Slopes & Synergy: What Family Skiing Reveals About Building Great Teams

Dr. Sara Reed
Mar 6
4 min read

#Inspiredbylife -- How skiing with my family reminded me of great teams

Another day of skiing that created reflection on teams and leadership. One "ah ha" I had as our family skied is that sometimes we can assume that team members all need to be in the same place for a team to be "effective." Having led teams for almost three decades, I have not ever had every single person perfectly in the same place of growth, expertise, or thinking. And I am SO glad that I didn't. Last week, I realized that watching my family ski was the perfect analogy for the beautiful complexity of teams.

Big Idea Upfront: People often lead based on myths about teams, missing the opportunity to share leadership, leverage the talents of team members, and help everyone grow.

Question to Consider: Where might you be living a myth in your expectations of a team?

Myths about great teams:

It's all about the leader
The team needs to do everything together
A high-performing team means everyone is at the same level of understanding

Reframing Great Teams

As I watched my family, I realized we need to bust these myths about what a great team looks like. Instead, I was reminded of three things.

(1) Great teams leave space for different people to lead

(2) Great teams can split off to focus on different elements and come back together even stronger

(3) Great teams honor that different people are in different places

Leaving space for different team members to lead

Watching my family ski, I saw that everyone had to lead at some point. My husband is the expert, so if we hit a new or hard run, he led. When my youngest learned her way, she was upfront. She loves confidently leading the way, when she knows it.

Too often, the focus within organizations is on leaders, when it is the colleagues and teams that make or break a workplace. (Don't get me wrong—leaders matter too, but honestly, I think sometimes there is TOO much focus on leaders.)

Frequently, teams can default into only certain people leading. It might look like only a few people are given opportunities. Or it might look like only a few people speak up in meetings. I wrote previously about the importance of inviting others to lead.

Another aspect that lingers is that teams and team members need to do everything together.

Great teams can split off to focus on different elements and come back together even stronger

This splitting off to focus and coming together on the ski hill has looked a little different every week. One of my kids absolutely loves the autonomy to find runs and challenge themselves. My youngest wants to know that someone is nearby (usually behind her) in case she falls. I generally stick to the greens and blues. My husband swaps between skiing with the slower group and my kiddos, who challenge themselves weekly with a new speed or mileage goal. When we come together for a break or on the way home, everyone is excited to share something they saw, or tried, or learned. I’ve experienced similar things when leading teams.

The myth that great teams do everything together has some potential negative impacts. It can create pressure to do only what the leader wants or minimize a team member’s comfort in sharing that they might not want to do something. Even worse, choosing to split off could lead to a team member feeling like an outsider, creating an unhealthy dynamic on teams. In my experience, teams don't always have to move at the same speed or do the same thing to be effective. Instead, as a leader, I have benefited from having team members explore new ideas and bring innovation.

Separation doesn’t weaken great teams—it makes them stronger when they reunite, creating energy and enthusiasm for something new to try.

Great teams honor that different people are in different places

When it comes to skiing and our family, my husband IS the expert. (I'm surprised to find myself not stressing about tough blues and moguls this year.) My teenagers are skilled and try new things every week. My youngest has gone from the bunny hill to skiing tough runs this season.

When team members are new or learning something, they might hesitate to rush into something, seeking guidance or a mentor who can answer questions. One of my favorite concepts is the S-Curve. I've learned about this concept from various places, and one of my favorites is Whitney Johnson, who captures in her book Build an A-Team: Play to Their Strengths and Lead Them Up the Learning Curve. The part that I love the most is "new launch point," which is the point in which someone on your team needs a new challenge.

Using my family as an example, there have been new S-Curves every few trips, and I love the reminder that a great team:

Welcomes new people with open arms
Sees and honors strengths, not through a competitive lens but through a collaboration lens
Encourages growth for all team members

Life gives us many chances to think about how our thoughts and beliefs impact those around us. I love that a family hobby reminded me of the importance of examining the myths in my life that might need to be busted.