Teams that feature diverse personalities gain the value of multiple perspectives and approaches. However, different approaches to work and problem-solving can also lead to conflict and misunderstandings on the team.
Here are five ways to bring a group with diverse personalities together and lead them to professional success:
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Get to Know Your Team Members
It can be tempting to dive right into the planning process, but if you don’t know your team members first, you won’t be prepared when personality conflicts arise. Instead, spend some time finding out a little about each person’s background, experience, and what matters to them.
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Set Expectations For Each Team Member
Once you know a bit about each team member’s background, you can use this information to set expectations for each person on the team. Focus on the team’s overall strengths and how to use these strengths to solve the problem the team faces, and be ready to direct each team member to specific tasks based on their personal strengths, as well.
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Praise in Public, Criticize in Private
When you have praise to give to a team member, do so where other members of the team can hear. Recognition is most effective when done publicly: It means more to the person being recognized, and it signals to the rest of the team what matters.
Constructive criticism, however, should be given in private. A one-on-one conversation allows you and the team member to focus on how to fix a problem, rather than feelings of shame or embarrassment that may arise from being corrected publicly.
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Develop Your Delegation Skills
Delegating to your team members enables each of them to contribute their best effort in the way that is most efficient and effective for them. When delegating, keep differing personalities and perspectives in mind, and assign tasks and teams accordingly.
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Encourage the Team to Focus on the Issues
Diverse personalities can easily clash, but a team that focuses on the issue, rather than on personal statements, can use those personalities to tackle a problem from multiple perspectives. Create a culture that focuses on solving problems rather than on assigning blame.
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