I often ask the executives I work with, “Who’s your number one team?”
Most answer, “My direct reports.” The truth?
Your number one team is the executive team you are a part of.
Too often, I see executive groups function more like a UN council. Cordial, respectful, and mostly advocating for what their department needs. Bargaining for resources. Protecting silos.
That’s a group. Not a team.
A true team shares one promise. They commit to results together and leverage their different contributions to make that promise real, no matter what their departmental teams are doing.
When we stop bargaining for “mine” and start building “ours,” it’s a transformative experience for everyone. The mood changes. Decisions speed up. And people rediscover the joy of contributing to something larger than themselves.
And the teams you lead? They’ll follow your example. They’ll begin to integrate because they see you modeling it.
This week, I invite you to gather your number one team to ask:
👉 What future are we promising as one team?
👉 How will we know we’re taking care of it?
👉 Where are we still holding onto “mine” instead of building “ours”?
If your executive team truly shared one promise, what new possibilities might open across your organization?