“Give a good idea to a mediocre team and they will screw it up. Give a mediocre idea to a great team and they will either fix it or come up with something better. If you get the team right, the chances are they’ll get the idea right.”

– Ed Catmull, Author of Creativity Inc and former president of Pixar.

Although a good team will make mistakes, I like this quote because it emphasizes the importance of your team.

However, it begs the definition of a “good team”.

When beginning to think of such a definition you may immediately start thinking of a laundry list of items. However, I think it’s important to identify the few, or singular, factors that serve as the foundation for other qualities.

As of now, I’m inclined to think the number one most important quality to have within a team is radical candor.

That is simply defined as caring personally about each other.

A team that cares personally listens to different perspectives and opinions and acquiring the skills needed to solve problems.

Developing a team that practices radical candor is difficult, but one person leading by example makes a big difference.