Rutendo Gwatidzo, Changing Perspectives Suppose people were drops of water, as an individual one would just equal a drop of water but if people come together they can make a cup full, a bucket full, it can be a stream, a river or even an ocean. Together we are much greater than our individual efforts. Some drops will be bigger than others but once they are in the ocean they all become one and it will be difficult to demarcate. Everyone will just behold and enjoy the beauty and strength of ocean waters without caring much for which river poured the most into the ocean. Also, once the water becomes an ocean, you find all types of fish and creatures that you cannot find in a bucket full. If you give someone a drop of water, that person may simply ignore it because it almost looks useless. This scenario illustrates the beauty of teamwork. Alone one achieves so little but as a team they achieve much more. Teamwork is one of the winning strategies to any project one can do in life yet it is also one of the least considered strategies by many. Many people including managers sadly, tend to focus on individual efforts and individual results. Alone, one can go fast but is likely to reach a limit but as a team, you may go slow trying to accommodate everyone but you reach far most of the times. Teamwork works wonders as it improves productivity which advances the satisfaction of many if not everyone. The process of sharing strengths and weaknesses brings stability that cannot be easily tempered with. Henry Ford (the man who invented Ford cars), was one of the most successful business man to have lived. He once said if everyone is moving forward together, then success takes care of itself. Teamwork is the ability to work together towards the achievement of a common goal or vision. Henry Ford also said, “coming together is a beginning, staying together is progress and working together is success.” Alone we quickly reach our limits but, together we go far. Look at soccer players for instance, the one who scores the ball would have received the ball from someone else and when they win, they do as a team even though it is one person who would have scored. The same applies if they lose, it will cost them as a team as well even though there are leaders within the teams. There is a difference between a group and a team. A group becomes a team when each member contributes to support the strengths of others for the achievement of common goals. Without supporting one another there is no teamwork. Common business can become uncommon and extra ordinary through teamwork. Organisational status Many teams within organisations compete against one another instead of complementing one another. To make it worse, even within a specific team, individuals compete against each other. For example, the sales department can be found competing against the marketing department, worse off, you can find people within the sales department competing against each other to the extent of even crushing others. Of course healthy competition should take place, it actually uplifts and promotes each other’s work. Satisfactory success should not come through crippling others to climb up the ladder, rather it should lift others up. An organisation is just like a human body where every joint is important. Come to think of it, if you hurt your toe, the whole body will feel it and, you may actually find yourself in the blankets simply because of one toe. The same applies in the workplace, failure of an individual or one department may affect the whole business. As such, putting minds and skills together as a team to accomplish results will most likely benefit the whole organisation eventually. Martin Luther King once said, “we may have come on different ships but, we are in the same boat now.” This statement simply shows that when different people meet at one organisation they simply need to focus on the accomplishment of one vision. The responsibility to succeed should not be upon the founder only to make it work but upon everyone riding on the same vision because if the business collapses everyone else gets affected. The secret is in working less as individuals and more as a teams to accomplish much. General facts of life Teamwork achieves the seemingly impossible things. Crazy visions turn into reality due to teamwork and collaboration. Even in life outside work, teamwork and collaboration remain crucial. Who can survive happily ever after on their own without needing neighbours? Alone the journey of life can become long, tiring and painful but with others it becomes easy. Sometimes being with others can be annoying but being alone can be more miserable. To enjoy life one needs to be able to be tolerant and to put up with others for the accomplishment of great things. Be challenged to be a team player if you are not one already. Learn to pass the ball to others so that if they score you win as a team. Trying to run with the ball by yourself puts you in the risk of losing the ball. Be inspired to provoke others to work as teams and be encouraged to be able to tolerate others for the accomplishment of one common goal. Rutendo Gwatidzo is the managing consultant at The HUB HR consultancy – as a culture and change management specialist. She is a multi-award winning leader, consultant, speaker and coach. She is also an author of ‘Born to Fight’ and ‘Breaking the Silence’ books. Feedback: Phone 0714575805/ winningstrategy.2020@gmail.com/ Rutendo Gwatidzo_Official fb public page