Does this sound familiar? “My team’s a mess. They complain all the time. I have one that’s gossiping and another that’s crying in my office every other day. They’re making me crazy and they are not getting anything done.”

Team problems don’t start with the extreme. Signs of problems can be much more subtle. Silence where there used to be interaction, whispered conversations, cliques forming, and even people changing their patterns for no apparent reason, like coming in later or leaving earlier.

If your team looks like this, you have a culture problem.

Stop, breathe and listen
The only way to fully understand what’s going on is to understand what beliefs, behaviours and even processes are supporting the problem. It starts by getting feedback.

Your team will have opinions about what’s going on. Ask them about it. If you’re lucky, they’ll be willing to talk to you candidly. If you ask and heads are down or everyone is insisting everything’s ok, you have a trust issue. Find a way to gather feedback anonymously.

Value the feedback
You may not like what you hear, but you can’t ignore it. Don’t dismiss the feedback by labeling your team as bunch of whiners or hotheads. There’s truth in what they’re sharing.

Some of the feedback may feel like an attack. As impossible as it seems, you can’t take it personally. Try to approach the information with curiosity instead of judgment. Think of it as a springboard to action. It’s about getting information and seeing the situation from their view.

Be honest with yourself. Start by accepting that there may be aspects of your leadership that need to change. You need to examine how you’re contributing to the situation.

Once you take it all in, take the time to uncover your team’s vision of what the culture can be. Don’t get hung up on building your vision for the team. Engage everyone in contributing to the vision of what can be.

Find someone to help process the information
If the feedback is overwhelming or you’re having trouble figuring out next steps, find someone who can help. An outside perspective will bring new light to the situation. They should be willing and able to challenge your existing beliefs and assumptions.

Find small ways to change patterns
Once you have an idea of where the problems lie, look for ways to shift behaviours and thinking. If your team has a tendency to focus on the negative, have them share successes. Ask for their ideas to for making changes and hold them – and yourself – accountable when old patterns creep in.

Be patient
Change doesn’t happen over night. Keep an eye out for signs of improvement. Maybe laughter returns or someone makes an effort to include a co-worker in a decision. Acknowledge those signs with a bit of humour. It can’t hurt to say, “Hey, this is great, we’ve gotten through an entire meeting with no longer name calling!” It lightens the mood and helps people see when things are getting better.

If you don’t see improvement, it’s time to get help. An unhealthy team won’t fix itself. You can’t just hope a problem person will leave or everyone’s attitude will get better. Leadership is about taking action.

If you have questions about your team, call today to talk about how improving your culture can improve everyone’s productivity.