There is no I in team

One of the first things that I had to learn when I entered the corporate ranks was that working as a team is essential to your progress and development as a professional. It was not something that necessarily came naturally for a recently graduated student. I pondered on this recently and realized that in my field of study, Computer Science and Mathematics we were conditioned NOT to share and collaborate when doing assignments, the same can be said for other technical disciplines like Engineering. Grant it there was the odd course here or there that had group projects, those instances for me were more about doing what I need to do to get the best grade for me as opposed to doing so for the general good of the group.

Why then is working well in teams such an important requirement in a corporate setting? For starters, I am the first to admit that I am not a "know it all". Having others around means that I don’t have to have the answer for every single problem I encounter as someone else may already have the solution. Sometimes it is just good to have people to discuss ideas with. It is not uncommon when both my colleague and myself analyze the same problem, come up with two entire different solutions and in a number of those case my solution turned out to be the lesser of the two. There were other instances when I mulled over a problem for days and a quick 5 minute discussion with a colleague leads me to the solution.

My examples can go on and on, however I hope by now you get the point. There are definite advantages of working in a team environment that would help you develop and share knowledge with others. This ensures that the team as a whole is productive and gets the job done. The burning question is then: if the advantages are so wonderful, how can team dynamics can be so fractious at times? The reality is that the other members of that team are competing for the same promotions, projects and pool of compensation as you are! Which means that competition can unearth the unsavory side of the corporate world. Jealousy, sabotage and envy are real and they are a major reason why people try not to over extend themselves helping their team members, lest someone else gets the glory and attention at their expense.

When working with teams there must be a common understanding.

Firstly, respect for people’s time: Co-workers should help you of they can, however don’t expect that every single time you need help someone is going to stop what they are doing to help you complete your task while theirs are still undone.

Work independently: In the beginning you may need more assistance than you would after you have settled in. However, there is a problem when you are unable to complete any task without assistance.

Improve all the time: Don’t ask the same question multiple times. You are expected to retain and build on any assistance you receive so that the next time around you are able to execute on your own.

Simply put, there is no I in team. If handled correctly, you can work well together with your team mates and still achieve your personal goals as a professional.

Until next time remember, As long as you have life, you should live it to your fullest potential.