Integrity...

What we do at work is part of who we are.  We cannot compartmentalize how we conduct ourselves in the business world from how we conduct ourselves at home or at church.  To compromise in one area is to compromise our entire testimony.  The business world can be a particularly demanding atmosphere for a person who wants to live in a God-honoring way.  The corporate conditioning is purposeful and intense, and there is not always an opportunity for deviating from the corporate script.  But the call to Christians is simple: “Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father” (Colossians 3:17).  No matter what we do and no matter the level of authority that we have, everything we say and do must be for God’s glory.  If we can’t do what we are doing in a God-honoring way, we need to do something else.  

What is a Team?

A team is a group of people coming together to collaborate. This collaboration is to reach a shared goal for which they hold themselves mutually accountable.  A group of people is not necessarily a team.  A team is a group of people with a high degree of interdependence geared towards the achievement of a common goal rather than just a group for administrative convenience. 

Effective teams develop rules of conduct to help them achieve their true purpose and performance goals. Some rules to consider:

·         attendance - no interruptions to take phone calls

·         discussion - no sacred cows

·         confidentiality - personal revelations must remain among the team

·         analytic approach - facts are friendly

·         constructive confrontation - no finger pointing

I’ve learned that truly effective team members are sincerely committed to each other's personal growth and success. That commitment usually transcends the team. A true team outperforms a group and outperforms all reasonable expectations given to its individual members. That is, a team has a synergistic effect—one plus one equals three (or more!).