How to help your team through turbulent times

There’s a lot of change at the moment – in our world.
In our homes and relationships.
In our teams at work.

It’s a tough time to lead – teams are under pressure. 

And pressure may make diamonds… but it also bursts balloons.

What’s going on in our world?

Here’s what I’m hearing:

• Cost of living is soaring. “I’m now an Aldi shopper.” 
• “As much as I love it, working from home is lonely! 
• “Our organisation is going through SOOO much change- restructures, cost cutting, the list goes on.”
• “The hoops we have to jump through are ridiculous. Regulations are tightening up.”
• “Diversity and difference is a good thing.. but it’s also hard.” 

Some of us love change and thrive on it.
Some of us cope with it.
Some of us struggle. 

All of that is ok.

What’s important to remember is we can’t focus on adapting individually – we need to adapt with our teams.

In a team of say 15, there are 105 relationships impacting the team’s performance.

Working as a functional team is so important AND it’s never been more complex than now. 

We can begin to manage change by first understanding what’s really going on in your team.

Then asking the right questions.

What’s the cause of conflict in teams right now?

In a recent survey of 1372 respondents in 80 countries, the top reasons for conflict in teams were:

1.       Colleagues not participating

2.       Slow decision making

3.       More time being spent on speeding up decisions

4.       Different role expectations of team members

5.       Disappointing action follow-through

Some of us love change and thrive on it. Some of us cope. Some struggle.

And all of that is ok.

Like a stormy sea, change can be turbulent, unpredictable, and cause a lot of upheaval.

It can disrupt relationships, communication, and productivity within a team. 

But like a storm, we can navigate the stormy waters of conflict and emerge stronger and more resilient with the right tools and strategies. 

Coping with change starts with asking the right questions.

3 questions to ask to make sense of uncertainty

In the book Unlocking leadership mindtraps: how to thrive in complexity, Jennifer Garvey Berger explains:

We can’t predict the future, but we can make sense of what’s going on now.

The seeds for our future are around us today.

They’re the small things we do.
The choices we make.
The things we influence.

 So we need to plant the right seeds today – so they spring into fruit trees.

Resist the temptation to get trapped by the idea of control. Instead: 

Be open.
Curious.
Experiment.

Jennifer encourages us to ask these 3 questions to plant the right seeds to help us – and our teams thrive:

1. What can I help enable?

2. What could enable me?

3. What’s good for me?