Читать книгу Synergy Team Power - Chris Alexander - Страница 16

Abe Lincoln gave the greatest speech of his famous senatorial campaign at Springfield, Illinois. The convention before which he spoke consisted of a thousand delegates together with the crowd that had gathered with them.

His speech was carefully prepared. Every sentence was guarded and emphatic. It has since become famous as “The Divided House” speech.

Before entering the hall where it was to be delivered, he stepped into the office of his law-partner, Mr. Herndon, and, locking the door, so that their interview might be private, took his manuscript from his pocket, and read one of the opening sentences: “I believe this government cannot endure permanently, half slave and half free.”

Mr. Herndon remarked that the sentiment was true, but suggested that it might not be good policy to utter it at that time.

Mr. Lincoln replied with great firmness: “No matter about the policy. It is true, and the nation is entitled to it. The proposition has been true for six thousand years, and I will deliver it as it is written.”

-Good Stories for Great Holidays

TEAMWORK: Teamwork is the secret to success. When we treat each other as internal customers with dignity, respect, and efficiency, we create a culture of cooperative high-performance, which ripples out to the external customer.

RESPONSIBILITY: Take 100% responsibility for your role in the team; be highly competent, reliable, objective, and accountable. Good team players don’t blame others and when they’re wrong, they admit it quickly and learn from it.

UNDERSTANDING: Understand the differences in others; build bridges of cooperation, respect, and trust. Prejudice has no place in teamwork. We are uniquely different—races, religions, cultures, genders, beliefs, and abilities.

SEEK SYNERGY: Look for ways to work more harmoniously with your team to multiply efficiency and service to the customer. Synergy is all about creatively seeking ways that will multiply the quality of workmanship, relationships, and the excited feeling of achieving the extraordinary; that means that everyone on the team learns to play from the same sheet of music, secure within themselves and their own individual talent to contribute with no fear of loss.

TALK IT OUT: Honest relationships are vital to team success. An effective way to build trust and honest relationships is to deal with conflict immediately in an objective, constructive, and candid manner. The key is to avoid ego defensive comparisons. It is not “who” is right, but “what” is right. Focus on solving the problem, not each other.