The Five Dysfunctions of a Team Quotes

“Trust is knowing that when a team member does push you, they're doing it because they care about the team.”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

“Remember teamwork begins by building trust. And the only way to do that is to overcome our need for invulnerability.”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

“Great teams do not hold back with one another. They are unafraid to air their dirty laundry. They admit their mistakes, their weaknesses, and their concerns without fear of reprisal.”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

“It's as simple as this. When people don't unload their opinions and feel like they've been listened to, they won't really get on board.”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

“Politics is when people choose their words and actions based on how they want others to react rather than based on what they really think.”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

“Not finance. Not strategy. Not technology. It is teamwork that remains the ultimate competitive advantage, both because it is so powerful and so rare.”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable

“If you could get all the people in an organization rowing in the same direction, you could dominate any industry, in any market, against any competition, at any time.”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable

“Some people are hard to hold accountable because they are so helpful. Others because they get defensive. Others because they are intimidating. I don’t think it’s easy to hold anyone accountable, not even your own kids”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

“A fractured team is just like a broken arm or leg; fixing it is always painful, and sometimes you have to rebreak it to make it heal correctly. And the rebreak hurts a lot more than the initial break, because you have to do it on purpose P.37”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

“If we don’t trust one another, then we aren’t going to engage in open, constructive, ideological conflict.”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable

“I don’t think anyone ever gets completely used to conflict. If it’s not a little uncomfortable, then it’s not real. The key is to keep doing it anyway”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

“A team that is not focused on results ... • Stagnates/fails to grow • Rarely defeats competitors • Loses achievement-oriented employees”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable

“The enemy of accountability is ambiguity”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

“Members of teams that tend to avoid conflict must occasionally assume the role of a “miner of conflict”—someone who extracts buried disagreements within the team and sheds the light of day on them. They must have the courage and confidence to call out sensitive issues and force team members to work through them. This requires a degree of objectivity during meetings and a commitment to staying with the conflict until it is resolved. Some”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable

“Great teams make clear and timely decisions and move forward with complete buy-in from every member of the team, even those who voted against the decision. They leave meetings confident that no one on the team is quietly harboring doubts about whether to support the actions agreed on.”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable

“The ultimate test of a great team is results. And considering that tens of thousands of people escaped from the World Trade Center towers in New York City and the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., there can be no doubt that the teams who risked, and lost, their lives to save them were extraordinary.”
― Patrick M. Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable

“To achieve results. This is the only true measure of a team P.42”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

“If we don’t trust one another, then we aren’t going to engage in open, constructive, ideological conflict. And we’ll just continue to preserve a sense of artificial harmony.”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable

“Trust is the foundation of real teamwork.”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable

“A lack of healthy conflict is a problem because it ensures the third dysfunction of a team: lack of commitment. Without having aired their opinions in the course of passionate and open debate, team members rarely, if ever, buy in and commit to decisions, though they may feign agreement during meetings.”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable

“Push with respect, and under the assumption that the other person is probably doing the right thing. But push anyway. And never hold back.”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable

“Commitment is a function of two things: clarity and buy-in”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

“How many of you would rather go to a meeting than a movie?” No hands went up. “Why not?” After a pause, Jeff realized that her question was not a rhetorical one. “Because movies are more interesting. Even the bad ones.” His peers chuckled. Kathryn smiled. “Right. But if you really think about it, meetings should be at least as interesting as movies.”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable

“Consensus is horrible. I mean, if everyone really agrees on something and consensus comes about quickly and naturally, well that’s terrific. But that isn’t how it usually works, and so consensus becomes an attempt to please everyone.”
― Jossey-Bass, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable

“The first dysfunction is an absence of trust among team members. Essentially, this stems from their unwillingness to be vulnerable within the group. Team members who are not genuinely open with one another about their mistakes and weaknesses make it impossible to build a foundation for trust. This failure to build trust is damaging because it sets the tone for the second dysfunction: fear of conflict. Teams that lack trust are incapable of engaging in unfiltered and passionate debate of ideas. Instead, they resort to veiled discussions and guarded comments. A lack of healthy conflict is a problem because it ensures the third dysfunction of a team: lack of commitment. Without having aired their opinions in the course of passionate and open debate, team members rarely, if ever, buy in and commit to decisions, though they may feign agreement during meetings. Because of this lack of real commitment and buy-in, team members develop an avoidance of accountability, the fourth dysfunction. Without committing to a clear plan of action, even the most focused and driven people often hesitate to call their peers on actions and behaviors that seem counterproductive to the good of the team. Failure to hold one another accountable creates an environment where the fifth dysfunction can thrive. Inattention to results occurs when team members put their individual needs (such as ego, career development, or recognition) or even the needs of their divisions above the collective goals of the team.”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable

“find someone who can demonstrate trust, engage in conflict, commit to group decisions, hold their peers accountable, and focus on the results of the team, not their own ego.”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable

“Success is not a matter of mastering subtle, sophisticated theory, but rather of embracing common sense with uncommon levels of discipline and persistence.”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable

“trust is not the same as assuming everyone is on the same page as you, and that they don’t need to be pushed.”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable

“Therefore, it is key that leaders demonstrate restraint when their people engage in conflict, and allow resolution to occur naturally, as messy as it can sometimes be. This can be a challenge because many leaders feel that they are somehow failing in their jobs by losing control of their teams during conflict. Finally, as trite as it may sound, a leader’s ability to personally model appropriate conflict behavior is essential. By avoiding conflict when it is necessary and productive—something many executives do—a team leader will encourage this dysfunction to thrive.”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable

“Politics is when people choose their words and actions based on how they want others to react rather than based on what they really think.” The room was silent.”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable