042 - Transforming Team Dynamics: A Sports Team Approach in Business

Welcome to Women Powering Ecommerce, where every Tuesday and Thursday, we take you behind the scenes of the journey of a female ecommerce entrepreneur. In this episode, we're discussing a significant shift in perspective that has transformed the way we view our teams. This change has had a profound impact on our expectations, standards, and overall performance. Join us as we explore the transition from a family mindset to a sports team approach in our business.

Seeing the Team as Family

In the early days of our business, we viewed our team as a family. This perspective was rooted in tight-knit connections, shared struggles, and mutual growth. There was an emotional bond and a sense of unconditional support. We deeply cared for every team member, and fostering trust and care-based relationships was a priority. While this approach had its merits, it also had its limitations.

The Limitations of the Family Mindset

The family mindset in business is marked by unconditional acceptance, which, while noble, can sometimes hinder growth and performance. The family mindset may inadvertently encourage low standards and mediocrity. It tends to be more forgiving when goals are not met or mistakes are made. In essence, it may lack the accountability and drive that businesses require to thrive.

Introducing the Sports Team Mindset

To overcome these limitations and drive higher performance, we decided to adopt a sports team mindset. The shift in perspective from family to sports team was a game-changer. In sports, the emphasis is on accountability, results, and winning. Coaches set standards, establish goals, and expect their team to strive for excellence.

Accountability and Results

The core of the sports team mindset is accountability and results. We realized that we needed to set specific key performance indicators (KPIs) and metrics for every team member, even for roles that were previously challenging to measure. This shift has created a sports culture within our organization. We are driven to win, and to achieve this, we must count points, measure our performance, and identify areas for improvement.

The Best of Both Worlds

While we still value the idea of viewing our team as a family, we now understand the importance of balancing empathy with high standards. Business isn't unconditional, and we've come to appreciate that it requires clear standards and rules to thrive. Embracing the sports team mindset has allowed us to move faster and ensure that everyone plays their role in the pursuit of our business goals.

The Coach's Role

Much like a sports coach, a leader's role in business is to guide, strategize, and ensure that every team member performs at their best. Setting high standards and holding everyone accountable is crucial for the team's success. Just as in sports, meeting the standards for each role is essential to ensure that the team works cohesively and effectively.

The Benefits of the Shift

Since adopting the sports team mindset, we've seen positive changes in our business. The increased focus on accountability and standards has allowed us to gain clarity about our direction and how to achieve our goals. It has also improved our ability to measure performance and adapt for success.

Conclusion

Transitioning from a family mindset to a sports team approach in business has been a transformative journey. While we still value the human element and the care we have for our team, we've recognized the need for clear standards and accountability. This shift has enabled us to move faster, set high standards, and work together as a cohesive unit to achieve our goals. In the ever-competitive world of ecommerce, adopting the sports team mindset has been a game-winning strategy.

Thank you for joining us on this episode of Women Powering Ecommerce. Please subscribe if you enjoyed this discussion and stay tuned for more insights and inspiration from a woman entrepreneur's perspective. Follow us on social media and your favorite podcast platform to receive notifications when new episodes are released. We look forward to seeing you in the next episode as we continue to explore the exciting world of ecommerce.

Episode Transcription

042 - Transforming Team Dynamics: A Sports Team Approach in Business

(00:00):

Welcome to this episode of Women Powering Ecommerce. Join me every Tuesday and Thursday as I take you behind the scenes of my journey as a female ecommerce entrepreneur. Together, we'll explore the highs, the lows, inspire you to take action and achieve your own business goals. So let's get started.

(00:33):

So lately, I've reframed my perspective on how I view my team, and that's what I want to talk about today. I want to share with you my latest discovery and little shift in how I view things because it does make a huge difference. It changed how I view my team, it changes how in what I expect from them, and it just sets standards that are very different from what I was setting before I viewed things this way.

(01:06):

So what is it? How am I viewing my team differently now? Well, here it is. I've transitioned from viewing my team as a family to seeing us more as a sports team. And the reason why I really want to talk about that is just I don't see things the same now. I really don't. And here it is. So the early days when we started in business, I initially saw our team as a family, especially with my ecommerce, and I still do in some ways, I still love them just as much. I really deeply care for every team member on my teams. I really do. And what I like, and I'll share you the little shift because whatever I changed, it doesn't mean I removed the way I thought before. So let me explain.

