How To Build A Team For Your Business

A successful business owner is someone who cultivates strong relationships with others. You will find that as your business grows, so does the size of your team. As you grow more powerful as an individual leader, you realize that without the support of those around you, you lose out.

As a leader, you must develop a mental model where you recognize that not only are there things you can learn from others, but also that they bring something valuable to the table.

You should strive to create a culture in your organization where people feel comfortable sharing their knowledge and experience. This way, even if one person doesn’t know everything, everyone else does!

And while it may sound cliché, trust is an essential ingredient in teamwork. When individuals perceive that their colleagues do not have their back, or worse, believe that these teammates take advantage of them, cooperation becomes much less likely.

It happens everywhere you look – at work, at home, in communities. Unfortunately, we live in a society where competition is the norm, not collaboration. So how can you develop trusting relationships? Here are some tips.

Make team members feel important

As mentioned before, your team is made up of people that you have asked to help you achieve your goals. Therefore, it makes sense to make them feel like they are important in helping you succeed.

Make sure to keep them informed as much as possible. Let them know what you are doing next, and ask if there’s anything they can do to help you. Also, be honest with them – tell them when you don’t agree with someone’s approach or behavior and see how they respond.

If a colleague has done something that hurt the project or the company, let them go out of their way to fix it. Don’t just sit back and take no responsibility yourself unless you want to lose trust in those around you.

Make team members feel appreciated

As mentioned earlier, being a leader is not just about giving orders and expecting people to follow them. It also means showing appreciation when someone does something well.

It may be thanking them for an excellent work performance or simply because they are hardworking.

You can even go one step further and tell others how much you appreciate their efforts by letting them know of any upcoming responsibilities that might benefit them. This helps create a sense of teamwork and collaboration.

Your colleagues will feel better about themselves if they know that you care about them and want what’s best for them.

They will likely feel more motivated as well since they know there is a friendly face available in case anything needs doing.

If you're looking to grow your business, start building relationships with the individuals around it.

Make team members feel a part of the company

Even if you are not directly hiring people, as a business owner or manager, you still play an important role in creating a supportive work environment.

Just because someone else does not report to you does not mean they will not feel valued by your company. You can show such respect through the way you treat them, how you communicate with them, and what kind of commitments you make to them.

At the same time, they will look at you and perceive whether you care about them and their career development. If you do not, it may hurt their trust in your leadership and ability to develop relationships.

You also need to be able to manage people so that they perform their jobs effectively. When this is done correctly, it creates a stable workplace where employees know they are being respected and supported.

Make team members feel like their opinions matter

A leader is someone who inspires confidence in those around them by creating an environment that encourages people to be creative, try new things, and challenge assumptions. They are also aware of what others need and make sure they get it.

As a business owner, you will inevitably encounter times when you just do not know what to do next. You may find yourself with no clue about how to run your company or improve upon the current systems.

You can always turn to other professionals for help but there is a risk of becoming stuck in a rut because only people very close to you have input into decisions.

It is important to create an open atmosphere where everyone feels free to speak up and share ideas. This way, even if one person does not agree with a decision, at least one person did.

People who work for you should enjoy coming to the office so ask about their hobbies and personal lives. If necessary, offer working hours that are more flexible or use online tools to provide feedback.

Make team members feel challenged

As mentioned before, being a leader is not about getting other people’s attention; it’s about encouraging others to do what you want them to do. If they see that you’re willing to take responsibility and invest in their success, then they will too.

As a leader, your job isn’t only to challenge individuals around you, but also to challenge yourself. You have to keep seeking out new knowledge and skills so you can succeed as a leader.

Your colleagues will be able to tell if you don’t seem invested in your work and who you are leading. They will notice how you walk around the office with a smile on your face and how hard you push yourself to achieve your goals.

If someone was to ask you why you’ve got such great relationships with your colleagues, wouldn’t you say that it’s because you make sure everyone feels appreciated and motivated? It sounds pretty obvious, I know, but some people don’t always follow this rule.

It’s worth pointing out though that while it’s important to motivate your colleagues, it’s equally important to appreciate them when they go above and beyond for you. A lot of times, successful leaders earn praise from their subordinates without even knowing about it.

Make team members feel like they can succeed

It’s not enough to have just a few people working under you – you need to create a culture of success that attracts, encourages, and rewards hard work and effort from everyone in your organization.

This doesn’t happen overnight, but if you keep investing time into creating this environment, it will eventually come together.

As a leader, you must believe in your mission and vision and know what needs to be done to get there. At the same time, you must develop trust with those around you and listen to them, responding to their input thoughtfully and clearly. You must make decisions as a group, not as an individual or a bloc.

And while having direct reports is great, it isn’t always possible, so you’ll also want to find ways to promote upward mobility within your department and organization.

Make team members feel like they can fail and still be accepted

A lot of entrepreneurs struggle with having true teamwork in their businesses. They may have people on staff, but it’s hard to find someone who is willing to put in the effort that is needed to succeed together.

If you want to keep moving forward as a business owner, you will need to learn how to develop trust among your colleagues, and you will need to ask some tough questions about whether or not they are invested in helping you achieve your goals.

You also need to make sure that everyone around you is keeping an eye out for the same things — which should include your success, theirs, and our nation’s economic well-being.

It takes work, and it won’t happen overnight, but if you are able to build strong relationships and invest time into creating unity, then your business will experience growth that moves the needle for both you and others.

Make team members feel like they are an important part of the company

The second major factor in creating a supportive work environment is making your colleagues feel appreciated and needed. This can be done through word and action. If their peers, superiors or other coworkers praise them for something good they did, show some appreciation by giving them a pat on the back.

If someone does something great, whether it’s reporting his/herself for going beyond their job description or finding a way to improve the workplace, give him/her a pay rise or compliment their effort.

This doesn’t mean being blindly loyal to those who make you uncomfortable, but instead investing time into developing people around you. It’ll cost you more at first, but in the end you’ll reap the benefits of having strong individuals in the organization.