It is good to take one for the team

“Individual commitment to group effort - that is what makes a team work, a company work, a society work, a civilization work.” Vince Lombardi

At times, it seems like the world runs on football, and while I’m not an avid fan, I’ve learnt to live with and learn from the beautiful game. During the ongoing Euro 2016 that unleashed a dormitory burning craze across the country, I walked into one match-watching session in my home and heard  my son shouting, “There’s no-one in defense!”

Sure enough, a goal was scored to much grunting and shouting. I wanted to know more about ‘defense’ and how leaving it wide open can lead to loss in football and life. He agreed to explain it to me. After the match. What I learned during my ‘education’, led to understand just how important playing your place or role is in teamwork. And while we always think of teams in relation to sports or work, we generally tend to form teams in all other areas of life. 

Consider this: a husband and wife are meant to be a team, as is a family, a business partnership, a Bible study, an investment club or even a neighborhood. Human beings love to gather in groups, around common goals and values. Once a formal group is formed, people will be appointed into roles or positions. Occasionally, especially in informal groups, they will appoint themselves those roles. In your family, there is usually one person appointed the ‘religious leader’ or pastor, and they are usually the ones called to open or close meetings in prayer.

LEADERS WHO ABDICATE

There will be the coordinator who keeps information flowing and the leader whom everyone turns to for direction. Things usually move along smoothly as long as everyone plays their part. Trouble starts when there is no-one in defense or offense in critical times and the team suffers a devastating blow. The worst thing a team can do is to give in to confusion and panic. The worst thing a leader in crisis can do, whether they are a parent, head teacher or business person is to abdicate. The cost is too high and we see it in dysfunctional families, disintegrating businesses and relegated sports teams.

Someone let the team down. Someone did not play their role. It might be the father who abandoned his family, the emotionally abusive mother who raps on everyone or the disobedient child who brings heartache. In business, it is the employee who steals company products or time, or the employer who fails to steer the company out of perilous times. Teams thrive when team members take personal responsibility and work together cohesively.

Occasionally, the other team members place too much pressure on the leader or in football, the striker, forgetting that even the ‘smallest’ of  roles counts. In a homestead, the head of the home could have invested in the latest crime deterring technology but all that does not matter if the weak link is the guard at the gate.

The defense is down, and once intruders figure it out, the family are sitting ducks. It may be the least paying job but it is the one that could cost that family it’s lives. All because a member of the team did not do what he was supposed to. In a January 20, 2016 article on teamwork on Forbes.com, Luis Romero writes, “Teamwork is a challenge in and of itself. It requires that people manage their egos, develop humility, communicate effectively, resolve conflicts and above all, commit to one another and a common goal.” 

So look around you. Which teams are you playing in? What’s your role? What can you do to make your team stronger and more cohesive? We all want better functioning and happier relationships, safer neighborhoods and thriving businesses. The team won’t get there if you don’t do your part. We know it works in business and football. Why not put it into practice in life?