Throughout history, the greatest andmost effective leaders are those able toachieve the balance of interacting withtheir team while still maintainingauthority. In a simple statement, aneffective leader must never forget that heor she is still a team player.

To succeed, a team needs to have good teamplayers and that includes the leader who willcollaborate and communicate with the othermembers. But before we go on with thediscussion, let’s know first what are the commonproblems that teams usually encounter.

Some common problems in a team include:

A. Conflicting styles of decision making - Your job asteam leader is to make decisions based on principlesrather than personality.

B. Lack of trust - Trust is essential for any team – it isthe foundation of collaboration. It takes a leader who iswilling to show integrity and take on the hard work ofdealing with differences to build trust within a team.

Teams are created for several reasons. They may needto deliver a one-time project, or work together on anongoing basis. Learning to be a good team player is soimportant. Being a good team player who can workwell and take initiative results in the team finishingwork ahead of time and performing it even moreefficiently and effectively.

HOW TO BECOME A GOOD TEAM PLAYER

1. Communicate constructively.

Do not shy away from making a point but make it in the best way possible — clearly, directly and respectfully.

2. Listen.

Teams need team players who can absorb and understand ideas without debating every point.

3. Actively participate.Be prepared in meetings, listen and speak up in discussions. Engage in the work of the team and do not sit passively on the sidelines.

4. Support the team.

Team players show courtesy and consideration to other team members.

5. Share.

Share information, knowledge and experience. Take the initiative to keep other team members informed.

6. Cooperate.

Work with others and act together toaccomplish a job. Respond to requests forassistance and take the initiative to offer help.

7. Be flexible.

Teams often deal with changing conditions andoften create changes. A flexible team membercan consider different points of views andcompromise when needed.

8. Solve problems.

Team players get problems out in the open fordiscussion and then collaborate with others tofind solutions and form action plans.

9. Show commitment.

Strong team players care about their work, theteam and the team's work. They want to give agood effort and want other team members todo the same.

10. Be reliable.

Make sure you do your fair share and meetcommitments. Be consistent by delivering agood performance all the time, not just some ofthe time.