How to be a Good Team Player
Qualities Employers Look for when Hiring New Team Members
Good team players are wanted by employers. Employers want to hire and build teams that cooperate towards achieving corporate goals.
Many employers list being a good team player as a key soft skill they look for in new recruits. They want staff to work together towards achieving corporate or organizational goals. When hiring new staff, they want to find people with a good attitude and soft skills that reflect the qualities of a good team player.
Good Listener
Team Leaders want to hire someone who listens carefully to others when they are speaking and can assimilate the messages into one vision. For example, if an employee is part of a project team, they listen to the ideas and concerns of others. Good team players are patient and respectful of the voice of other team members and understand that to be a team player; they have to be open minded to other points of view.
Clearly Communicate Important Information
Good team players don’t hoard information, they share it freely. They understand when key information needs to be passed on and carbon copy (cc) the right people on emails. They understand the importance of everyone being on the same page so they insure that the communication channels flow freely.
Co-operative not Competitive
Good team players prefer to co-operate and not compete with other staff or departments. They may be motivated when they see others achieve but instead of competing with the achiever, they emulate and align with them.
Optimistic and Happy
To be a good team player means you have to be the type of person others want to be around. Happy, optimistic people are attractive. They draw their team mates to them and encourage recognition of achievements. Good team players celebrate the successes and learn from the set backs. They focus on the positive and take the negative in stride, not letting it get them down. Good team players understand that complaining and making excuses frustrates others and fosters negativity. They choose to be happy.
Adaptable to Change
Flexibility is a mandatory trait when working with others. If you are rigid in your approach to new concepts or change, then others will be negatively impacted as they too must adapt. Be a change agent and demonstrate adaptability when faced with a new direction. Lead new initiatives by being a champion of change.
Good Negotiator
A team player that knows how to negotiate means that situations that could become tense instead become a win-win. They expertly know how to compromise and dissect situations to find the commonalities in points of view instead of emphasizing the differences.
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