There are three common ways used to achieve team success, only one works over the long-term:

Do what the leader says is right, do what you think is right, and do what the team agrees is right.

“In the end, team success only comes when working towards a common vision.”- Denis G. McLaughlin 

Do what the leader says is right, follow the rules. Which leads to this….

• – Short term activities that have no long-term vision attached
• – Waiting for direction
• – No sense of belonging to anything bigger than the activities
• This may lead to short-term success, but over the long haul it falls short. Rules from the top can never cover every decision that must be made in every circumstance.
• Mike Krzyzewski, the first coach in NCAA Division I basketball history to record 1,000 victories said, “The truth is that many people set rules to keep from making decisions.”­
• Do what you think is right, make up the rules. Which leads to this…
• – Short term activities that have no team-centered vision attached
• – Searching for direction
• – No sense of belonging to anything bigger than yourself
• Even if every person has the best of intentions, they come from a limited perspective. Each individual can have a unique view of success for the team and will head in their own direction to pursue that success.
• Hockey great Wayne Gretzky said, “Hockey is a unique sport in the sense that you need each and every guy helping each other and pulling in the same direction to be successful.”
• Do what the team agrees is right, agree on the rules. Which leads to this…
• – Short term activities that lead to achieving the long-term, team-centered vision
• – Having a direction
• – Belonging to a group who together achieve success
• Vince Lombardi, one of the most successful NFL coaches and namesake of the Super Bowl trophy said, “Individual commitment to a group effort – that is what makes a team work, a company work, a society work, a civilization work.”
• In the end, Team Success only comes when working towards a common vision.