The No. 1 Challenge Leaders Face with Their Teams (and How to Overcome It)

On the individual level, some team members may perform at their natural best (or even outperform).

What happens on the team level, though? Is that enough? Do all of your team members step up collectively when required to deliver and collaborate as a whole?

More often than not, that is not the case.

✓ Despite the best efforts from top management or HR initiatives, your team’s performance and growth are not what you had expected or strived for as their leader.

✓ Change and uncertainty further complicate matters when people default to their less positive behaviours.

✓ Furthermore, generational, cultural, or geographical boundaries (in the case of remote teams) only add to the challenge.

HBR research shows up to a third of value-added collaborations come from only 3% to 5% of employees!

The No. 1 team challenge for leaders

Why is collaboration so challenging?

One reason is that teams have different personal styles and ways of working. Opposite preferences can make collaboration even more challenging.

To strengthen those connections, you must first understand yourself better, how you are different, and how you are similar to your team members.

Then, with intentional effort, you need to create more awareness of each other, enabling better connections to become more effective as a team.

Team challenge: The Insights Discovery Tool

The 𝗜𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀 𝗗𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 tool, based on Carl Jung’s psychology, helps people understand behavioural preferences through a simple 4-colour model 🔴 🟡 🟢 🔵 revealing why people act and interact in specific ways.

For instance, a team member leading with 🔵 cool blue energy prefers periods of silence to process their thoughts (think to speak), contrasting with a team member leading with the opposite energy, 🟡 sunshine yellow, which processes by talking (speak to think).

In my journey with clients, I’ve integrated this framework into countless individual and team sessions, each leading to profound ‘a-ha’ moments.

It has the power to transform interactions and, ultimately, elevate performance.

What if one weekly question can change the way you lead and shape your career?

Each week, I share insights and prompts to help you step back, gain clarity, and lead yourself (and others) with intention, not just reaction.