hadn't fielded our "best five"; we had fielded our "best fifteen."
We Did What Was Necessary in Extraordinary Circumstances
We had begun laying the foundation for our success in Alaska years before our first shipment arrived there. Our commitment to the UPS values I've already discussed is the reason we overcame the challenges we faced.
We opened Alaska, not with great projections, but with great attitude and drive in the face of staggering obstacles. We believed we could do it; we put our heart and soul into it; and we proved that we could reach any goal, overcome almost any obstacle-even the ALCAN Highway. If we hadn't believed that we could do it, then we would have been destined to fail, our path a self-fulfilling prophecy.
HOW LEADERSHIP LOOKS FROM HERE
Leaders Lead Lives
As a driver, my thinking typically focused on the task and on the day-to-day list of what I had to accomplish to do a good job. As I moved up in the ranks, my thinking had to adjust as my scope of responsibility widened. I not only had to do a good job myself, but I now had to ensure that the other team members assigned to me performed well too.
Being a leader is a position of great trust; you have proven you are worthy of being given a chance to serve others in a powerful role. But leading is a sacred responsibility for the lives of the people who are under your supervision. I sought to make the most of the opportunity. I adjusted my view of leadership, making sure it took in the people whose lives were now my responsibility.
Jack Casey had served as a great mentor for me. When crises hit, he did not panic nor did he look up "what to do when package volume exceeds projections" in the training manuals. With no time to spare, he just did what had to be done and made things happen. That is what leaders do. They have the courage to do whatever is necessary in extraordinary situations, a lesson I would have ample opportunity to apply throughout my career.
Have the courage to do whatever is necessary in extraordinary situations.
Be a Leader, Not a Boss
One of the greatest lessons I learned at UPS is that a boss is not a leader. Sure, you might have the title or rank, and you may even believe you have earned the right to order others around to get things done. But don't be fooled for one minute. Making people bosses does not magically transform them into leaders. Most failed leaders did not know the difference between bossing and leading.
Know the difference between bossing and leading.
Leaders take charge and inspire others to do the right thing regardless of circumstances. While maintaining high energy and focus, they lead by quiet example and unassuming acts of service, reaching beyond themselves to ensure their teams have their full support. They make sure that all members have exactly what they need to do the job correctly. They do everything possible to make the job interesting and fun. They keep their people engaged and challenged. Along with improving their teams, they work on continued self-improvement: self-study, mentorship, learning from their own and others' mistakes. They have a clear vision and are calculated risk takers who accept responsibility and are willing to be judged by their successes or failures in reaching specific objectives.
The Characteristics of Effective Leaders
Effective leader behaviors include:
·Strong character, integrity, high energy, competence.
·A servant leader mentality.
·A balanced approach led by fairness in all interpersonal dealings.
·Willingness to take risks and be accountable for their actions.
·Ability to work well with people, welcoming and encouraging input.
·Modesty and desire to give credit to others.
·Initiative and acceptance of change.
·Vision and focus.
Leaders can be trusted to live and succeed-as well as perish or fail-without losing their integrity along the way. They understand the importance of building and maintaining positive relationships with their team members. They know they can create value in the world by creating value in others.
Bosses, on the other hand, take shortcuts and are consistently self-centered in their approach, with little regard for the needs of others. They wield their power to coerce and intimidate in order to get things done. They do not get the most out of their people because people who fear for their jobs cannot be simultaneously energetic and solution-minded partners.
Bosses are not team builders, and they seldom enjoy genuine and lasting loyalty from their followers. Their careers are normally short-lived, and the damage left in their wake often causes organizational distrust. They typically blame others for their own shortcomings, take the credit for successes generated by their team's hard work, and create an atmosphere devoid of what all great teams need for fuel: unselfishness.
Bosses and ineffective managers often have one or more of the following characteristics:
·An unhealthy and overwhelming desire to be popular and in control.
·Willingness to sacrifice their integrity to accomplish their goals.
·Inability to work well with others.
·Hesitation about listening to and accepting the views of others.
·Avoidance of risk and responsibility (flying under the radar).
·Consideration of their own interests first, team members second.
·Lack of initiative and inability to accept change easily.
·Limited vision and focus.
Imagine if we had to open Alaska under a boss. Our efforts could have failed if either Jack Casey or I had acted like a boss, or if we had "bossed" the team members we were asking to give so much. Our team could not have pulled off the extraordinary feats without a shared, deeply held vision and the whole team's faith in its other members and leaders.
It's okay to enjoy your accomplishments, but don't ever think that your achievements make you better than those around you. Nor should you ever think that it was you alone who got you there.
Don't ever think that your achievements make you better than those around you. Nor should you ever think that it was you alone who got you there.
It's obvious many things go into producing the kind of leader people are willing and eager to follow. Maybe the key is realizing there is more power in we than in me. Maybe the cornerstone is being a better listener than a talker. Maybe the one essential ingredient is being willing to get out on the front line with your people. Maybe it's as simple as being a person of integrity. Whatever it is, as a leader you set the pace, and your people will follow whatever example you set-good or bad.
If you hope to accomplish something great, you are going to need some help. You will need to become an expert at building a team so strong that its members can get the job done even when you're not around. Good leaders believe in themselves; great leaders believe in the potential of others and convince them to believe in themselves.
You are ultimately responsible for creating the foundation and framework for your organization's success. That means selecting, training, and nurturing all members of your team so they will not only exceed your expectations but their own as well.
In the next chapter, you'll discover why I knew when I landed in the UPS culture that I was very blessed.
How You Can Deliver
·Play your "best five," not your five best. Promote teamwork to accomplish the shared goal. Don't settle for a splintered group of superstars.
·Bring heart and passion to the game.
·Ensure that all members of your team are aligned with one another-and with the objectives.
·Manage your team so that all members trust one another and are held accountable, both individually and as a group.
·Take charge and do what is right.
·Seek out a mentor at every stage in your career. Their support can be invaluable.
·Give others credit for successes and create a culture of we, not me.
