LA 046: How Shared Situational Awareness can make or crush your future

In this episode you will recognise dysfunctions observed in your business, organisation or team and be able to remedy them relatively easily and quickly. But first, let me share a moment in my own life when my personal situational awareness was severely compromised: I was teetering on the edge of the abyss, the breeze felt like it was gently mocking and luring me over the cliff and down to the unwelcoming rocks beneath. It was so tempting to just let gravity take charge and give over to the fate of failure. I snapped out from the dangerous thinking and checked my wrist computer. I'd stayed too long hovering here, I needed to return to the surface before the poisonous nitrogen made me lose all perspective. I pressed a tiny blast of air into my jacket to lift me upward to the waiting boat.  Scuba diving is a tremendous example of having complete situational awareness Scuba diving is a tremendous example of having complete situational awareness: To enjoy the experience, you need to be trained and be completely aware of everything that is going on with you, your buddy, other divers, the creatures of the deep, your depth, your air, the time, your breathing. Oh, and watch out for that Conga eel lurking protectively under that rock. And is that a white tip or a tiger shark in the distance? And because you never dive alone, that situational awareness needs to be shared with your buddy and everyone else in the water with you. Scuba diving has the potential to show you the most awesome creatures and places on this beautiful planet and the potential to crush you. We all have, within us, that same potential. To show the world something awesome or to crush ourselves into insignificance. So what was happening to me as I teetered on the edge of that abyss being tempted to slip over the edge and dive down deep when my conscious mind should be screaming at me to avoid such danger? Why had my mind slipped into some sort of reverie - an almost dreamlike momentary lapse of concentration? The Five components of effective teams are integrated and together create this thing we call "synergy". Performance issues in teams are rooted in one or more of five distinct areas: The first is the command instruction(s) for the team. The second is shared experience. Third (and most neglected) is shared situational awareness shared values. and lastly Effective and engaging communication In each area, there are common key issues. This is not meant to be an exhaustive list of the symptoms, just an overview of the top and most frequently uncovered issues. A lack of clear direction, which can be a lack of clarity and, or lack of direction. Frequently, there are team leadership roles missing within the team. The team themselves may function reasonably well, but without leadership, they falter under pressure. Just watch any football or rugby match when the skipper is injured or sent off. Many teams work in silos, individuals or small groups working independently from the others. Sharing little information, knowledge or expertise. This situation is often exacerbated by unhealthy rivalry between team members or sub groups. The third, and often neglected factor of team cohesiveness is, shared situational awareness. Team members may cooperate, but they do not collaborate. Essentially, team members can be nice enough to each other and say that they agree, but their actions defy their words. Many teams have something of a blame culture. This is when individuals give as much or even, more time, covering their own backsides, and when anything goes wrong, it is always someone else who is to blame. Shared values are the foundation of any team. Whether it is the pride in representing country, or the simple desire to make every single day your masterpiece. When personal values are in conflict with the presumed shared values, the personal values will win out every time. When a footballer's livelihood depends on his performance in the EPL next month and nothing to do with