These days, leadership books and courses are soaring in popularity. Yet studies tell us that employees are increasingly unhappy and “quietly quitting” in record numbers. This reveals that their expectation of leadership is changing.

Scripture calls us to love our team members first and foremost. But how does a leader know where to invest their time and attention?

In leadership or any creative endeavor, you will be more successful if you start by defining what the winning outcome looks like. And the outcome we’re calling a “strong team” may not be specific enough for some readers. So let’s go deeper for those that desire clarity—a strong team is one that is unified and resilient.

Resilience is generally defined as, the process of successfully adapting to external and internal demands, primarily through emotional, and behavioral flexibility. Resilient teams operate more efficiently, innovate more fluidly, and maintain a stronger sense of unity during challenging times. Resilience is the outcome of a process that begins by learning to appreciate your individual strengths and differences.

How will you know if your team is on the right path? Strong teams put a high value on three characteristics: caring, communication, and trust. These should be modeled publicly by the leader and expressed daily by the team.

Caring
This characteristic is what sets Ministry Insights’ tools apart from other team development courses and content. We believe an ongoing demonstration of care for your team is a biblical mandate for leaders. And team members should put each other first to help each other find answers, solve problems, and determine priorities.

Communication
Proactive communication develops trust, builds camaraderie, boosts morale, and fuels efficiency. The majority of issues can be resolved with clear and empathetic communication. Discovering and blending personal differences is foundational to good communication.

Trust
Management expert and author, Patrick Lencioni, says, “Teamwork begins by building trust. And the only way to do that is to overcome our need for invulnerability.” If your team member trusts that you won’t penalize them for interacting with you and others, they’re more likely to engage, participate, and perform at a higher level.

Invest in your team by discovering their strengths and begin building relational capital on that foundation.  Your team will thank you later.

Portions of this article were excerpted from the new Strong Teams Starter Pack, now available at MinistryInsights.com.