We all fancy ourselves as something between good to excellent "team players". I cannot remember how many times I have seen this overused statement on resumes and CVs. However, a smaller than expected percentage of the people interviewed actually show that they can "play" well in team settings.
Is "team play" or "team-working" that difficult? The short answer is "NO".
I find that the key issue is that many professionals confuse being friendly, being the "life-of-the-party", being outspoken, being able to drink themselves to a stupor in the company of workmates with good team work.
Wrong! Wrong! Over and over again...
The first key to excellent teamwork is "Connectivity"
Teamwork therefore is the ability to
- connect self with members of the team
- serve as the connecting pull between members of the team
- connect the team with external stakeholders and interested parties
- connect self to the shared goals of the team
- connect self to the shared values of the team
Humans are social beings - not designed for isolation, therefore, the ability to connect in inherent and natural. Team play is made difficult by:
- poor teaching on human interaction from parents and educational institutions
- underdevelopment of the natural ability to connect effectively
- overstating the individual over the community
- "Me Motivation" at the point of joining teams
- lack of understanding of the purpose of teams
So many people simply go ahead and either blatantly "lie" about being excellent team players or confuse team play with "fun and games".
I believe that the inability to connect [hence the malfunctioning of many "teams"] is sometimes hidden by the relative success of the wider organization. It however remains a real social problem that spills out of the home [where it originates]; into the school playground [where it germinates]; into the workplace [where it starts to negatively impact society].
It is vital that we "re-wire" our approach to team working by understanding and working towards connectivity.
Connectivity is the "giving of self to the team, such that both self and team are able to better realize the intended targets - within the agreed principle and ethical constructs".
Yomi
