Improve Team Cohesion

Cheerleading Captains: Five Ways to Build Team Chemistry Congratulations! You've just made captain. However, after the cheers and handshakes, reality hits; you've got to make this work. If the teams does well, everyone will be beating a path to your door. However, if it performs poorly, you'll probably get most of the blame. By now, you've probably figured out that great chemistry helps a team perform well. Wondering how to kindle the fire of camaraderie between your team members? Here are five things you can do. 1. Plan for failure It probably sounds counterintuitive to pursue success by first planning for failure, but life is not perfect, even for cheerleaders. The best laid plans can inadvertently go awry. For instance, a great routine may not go as well as originally intended, or a valuable team member may get injured at the last minute. Such moments do little to build chemistry. In fact, team members will probably be more inclined to find someone to blame. It is therefore important to plan for the dejection that invariably follows failure, and think of ways to keep the team encouraged. 2. Set the right goals Don't expect a novice to learn the Arabic routine in one hour. On the other hand, splits do not need eleven months to learn. The right goals should neither be too easy, nor verge on the impossible. If the team does well on one set of routines, then it may be time to find a more challenging set to tackle. 3. Treat everyone fairly Nothing will destroy team chemistry faster than being partial. While it is important to recognize that each team member is an individual, be firm when it comes to corporate rules and regulations. You should be particularly careful when you are arbitrating disputes between team members. 4. Praise Berating, humiliating and embarrassing people does not improve their performance, nor it does not improve team chemistry, at least not in the way you would expect. Members are more likely to gang up against you than team up to achieve the right goals. Praise not only builds group chemistry, but also ensures that it works in your favor. Take time to think of creative ways to reward your team whenever it does well. 5. Show enthusiasm The Good Book talks about anointing oil flowing from the head. Leading cheerleaders tends to work in the same way. If you are not enthusiastic, your team will pick up the negative vibe. If you are motivated, then your team will lap up the positive energy. Excited group members will not only work better together, they will also work harder, show more resilience in the face of challenges, be more focused and ultimately, perform better.