(02:03):

So I initially saw our team as a family. So the tight-knit connections. We shared our struggles. We mutually grew together. I feel that there's this emotional bond in almost like an unconditional support, I love to give out to my team. Not a hundred percent because, of course, there are some things that I will not tolerate. But in general, the people that work with us are very good people. And honestly, you do spend a lot of time with the people you work with.

(02:41):

So I've always loved developing good relationships of trust and based on care with my team. For me, that's just part of who I am and it's part of my values as a human being. So not long ago, I really came to a turning point and shift in my way to see my teams. I say teams because we have the ecommerce and the SaaS business. So I thought of my team as a family, but the problem with that is the family mindset in business is limiting. Why? If you think of a family, we will automatically maybe think of unconditional acceptance. So a good family, tight-knit family, big family that they're altogether having a good time several times a year, I can kind of picture that. And one will come up, they didn't set high standards for themselves or failed in a certain area in their life, and a family will react just like a family should. Accept them, support them. We'll just be much more open and loving towards our family members compared to other people. And that's the issue in business.

(04:04):

If I hold onto that family mindset for those reasons, it can sometimes hinder growth in performance. And what it does is it'll allow low standards and mediocrity in the end. And that's what I'm realizing. And I'm not saying that I've never measured my team's efforts and results. And yes, we've always set standards. Yes, we do have procedures to follow. Yes, I mean, everyone is somewhat accountable, right? They've always been.

(04:40):

But if I tell you those two words, sports team, don't you find it changes something? If I see family, all I see is like I said before, a little bit more of some unconditional love. "Oh, you didn't meet your goals. It's not too bad, you'll do better next time." Versus sports team. Do you see a sports coach talking like this to their team? No. They'll have set standards, they have goals. They're in it to win it. So automatically, I feel like family versus sports team makes a big difference. You do not view your team the same way. One is much more accepting and the other is not.

(05:28):

I mean, it's all about accountability. It's all about results, and it's all about winning. And that's what I want. That's definitely what I want. You need results in the end. That's what will allow you to thrive, to grow. So that's it. So this new viewpoint that I've realized I really needed to see my team like that from now on, will definitely change a lot of things for me.

(05:54):

I still like the idea of viewing my team as a family because yes, they are human, I care, but I feel I need to learn to navigate the balance between empathy and setting high standards. What has changed on the team since I realized that? Well, I'm putting things into place. So the more we move forward, the more everyone on the team is accountable. I'm talking about KPIs, metrics for everyone. Some roles before I'm like, "Yeah, they can't really have metrics," or, "It's hard to measure their work." No, there's always a way. Find a way to measure the work, find their KPIs, find their metrics. This supports and creates a sports culture. We want to win. In order to do so, we need to count points and measure what we did right and where we went wrong and what can we improve?

(06:49):

I see right now, I can't see a better way of doing things. And I'm having actually a hard time believing I did not see this before, but that's okay. I'm learning. And I'm just realizing as the months go by how much numbers and measuring is so important. It doesn't mean you have to remove the human out of everything, but if you can have both, I think that's the best of both worlds. But honestly, business isn't unconditional. That's one thing I've learned.

(07:19):

Unlike family, business requires set standards and rules to thrive. And another thing is that embracing the sports team mindset will allow us to move faster. Because yes, we have goals, we want to go places. So everyone has a specific role to play, much like players in their respective positions. We train, we improve, we adapt to win the game of ecommerce, which is kind of funny saying that because our mission for our other company, BusterFetcher, is we help businesses win the shipping game. So I just realized that now.

(07:56):

And like a coach, a leader's role is to guide, it's to strategize, it's to ensure everyone is performing at their best. And that's what I want for my team. I definitely want to make sure we're performing at our best. And to do that, we need to set high standards and be accountable for them. And that's it. Last point, accountability and standards. Just to circle back on that, it's very important. Just like in sports, everyone needs to meet the standards set for their role to ensure the team's success.

(08:33):

So I loved realizing that lately, and it's really going to serve me in the future. And today it already has. I have implemented things in my businesses because of that new shift in seeing things and I'm loving it. And it just allowed me to gain so much more clarity as to where we're heading and how to get there as well. We have goals, but how are we going to get there? Well, that's it. We need to make sure that all these things are put in place.

(09:06):

So that's it for today. Please remember to go and subscribe if you liked this episode. And join me next time as we dive deeper in the ecommerce world from a woman entrepreneur's perspective.

(09:18):

Thank you for being part of this journey with me. I hope you gained valuable insights and inspiration today to keep growing and taking action towards your goals. Please follow me on social media. Also follow us on your favorite podcast platform to get notifications every time a new episode is uploaded. See you next time.