Joining an established team is very difficult. In most cases, team building happens with little intervention – the new team member is be welcomed and given time to bond, however in some cases the new team member will join a team with issues and where, regardless of the effort they make, they are unwelcome.
Consider the following when joining an established team.
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Listen more than you talk – It is particularly important when you join a new team. Entering as a know-it-all, set in your ways will not endear you to existing team members. This holds true no matter where you are from the US, Australia or the UK.
Team building will not be helped if you think you are better than everyone else.
- Listen & learn from other team members – what they do, what sort of characters they are. Remember, people resist change, dont tell them you know how to do things better than they do. Listen, you may even learn a better way.
- Avoid sentimentality – keep references to the team you have just worked with to the factual. Your new team will not want to listen to your recollections of what a great group of people you worked...