As a leader and team member, it’s so important to learn your strengths and weaknesses. To know what you’re good at and also recognize where you need help. You will be such a great asset to a team when you bring what you’re good at and not try to convince everyone that you do not have any weaknesses. It took so much pressure off of me when I finally realized that I didn’t have to provide all the answers. In fact, I found it to be transparent to admit there are some things I don’t have the answers to. Even though I am a pastor, I still know what my abilities are and what they are not, which helps me understand what I’m supposed to bring to the team.
Working together doesn’t just mean we’re planning something, it also means we’re working out our strengths and weaknesses. Sometimes when a team is meeting, it’s not always about accomplishing a specific goal, but also about learning how we can succeed by understanding more about each other. The agenda doesn’t always have to be event planning or reports. There isn’t anything wrong with being goal-driven, but you can’t be so focused on goals that you fail to connect with the ones you need to reach them.
Here are two types of people I find on most teams.
WALKERS AND TALKERS
The walkers are the ones that want to get things done. They move at a continuous pace and are driven by movement. Although that is great and needful, the downside to it is they have a hard time slowing down and getting to know their team members. You can’t build relationships constantly moving.
The talkers are the ones that do exactly that, they talk, they plan, and they prepare. The more they talk, the more ideas come out. A team has to have these kinds of conversations; however, you can spend too much energy on a particular project. Make some plans, but keep some fuel in the tank for the next journey.
My suggestion is that, whatever group you find yourself in, learn to appreciate the other ones. One side needs to slow down a little, and the other side needs to talk less. I can promise you this; each group will need the other one to accomplish their goals. The walkers will make sure you get there, and the talkers will have a plan in place when all of you arrive.
