You are leading a team and some (maybe all) of the members see themselves as individual contributors, not necessarily members of a team. They state and show that they’d rather work alone, and prefer individual accomplishments and results over tying their fortunes to a team.

You want a cohesive team. That is, a group collaborating freely and harnessing the synergy that comes from        working together. How can you convince, cajole or persuade your individual contributors to become collaborative colleagues? Here are nine ideas.

  • Set clear expectations. As a leader, it is your job to make sure everyone knows what is expected of them. Perhaps you are new, and under the previous manager, operating as a Lone Ranger was acceptable or even desired. If that has changed, how can you expect people to change if they don’t know it is now needed? If you need people to collaborate, make sure they know.
  • Show examples. This is an extension of clear expectations. People may feel they are already collaborating. If you don’t see it that way, you need to show them what they need to do to meet your expectation. Share real-life examples of the behaviors you are looking for and specific ideas of what “collaboration” means.
  • Provide the necessary tools. If people have been operating individually, to succeed they may need help beyond just hearing your new expectations. They may need additional collaboration tools, training on tools that exist, or interpersonal skills training to help them be a more successful team member. If any of this or more is required, you must make it available if you want people to truly collaborate.
  • Help them see benefits. In the end, people must see how they will benefit by operating in a new way. They operate alone today because it makes sense to them based on how they see the world. Perhaps they think the only way to get ahead is to look out solely for themselves. When people see real personal benefits to a new way of working, they will begin to gravitate in that direction.
  • Encourage and correct. Changing to a more collaborative way of working is a change in habit and behavior, and that isn’t easy. When people fall back to old habits, give them coaching and correction, but do it in an understanding and encouraging way. You never changed a habit in one try, and they won’t either. Supportive correction is a key to success.
  • Recognize and reward. Once people see a new world in front of them, they will begin to change. When they do, let them know you notice! Recognizing both progress and success is important to the mental and behavioral shift to a more collaborative approach to work.
  • Ask for, and offer, help. When you earnestly need help that they can provide, ask for it. Don’t just ask for a pair of hands when you are in a bind. Ask for their help, input and support around skills and talents they bring to the team. And don’t just ask for help, but offer yours as well.
  • Praise their contributions and willingness to collaborate. Doing so can range from offering a quick “thank you” for their help to mentioning their contributions in a team meeting. Recognition and feedback are powerful motivators.
  • Be an example. Perhaps the most powerful idea of all is to walk your talk. If you want others to be collaborative, make sure you are being collaborative in both the small and big ways every day. When people see you successful and happy operating in a way different from their behavior, especially when coupled with you doing other things on this list, the chances of them changing their behavior increases.

None of these things are guarantees, and while one alone might be all that is needed, the bigger answer to this mindset challenge is to apply as many of these ideas as you can, as consistently as you can.

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Kevin Eikenberry is a recognized world expert on leadership development and learning and is the Chief Potential Officer of The Kevin Eikenberry Group (http://KevinEikenberry.com). He has spent nearly 30 years helping organizations across North America, and leaders from around the world, on leadership, learning, teams and teamwork, communication and more.
Twice he has been named by Inc.com as one of the top 100 Leadership and Management Experts in the World and has been included in many other similar lists.

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