Sport brings us so many analogies of what this is like. We get to go to the footy and make observations about what role someone has played for their team and how they went about it. We see the admirable qualities the team has, yet we also see individual ‘players’ on our team that give their all alongside the ones that contribute little to the team outcome. Sometimes, because of personal brilliance, individual players get away with behaviours that simply do not reflect a team attitude.

I had the pleasure of playing along a player by the name of Shaun Hart. He was the benchmark of team attitude for me at the Brisbane Lions. Despite pressure and fatigue, his decisions always reflected what was in the best interest of the team. Under-rated in the public arena but pure gold within the inner-sanctum, he was respected enormously by his peers and was the ultimate support player. The worker-bee.

Sydney is a team filled with examples of support and responsibility. Their ability to cover for one another is typical Swans style and is admired by everyone for achievements on and off the football field. Even Barry Hall who, despite a brain fade against West Coast when he lashed out and punched an opposition player, stood up the very next day and said it wasn’t good enough, it was unacceptable and that he had let his team down and the young fans for whom he is a role model. That’s leadership. It doesn’t matter who it is – personal behaviour is a team priority that drives a team result.

This all starts with leaders. If leaders can take enough ownership for the performance of the team and measure people on this, despite other technical competencies alone, then peer pressure ensures their survival in that environment.

And if they don’t ... well I would argue that it is best at some point that they do make the decision to leave as your team will be better for it.

Look across your own team. Who is taking responsibility for the team results; who is supporting others to achieve their outcomes and driving the standards that are expected within your work environment? Be the team that becomes the contender rather than a bunch of talented individuals who could have been anything. Michael Voss is a former triple Australia Football League (AFL) premiership captain of the Brisbane Lions and is regarded as one of the all-time greats of the modern era. He played 289 AFL games from 1992-2006, won the coveted Brownlow Medal in 1996, was a five-times All-Australian selection, including twice as captain, and skippered the Lions for 10 years, including the 2001-02-03 premierships.

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