I have not been the best of myself in managing a team over the years, for me it was a tough nut to crack, long road to sail, great hurdles to jump, long distance to cover and a deep pit to fill.

I used to believe everyone who was on my team should remain on the team probably because I envisaged the best which is yet to manifest in them, because of my personal affiliation to my team members or because i believed the more people on the trip the bigger the party.

And most importantly!!!!

I have a very soft spot for my team members. It soften my ability to make vital decisions and even when those decisions were made, it became so difficult to hold.

A great lesson i learnt from the just concluded World Cup was the decision of the Croatian team Manger Zlatco Dalic to ax one of the best team player Nikola Kalinic from the team for refusing to come in as a late substitute during their opening match against Nigeria, citing a back injury as his excuse.

Report had it that the Croatian star player Nikola Kalinic cited the same excuse in a friendly match against Brazil and even used it during previous training session.

Those critical actions prompted the manager Zlatco Dalić to send him home on the fifth day of the World Cup, Dalić stated that he needed "prepared players.

We all saw the great feat the Croatian team pulled during the course of the world Cup without one of their most reliable strike force.

The simple act and decision of the manager changed my perspective about teamwork and further solidified my spot about decision making.

A man whose leadership work guide me once said; "If you have people on your team who are weak links, you really have only two choices: "Train them or trade them".

The first decision would be to equip them, delegate responsibilities and duties to them, send them nuggets and refer them to personal development works(books, audio etc).

If they can't be trained and still exhibit toxic and cancerous attitude they need to be given the opportunity to find solace somewhere else. Sometimes a team member can turn a winning team into a losing one, either through lack of skill or a poor attitude, a weak link is also capable of altering the hard work and commitment of the pack.

A leader cannot avoid dealing with weak links, as long as you have several weak links in the team not only will the leader suffer, the team and the vision might be negatively affected as well. In those cases you must put the team first and make changes for the greater good.

If your team is infected by an unrepentant weak link, who has refused to step up or rise to the commitment and efficiency level of the team despite your giant size effort to ensure development and improvement, then you have to make a trade.

It is very important to let go such individual with respect, honesty and clear reasons, Once such individual is successfully off the team it is best to explain to the team reasons for your actions (while maintaining the respect) to increase the commitment for the goal of the team.

Always remember the greater the dream, the greater the team and as the challenge escalates, the need for teamwork elevates.

As long as a team is deeply infected with the menace of uncommitted members; not only would the other members suffer and be infected, but the goal would also be altered, shattered and compromised.

Have a great weak ahead.

Warm Regards.