How to make your Teams Flourish and Thrive

How would you describe your current state of leadership? What about your teams? Are they thriving, surviving, or just getting by?

Leadership is more than about hitting targets; it’s about articulating an inspiring vision, defining a coherent strategy, setting clear goals, building an inspiring culture, and attracting and investing in the right talent.

So, what does it mean to flourish as a leader, and how can you inspire your team to do the same?

Insights from Positive Psychology

Positive Psychology research has elevated our understanding of flourishing, recognising it as a pinnacle state of human experience. Dr. Martin Seligman, a leading authority in Positive Psychology, highlights flourishing as the peak of well-being. It’s a state where individuals thrive and contribute positively to others’ well-being.

The Essence of Flourishing

Flourishing encompasses more than just happiness. It involves meaningful achievements, good health, and strong interpersonal connections. Studies show that flourishing individuals are productive, have lower absenteeism rates, and contribute positively to team dynamics. For leaders, flourishing is critical as it directly influences team performance and morale.

Challenges Faced by Teams

Despite a Leader’s best efforts, teams can encounter challenges that can slow down or interrupt their growth and success.

In my decade-plus work of Executive Coaching, I have identified 15 areas that cause team challenges. Reflect on them to note the ones that may be impacting your teams:

• A sense of disconnection can lead to reduced motivation and productivity.

• Failure to acknowledge team members’ contributions and efforts adequately, appropriately and on time can lead to reduced motivation and engagement.

• With a clear understanding of what is expected and why tasks matter, team members can connect with their work on a deeper level.

• Communication is considered the lifeblood of an organisation, and obstacles to explicit, coherent communication can impact teams, throwing them off course and into disarray.

• Diversity is a strength and helps organisations benefit from varied backgrounds and experiences. However, when not effectively managed, it can lead to conflicts, groups, and a fragmented approach to teamwork, affecting creativity and collaboration.

• Working consistently under intense pressure and excessive workloads, teams will burn out, reducing productivity, increasing absenteeism, and suboptimal work. They will also prioritise urgent tasks over important ones, impacting team output and growth.

• Lack of involvement increases resistance when team members feel they need more control over the change process.

• Past failures or disruptions due to change can lead to irrational fears, scepticism or resistance to new changes.

• Continued high demands without adequate support and time management can lead to stress and burnout.

• A feeling of not being in control of one’s work or decisions can activate stress levels, cynicism and gradual disengagement.

• The inability to balance professional and personal lives effectively can lead to chronic stress and burnout.

• Limited financial resources can restrict the availability of tools, training, or personnel needed to perform tasks effectively.

• Relying on old or inefficient technology can hinder performance and increase the workload.

• Lack of necessary skills or training among team members can lead to inefficiencies and frustration.

The Path Forward

As a Leader, you can consciously guide the team through these challenges and teach them to flourish by:

• Enhancing engagement, encouraging gratitude-filled conversations and regularly recognising contributions to boost morale and engagement.

• Improving communication, initiating informal interactions, and promoting a culture of openness will help clarify misunderstandings and encourage continuous dialogue.

• Easing adaptation to change and teaching team members to visualise their best selves and set meaningful goals help them view changes as opportunities for growth, thereby reducing resistance.

• Managing stress and burnout by encouraging deep breathing, mindfulness exercises, journaling, open conversations, and non-violent communication.

• Providing adequate resources to ensure every team member has access to the necessary tools and training to excel in their role.

Here are seven questions you may also want to reflect on :

1. What are you grateful for about your team?

Consider creating a visual space where gratitude, achievements, and positive feedback are prominently displayed to inspire and uplift your team.

2. Which connections would you like to nurture?

Make time for regular one-on-one discussions to get to know your team members better, understand their motivations and make them feel heard.

3. What moments do you and your teams want to savour?

Celebrate Micro-Wins and find ways to recognise small successes that are meaningful to each team member.

4. How do you envision the best self for you and your team?

Articulate this for yourself and the team, get them to contribute, and create a vision for the leadership and the team.

5. How will you acknowledge your team’s worth?

Understand what matters to them, pay attention to their core values, honour them and inspire excellence.

6. What core needs are you looking to fulfil?

Identify the unmet needs and work to have them met.

7. What meaningful goals are you setting for yourself and the team?

Goals have meaning when the desired benefits are clear, aligned with an action plan, and, most importantly, achievable. Craft them in consultation with the team so there is greater ownership and commitment.

In Closing

Teams that flourish tend to be more productive and happy and demonstrate lower absenteeism and turnover rates.

Remember, each leader’s path to flourishing is unique; find yours.

Your team role models you; when you flourish, the team members do, too.

May these reflections guide you on your journey of mindful leadership toward a more profound understanding, meaningful achievements, and a generous spirit.