Larry Bird. Wayne Gretzky. Joe Montana.

Their names are synonymous with individual excellence.

Michael Jordan. Dominik Hasek. Brett Favre.

They are hailed among the absolute best to have ever played their respective sports.

LeBron James. Sidney Crosby. Peyton Manning.

And none of their accomplishments would have happened without their teammates.

Throughout the decades, there have been a small percentage of professional athletes who have captured the imaginations of men, women, and children, hoisted championship trophies above their heads, and been recognized as the most valuable players dozens of times over.

They've also transformed the literal and figurative fortunes of the companies for which they've worked.

But even with all the rings, trophies, magazine covers, endorsements, and envy, each of the athletes listed above are often the first to acknowledge that they might have never have soared so high if not for visionary leaders who built tremendous teams – and then built harmony among each of the teammates.

Using Whole Brain Thinking to Build Harmony

In other words, how many NBA Championship rings would Michael Jordan have if not for the brain-wizardry of Chicago Bulls Coach Phil Jackson, who got a previously floundering franchise off the ground by surrounding "Air Jordan" with the likes of Scottie Pippen, Horace Grant, and Dennis Rodman?

Of course, it's not always enough to simply give your best player a strong supporting cast. You also need to get them to work together in something as close to perfect harmony as you possibly can.

And that's where whole brain thinking comes in.

If ever there was an environment ripe for backbiting, scapegoating, blame, dysfunction, and sabotage, it's an NBA locker room full of some of the best athletes – and biggest egos – in the world. Each player had grown up being told they were the best. Each player held multi-million dollar contracts and endorsement deals to protect. Each player saw the court – and the world – through their own perspective.

Most would say that it would take a miracle to get players to set aside their personal goals, self-admiration, and pride in order to become a functional, harmonious team.

But that's exactly what Jackson was able to do – largely because he understood the value of whole brain thinking in team building.

Jackson, who is commonly referred to as the "Zen Master" for his ability to create complex offensive systems and get players to execute them, understood that his players were more than just cogs in his system. He understood that they were each individuals with different things that motivated them, ways of processing thoughts, and expressing themselves.

"My approach was always to relate to each player as a whole person, not just a cog in a basketball machine," Jackson has been quoted as saying. "That meant pushing him to discover what distinct qualities he could bring to the game beyond taking shots and making passes."

Jackson understood whole brain thinking and used it to show players that they could contribute something special to their team – even if they were not the star player.

You Can Build a Dynasty Too

The same principles Jackson leveraged to win six world championships in eight years can apply to your sales team.

Jackson once said that he has "always been interested in getting players to think for themselves so that they can make difficult decisions in the heat of battle."

What is implied in his statement is trust. Jackson trusted each of his players to make the right decisions. But he also empowered them to do so by trusting each other, which is critical.

As a result, each player did his job and the Chicago Bulls became one of the best teams ever – and did it with trust, little conflict, and a lot of harmony.