As Americans start spending money again, companies are stepping up production. The good news: more people are getting hired. The other news: more people have to adjust to new co-workers and new initiatives. Great leaders recognize the value – and the challenge - of building cohesive teams. Motivating groups of people from disparate backgrounds, whose trust banks might be limited, is possible if leaders seek out strengths, keep communication channels flowing and recognize that even serious situations can sometimes be handled lightly.

Leader Jake is sweating over a team that never wins. He hopes to teach and develop the group by identifying weaknesses and helping players overcome deficiencies. He leaves work every day exhausted and frustrated; his employees have learned, all right, that they’re inept, incapable of ever doing anything well.