Built to Beat Chaos

CHAPTER 17Takes Ownership

…Don't just obey like people pleasers when they are watching. Instead, obey with the single motivation of fearing the Lord.

Colossians 3 (CEBA)

In this chapter, we will explore how to develop “ownership” for yourself and for your team. In the people engagement model (Figure 17.1), take ownership follows build oneness for a very important reason. The “build oneness” phase is where groups become united around team goals and at the same time begin to understand their own individual role in pursuit of those goals. Without that understanding, real ownership can't take place.

So what does ownership mean? I propose five traits.

Trait 1: Team Results Come First

The first and most important understanding is that the team wins and loses as a team. Team goals come first.

Like any team, there are team goals and individual responsibilities. Each person must understand the play being called and their part in that play. But they also have to subordinate their individual goals to the goals of the team.

FIGURE 17.1 People engagement model—take ownership.

This is exactly why the previous step of building “oneness” is so important. In it, everyone comes to understand what “one” means—the game we are playing and what winning means for the team.

The mindset of the team members has to be one of sacrificing their individual goals when needed to attain the team goals. ...