The teams that win, however, have great leaders. You can assemble the best talent on the planet and they’ll only perform as well as you, the owner.

With that in mind, what can you do as a leader to make your team win?

1. Strong Leadership

Would people follow you if they didn’t have to? Would they give up time, money, and other opportunities to follow you as their leader? Interesting to think about.

Step one as a leader (and especially in your business): know where you’re headed and explain it clearly and passionately. Others should be inspired as a result.

You must project confidence and resolve. And you must stick to strong values even during difficult times.

Leaders don’t drive the ship, they guide the ship. They act as captain. They stand at the back of the boat to oversee things, not at the front.

2. Common Goal

If you don’t know where you’re going, you can’t lead people anywhere.  Create a well-defined mission and ultimate goal that the whole organization understands.

Everyone should be able to relate to your vision, mission, and goals in order to understand how it will help them.

People are inherently selfish. They will constantly ask themselves, “what’s in it for me?” Make sure your goals answer this question for your employees, customers, and strategic partners.

From there, establish roles – their contribution to the goal. Could your team-members all explain without hesitation the common goal and their personal role in achieving it?

3. Rules of The Game

Now that we have direction, we need a set of rules that everyone generally recognizes. Write them down so that there are no misconceptions. These should exist in every firm, not necessarily as a poster on the walls (though they may be), but also not hidden in a 50-page employee handbook that no one has read since they were given it.

Every employee should commits to follow 10-30 rules. We use 17. They might relate to attitude, decision-making, problem-solving, and brand representation.

4. Action Plan

So we’ve built the foundation. We’ve thought through the direction, roles, and rules. However, all this thought isn’t a substitute for positive action. We need a game plan.

Work on cohesive plans that cover both short-term (weekly, quarterly) and long-term (1-10 year). This will allow your employees to create their personal plan based on both your company goals, and their roles within the company. They can then break this plan down into the tasks you pay them to perform every day.

Imagine how much time (and Advil) you’d save by taking the time to plan this out every quarter…

5. Support Risk-Taking

Allowing people to take chances might be difficult. The alternative is much worse:

• You waste time micromanaging.
• You stunt any potential inspiration your team members receive from your vision.
• You lose focus on opportunities for future growth in the business.

Encourage and support your team when they take calculated risks. Watch how much their empowerment levels improve.

And if anything goes wrong – and it will – congratulate them on their efforts! The learning they receive from it will increase their value to you. Plus, they’ll likely take the appropriate course of action next time.

If you seek that disruptive innovation that you see in the “start-up” culture, you’ll have to deal with mistakes.

6. 100% Involvement and Inclusion

Involving your team on a ‘need to know’ basis won’t work. And telling people the bare minimum will not inspire or motivate.

Even when a decision is solely yours to make, let everyone know WHY it needs to be made. Don’t just stick with WHAT and HOW. Involve everyone and ensure that there’s a culture where team members feel valued, feel listened to, and feel they make a difference.

So, you’ve read through the keys – time to take action. What’s one key your business needs to improve in?