The power of like minded teams can catapult a team to greatness or can send them down the road of regret. Birds of a feather can’t flock together unless they are flying to the same destination. Are the members of your team flying with you? As leaders we build, optimize and sometimes reorganize teams. We create vision, we mold the culture and set the tone for our organizations. Like mindedness is sharing the same opinions, attitudes or goals. Being like minded does not mean that you are leading a bunch of clones. Recruiting players that have diverse talents and possess a teachable mindset can become a powerful force.
Rick Pitino the coach of the Louisville Cardinals basketball team built a liked minded team based on playing tenacious defense. In their minds playing tough defense would be the key ingredient to win the NCAA Final Four Tournament. The back court for the Cardinals was extremely quick and they were able to apply full court pressure at will. Pitino’s team literally stole the ball and ran the floor. Throughout the season, his team averaged nineteen forced turnovers a game. Last night they won the NCAA Final Four Tournament based on their defensive mindset. Ironically, the defensive driven Louisville Lady Cardinals play for the championship tonight against the University of Connecticut. The men and women at Louisville are like minded regarding tough defense and they both share the goal of winning championships.
What is the major differentiator regarding how your team operates? How is the team like minded?
Once the team is established and aware of each others strengths and weaknesses, do they grow to share opinions, goals and attitudes? Are they shooting for the playoffs or the championship?
“A leader needs enough understanding to fashion an intelligent strategy” Â -John Kotter
