13 Lessons from Daniel Coyle’s The Culture Code

📚 If you’re interested in building great teams you owe to yourself to read this book.

What are the common ingredients of great team cultures?

We all have an idea of what a great team culture might look like. Few of us might even know what that feels like.

This is a book that looks at the best team cultures and exposes the group behaviors with the most impact on the results they obtain. Turns out, people like to people feel safe, appreciated, and with a clear purpose to strive for.

1 — The key for team performance is not so much the skills of individual players, but the quality of the interactions between them.

A great team is not one where every person just gives their best, but where every person gives their best to others.

2 — There are 3 common ingredients to the best team cultures.

• They build safety;
• They share vulnerabilities;
• They establish a purpose.

3 — Leaders create the conditions for their teams to perform at their best.

It’s a privilege for leaders and 100% of their job description.

How?

• Provide the tools your team needs;
• Foster the relationships in your team;
• Make people feel safe, engaged and willing.

4 — Building safety is a continuous process. Ongoing relationships need ongoing care.

Everything you do must be always communicating these 4 values:

• We are close;
• We have each other’s backs;
• We are safe;
• We share a future.

5 — Successful groups don’t seek happiness.

All their focus and energy is concentrated on solving problems together and winning. Happiness is a byproduct of that.

6 — Feedback is the ultimate growing tool in healthy team cultures.

That’s how you communicate your standards AND show support in people meeting them.