Book Summary Preview : The 17 Indisputable Laws Of Teamwork

The Big Idea

Building a winning team is a process. Here are guiding laws for any type of organization, group, or family, based on the principle that teamwork is essential in any great human endeavor. Whether you’re a leader or a member, these laws will definitely have a positive effect on you, your team, and your life!

Chapter 1: The Law of Significance
One is too small a number to achieve greatness.

Throughout human history, whatever the endeavor, great individuals still had teams of people supporting them along the way.

THERE ARE NO PROBLEMS WE CANNOT SOLVE TOGETHER, AND VERY FEW WE CAN SOLVE BY OURSELVES. -LYNDON JOHNSON

Key Thoughts:
• Teamwork is the heart of great achievement.
• Teams involve more people, thus affording more resources, ideas, and energy.
• Teams benefit from multiple perspectives.

People still want to do things by themselves because of:

1. Ego. “Spinning more plates doesn’t increase your talent, it increases your likelihood of dropping a plate.” To achieve something really big, let go of your ego, and get ready to be part of a team.
2. Insecurity. Secure leaders give power to others. Insecure leaders fail to build teams because:
   1. They want to maintain total control
   2. They fear being replaced by someone more capable
3. Naiveté. Some people simply underestimate the difficulty of achieving big things. As a result, they try to go it alone. In some cases, like on a mountain trek, this decision can be fatal.
4. Temperament. Some people aren’t very outgoing and don’t think in terms of team building. It never occurs to them to enlist others to achieve somethin

Chapter 2: The Law of the Big Picture
The goal is more important than the role.

If you think you are the entire picture, you will never see the big picture.

As in sports, individual accomplishments help the ego, but only good teams win championships.

“If a team is to reach its potential, each player must be willing to subordinate his personal goals to the good of the team.” – Bud Wilkinson

How do people start to become a more unified team?

1. Look at the big picture. You need to have a clear vision or goal. Leaders must communicate this vision to the team members. People on a team will work together only if they see what they’re working toward.
2. Size up the situation.
3. Line up the needed resources. (Equipment, facilities, funding, etc.)
4. Call up the right players.
5. Give up personal agendas.
6. Step up to a higher level. This means subordinating your role for the team’s success. Former US president Jimmy Carter did this when he joined Habitat for Humanity, working alongside other volunteers. When you see the big picture clearly, you serve the team more quickly.

Chapter 3: The Law of the Niche
All players have a place where they add the most value.

One good example of The Law of the Niche is US Secretary of State Colin Powell. As the United States’ first African-American Secretary of State, he had an impeccable track record of service to his country as an army soldier, officer, a four-star general, a deputy national security adviser, then as the national security adviser, and the youngest chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff. When the time came to select a person for the job of Secretary of State, there was no question as to who should fill the position. President Bush chose well in asking Colin Powell, giving his team greater credibility with a constituency that was less inclined to trust them. This example shows us that when the right team member is in the right place, everyone benefits.

What happens when one or more members are in the wrong position?

1. Morale erodes.
2. Progress comes to a halt.
3. The competition takes advantage.
4. The team fails to realize its potential.

Having the right people in the right places is essential to team building. A team’s dynamic changes according to the placement of people:

The Wrong Person in the Wrong Place = Regression
The Wrong Person in the Right Place = Frustration
The Right Person in the Wrong Place = Confusion
The Right Person in the Right Place = Progression
The Right People in the Right Places = Multiplication

To be able to put people in the places that utilize their talents and maximize the team’s potential, you need three things:

1. You must know the team.
In terms of vision, purpose, culture, and history

2. You must know the situation
Whether the team is at a stage where it needs fine-tuning or building from the ground up.

3. You must know the players
Evaluate each person’s skills, discipline, strengths, emotions, and potential.

Guidelines for finding your niche:

• Be secure. In order to grow, you must be flexible and open to change.
• Get to know yourself. Spend time reflecting on and exploring your gifts. Ask others for feedback. Remove your personal blind spots by identifying those weaknesses.
• Trust your leader. A good leader moves you in the right direction. If you can’t trust your leader, you are on the wrong team.
• See the big picture. Your place on the team only makes sense in the context of the big picture.
• Rely on your experience. Learn from past failures and successes. When you discover what you are made for, your heart sings.

One fine example of this law is the US military. This organization relies on matching the right people to the right places, if there is a breakdown in that structure, the result can be disastrous.

How to Get On Track:

• If you see you are not in the right place, make a transition to your niche. Create a transition plan and timetable.
• If you have no idea what you should be doing, then do some research. Try to articulate your life’s purpose. Try new things, and gain experience.
• For leaders, after you know who belongs where, motivate people by stretching them out of their comfort zones. This is how they will reach fulfillment and understand what they are truly capable of achieving.

Chapter 4: The Law of Mount Everest
As the challenge escalates, the need for teamwork elevates.

Listen to the wise words of Sherpa Tenzing Norgay, who reached the summit of Mount Everest with Edmund Hillary in 1953:

“You do not climb a mountain like Everest by trying to race ahead on your own, or by competing with your comrades. You do it slowly and carefully, by unselfish teamwork.”

How do you accomplish your own Everest? Ask yourself:

1. What is my dream?
2. Who is on my team?
3. What should my dream team look like?

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