We now turn to Tokyo to watch the greatest of all team events – the summer Olympics. Years of work from athletes, coaches and governing bodies culminate here. Although this is strictly speaking not true. This is the culmination of just one chapter, the storyline for subsequent chapters has already been written. The next national team is already waiting in the wings.

What we can learn from this is that long term preparation is critical to the success of a team.

• Consider and improve every facet of team performance.
• Communicate with awareness and regulation.
• Show a respectful regard for others.
• Understand what motivates each individual team member, even when there isn’t the adrenaline of a deadline to meet or medal to strive for.
• Identify where to improve resilience, especially when under pressure. Work with personal strengths to make improvements and support each other in weaker areas.

Having a better understanding of the personalities and soft skills of our colleagues and leaders helps us all to better interpret their actions and reactions. For instance, a lack of confidence could easily come across to the rest of the team as lacking purpose or negativity. In this instance, instead of focusing on the negative, work with the individual to develop their self-confidence to see greater autonomy and productivity shine through. This however, will not happen overnight. It will take time, there may be setbacks, but it will be worth it to have a team member who is able to perform at their best.