Planting Churches Among the City's Poor - Volume 2

P ART I: C OACHING U RBAN C HURCH P LANTERS • 79

Building the Team for Success Principles of Effective Team Play Rev. Dr. Don L. Davis

Team building is perhaps the single most effective means to accomplish objectives. Regardless of the domain – whether in business, athletics, commerce, industry, music, science, politics, education, or the military – teamwork can be an integral force in shaping one’s personal growth, as well as attaining group success. While there has been much written on the nature of teams, for our purposes we must look at the principles that undergird and support all effective team play. The following list of principles have been taken from my own reflection on the nature of effective team play, and are not considered to be an exhaustive list. In my mind, however, I consider these ten principles to be emblematic in the performance of all great teams, regardless of the task they face, and how they function together.

I. Persuasively articulate the vision for the team’s association, actions, efforts: The Principle of ARTICULATION.

A. Key Scripture: 1 Cor. 14.6-8

B. Definition of the Concept

1. “To understand and embrace, at every level of team involvement, our mutually agreed-upon and clearly stated mission, purpose, and goal statement”

2. “To articulate in a team is to envision for the team the dream, end, and goal it is and will be pursuing throughout the ‘season’”

C. The Principle Explained

1. This principle involves the vision that underlies the terms of the team’s mutual association, i.e., “Why are we together, and what do we want?” 2. The content of articulation in a team context is its shared visions, convictions, beliefs, and values, along with its reciprocal determination to live these out together effectively as a unit.