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INTRODUCTION

Next fall, when you see geese flying south for the winter in a “V” formation, you might consider what science has discovered about why they fly that way.

As each bird flaps its wings, it creates an uplift for the bird immediately following. By flying in a “V” formation, a skein of geese adds at least 71% more flying range than if each bird flew on its own.

When a goose falls out of formation, it suddenly feels the drag and resistance of trying to go it alone, and quickly gets back in line to take advantage of the lifting power of the bird in front. When a head goose gets tired, it rotates back in the formation and another goose flies to point. Geese honk from behind to encourage those in front to keep up their speed.

When a sick or wounded goose falls out of formation, two other geese fall out with that goose and follow it down to provide help and protection. They stay with the fallen goose until it is able to fly, or until it dies. Only then do they once more take to the sky and fly at high speed to catch up with their teammates.

The geese instinctively create power to achieve their goals through the phenomenon of “Synergy.” Synergy is the additional benefit and often invisible, mysterious advantage created by combined effort. We’ve all been touched by the power of teamwork at one time or another – Synergy in action, the result of combined energy creating something greater than the sum of its parts.

As with geese, business teams that share a common direction, a sense of purpose and commitment, will achieve extraordinary results faster and easier by traveling on the trust of one another. Teams who support one another with “honks of encouragement” and great attitudes, do their part and make work fun, creating an emotional and motivational glue that makes a job feel extra special and worthwhile.

Synergy Is the Secret

What are you looking for when you watch your favorite sports team? You want them to win. You want them to use the special talents of each player. You want each player to do his or her part! You want them to get in sync and do what they are supposed to do; and when you see that happening–your team working in harmony–it fires you up. It energizes you. It’s exciting, it’s fun, and it makes you want more.

In business, as with world-class sports teams, teamwork is a competitive advantage. If there are two companies competing for the same contract, the teamwork company will win every time. The track record of improved performance through teamwork is well documented.

NASA has been teaching astronauts to work in teams for years. Lockheed Martin, Northrup Grumman, and BAE Systems won a $200 billion F-35 Joint Strike Fighter contract by joining forces. Southwest Airlines, Google, Apple Computers, Xerox, FedEx, Levi Strauss, Boeing, and Harley Davidson are all teamwork companies. When a group of committed individuals comes together, united behind a common set of goals and core values, barriers are broken and magic’s in the air. Your customers can sense it.

Working in today’s world is different from the way it used to be. Society has changed a lot. Many of the traditional ways that generations before us could rely on have disappeared. Competition today is global; companies are bought and sold, and markets are tossed around radically by the winds of change. Through technology, we are now more connected than at any other time in our history. We have to shift the way we think and feel about the workplace. We need to adapt and make change a source of strength rather than a source of stress. We need to create our own certainty and balance–both of which are entirely within our control.

There is no difference between a high-performance business team and a team of Olympic athletes

When we practice Synergy in the workplace, we bring more balance into our lives. The bridges we build with others become our daily support system and help us feel more confident. Human connection is a primal need and when we connect with one another in positive ways and work together toward a shared destiny, we experience a deep and primal validation, and a sense of purpose. This results in an emotionally secure workplace: a place of safety, trust, balance, and certainty.

Synergy Is Shared Destiny

The goal of Synergy is the compounded mutually beneficial gain achieved from working together toward a shared destiny. The foundation of Synergy is relationship trust and the essence of Synergy is the inspiring shared experience. We can’t truly share the experience if you’re lifting and loading or blocking and tackling, while I watch. An equal input of energy is required for both of us to benefit. Team members must be competent at what they do and share in the lifting and loading. It’s about working together willingly to make great things happen–taking the good with the bad. Like the Canadian geese when we travel on the thrust of one another and make sure team members have the chance to voice concerns, ideas, and suggestions, we arrive at a better destination faster and easier.

We don’t have to do the same job, but there has to be equality in the effort we make. And if things go wrong–as they sometimes will–we share the embarrassment, the remedy, the rebuilding, and the eventual reward. Ideally, Synergy should start right at the beginning, with everyone involved in the mission, goal, or project. Teams should be in on the decision-making and planning, so there is shared emotional investment from the beginning. Synergy runs on energy, and the energy at the beginning of a project is extremely powerful and motivating. You want everyone in on it, and you want them to know what to do and be competent. A lack of competence will lead to a lack of trust, which will inhibit team Synergy.

For most of us, positive human interaction and recognition are major motivators. When we trust one another and our attitudes are positive, it’s fun to come to work. The idea of helping others and working together willingly is easy. In this kind of environment, we give more of ourselves, without hesitation.

We are all in the energy business, and high productivity and extraordinary performance are directly connected to how team energy is directed. If team energy is directed toward a shared destiny, then job satisfaction, quality of work, accountability, and responsibility are all elevated, making “team player” one of the most sought-after work traits. This is verified by the results of a survey conducted by the well-respected research company, Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc.

In 125 companies in 34 industries, senior management ranked “team player” as their number one workplace value. Out of the top seven desirable work traits, over 50% of middle managers chose “team player” as the most important work trait, and the balance chose it as their second or third most important.

According to those surveyed, employees between the ages of 30 and 40 are most likely to possess the best teamwork attitudes and skills. The seven traits covered in this survey ranked as follows:

Team player

Self-starter

Dependable

Company-focused

Responsible

Adaptable

Likeable

“Our Distrust Is Very Expensive.”

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

Why I Wrote This Book

All over the world, there are individuals who want to go to work–who are excited to go in on Mondays. They love their jobs because the environment they work in is free of fear and emotional toxicity; and they are unimpeded and able to focus on their work. They do their part to help achieve organizational goals.

I work with people like this everyday, and I help them create the kind of workplace they have always wanted–one that delivers a sense of belonging, personal satisfaction, and job enrichment. I make this happen by working with business leaders who know that businesses and organizations are only as good as the people in them, and they recognize the importance of winning the hearts and minds of their people. I build high-performance teams: in businesses, government agencies, churches, non-profits, and even families. I have witnessed astounding personal, financial, and organizational growth accelerate when the environment is free of fear and supercharged with Synergy Team Power.

This book is for all employees–from entry level all the way up to the executive suite–who are looking for a way to create a meaningful workplace that delivers continuous job satisfaction. It demonstrates that adopting the value of teamwork and service, along with the importance of treating fellow workers with courtesy and respect–as one does with a customer–makes all the difference. You will find helpful stories, examples, anecdotes, and checklists that have grown out of many years of building and working with high-performance business teams. These stories are about real people who have found a way to create satisfying, fun jobs, and at the same time, build safe, secure, and highly-profitable work environments.

There are 5 Synergy Team Power success habits:

Building Trust

Right Mental Attitude (R.M.A.)

Make It Fun

Be a “First-Giver”

Be a Synergist

Within each of the success habit chapters, I have sprinkled humorous and relevant examples, quotes, and anecdotes to make your reading experience pleasurable and meaningful. My vision is that you will find a special message that resonates with you on a personal and professional level, and that it helps you recognize the important role you and all of us play in creating emotionally secure, profitable work environments. My larger vision is that as more and more of us recognize the value of Synergy and its profound benefits, we will work together to expand its application to build stronger families, better schools, profitable businesses, safe cities, and peaceful nations.

High-performance business teams are comparable to high-performance sports teams. Like sports teams, business teams “want to” bring all their individual talent and abilities to work. They create a safe, secure, interpersonal environment; openly share ideas; and willingly focus their energy and efforts on a shared destiny.