Optimal Team Management

Teams have natural ebbs and flows of productivity. If you find yourself in the position of managing a Team, one of the key things to get right is:

• When the Team is performing, it's your job to help sustain that flow, not to push it. Pushing it will make it collapse. Sustain the flow with positive reinforcement, displaying progress and showing goals being knocked down one by one. If something happens to cause a goal to be missed, re-frame and proceed.

• When the Team is not performing, allow it time to breathe. Allow the Team to process the cause of a dip in productivity and harmony like the body flushes out an illness. However, be mindful that misery loves company, and be ready to re-focus the team on goals that are close at hand and ruthlessly cut out and shield from distractions (especially form CxOs) to provide an environment that cultivates flow.