A culture of a unity is one of the most important attributes of a team. A team that is united in vision, in culture and in purpose produces good fruit and continues to move forward. A team that lacks unity, however, is difficult to mobilize and to progress.

Here are three keys to creating a culture of unity:

1. Relationship

Building relationships with the people in your team is critical in creating a culture of unity. Developing relationships doesn’t just happen on a Sunday when you’re serving, but it happens throughout the week. It means spending time with the people on your team and doing life with them, not just doing the tasks. It means being aware of what’s going on in people’s lives. It means making sure that everyone in your team is connected to someone.

Relationships are key because it ensures that people know that they’re not doing this journey alone, but they are part of a team, a community and a family.

2. Communication

Make an effort to consistently communicate the vision, the heart and the purpose of what you’re doing. This way, your team knows what you’re fighting for and what you’re trying to achieve. Help people to understand the bigger picture of what you’re doing.

Encourage and thank the people you serve alongside. People often underestimate what they’re carrying and sometimes are unsure if what they’re doing actually makes a difference. Communicate to your team in such a way that they’ll understand the significance of who they are, what they’re doing and what they’re contributing. Point things out in people, help them identify their gifts and help them realise that they are making a difference.

3. Modeling

Be intentional about modeling unity – this means consistently involving your team, working together and being intentional with your vocabulary – such as ‘we’, ‘our’ and ‘us’.

As leaders, we have the responsibility to be intentional with the culture we want to have and to actually model this culture. If we’re not intentional about the culture we’re creating, then the default culture of our society is going to become the culture we have in our team, and this isn’t necessarily ideal.

Define the culture you want, speak it, encourage it, model it and help people take ownership of it.

Ultimately, people want to be part of the bigger picture. People want to be part of something bigger than they are. People want to be part of something significant. Let’s be committed to fighting for unity in our team and doing what needs to be done to ensure that our team is unified in vision, culture and purpose.

This thought was originally shared during a webinar on Team Building by our Hillsong New York team during ‘Online Open Week’ in February 2016. Online Open Week is your opportunity to receive impartation and training direct from the Hillsong team through live webinars.

If you would like to watch the full recording or find out more about future events from the Hillsong Leadership Network, click below.