The Wisdom of Teams

Working on a high-performance team is challenging, yet is exhilarating and fun. If you want to get something done do it yourself, if you want go farther join a productive team.

 

For example...............

 

My sophomore year in high-school I played on a football team that ranked 3rd in the entire state in defense. I was the third inside linebacker (of two) so I got to rotate with the starters. I averaged playing about half the game on defense. Due to such a stout defense I had the opportunity to blitz quite often. That year as a part-time defensive player I had five sacks, two blocked punts, and a fumble recovery. I loved being a contributor to a winning team. The most exhilarating part of playing on this team was that we won over half of our games in the fourth quarter. We were almost always down by half-time but we had this confidence and expectance that we were going to win the game, and we almost always did. We finished that year 8-2.

 

Fast forward to my senior year in high-school. The record from my sophomore year was reversed. Instead of 8-2 we went 2-8. While leading the team in tackles I was unable to make as many "splash" plays because I was relied upon to be the last line of defense to secure the tackle. Our next to last game we lost by a score of 49-0. The team we played against even put in their second team players and even the second teamers scored on us. What I remember most though was how our team handled the loss afterwards. The locker room was casual and relaxed. The players went into the game expecting defeat and were ok with not giving their best. It was demoralizing to play on this team.

 

I have recently finished and read the book, "The Wisdom of Teams", by Katzenbach and Smith. This book helped me to actualize and understand why my sophomore football team was so great and my senior football team was so lousy.

 

High performance teams focus on performance, have mutual accountability, take initiatives, and know how to have fun. High performance teams do not settle for anything less than their best and are equally committed to each other's personal and individual growth.

 

High performance teams understand that they are creating a movement that is "bigger than themselves." These teams not only believe that the results will happen, they expect them to happen!

 

In being a part of teams and in leading teams I love the thrill of "taking an ordinary group of people and in doing something extraordinary." What teams are you a part of? Are you focused on performance/mission?

 

I'd rather be a complimentary part to a winning team than the leader of a losing team! There is something about winning together!