It occurred to me the other day while sitting at my son’s soccer game (or more correctly cheering hysterically when anyone of his teammates touched the ball) that you can learn a lot from 6-year old soccer – lessons that can even help you in business. I’ll even venture to say that you can learn a lot from any sports team but since my kid plays soccer, I’ll stick with that.
Lesson #1: Being on a team isn’t just about paying money and wearing the uniform. Being on a team is about being invested in the outcome. It’s about participating to the fullest so that you don’t let your teammates down. Maybe you have a team project at work. Maybe you think you don’t have to put in the time and effort it will take because your team will cover you. But think about it the other way – if everyone participates to their fullest, what kind of outcome will you have? Won’t working together at a high level produce a higher level project? I think so.
Lesson #2: Sometimes you have to play a position that you may not like. Being on a team is about filling in what it is needed. You may enjoy playing goalie, but you may be needed on the forward line. It's the same in business. You may enjoy standing in front of the room teaching a seminar but you might be needed to create nametags or provide feedback on a document. Pushing yourself to go outside of your normal position or role allows you to grow and it gives your team the opportunity to use your expertise in new ways.
Lesson #3: One teammate is not more important than any of the others. Sure you may have that superstar on the team who scores all the goals but everyone falls down sometimes. And everyone needs help getting back up when they do. Are you waiting for the superstar to fall or are you supporting them when they do?
Lesson #4: An assist is just as important as a goal. Wait WHAT? Without the goal you can’t win! You don’t have to be the best scorer on the team. It isn’t about what individual scores the most points. It’s about which team scores the most points. And I promise you, the teams that have more people “assisting,” is the team with the more goals scored. The more you assist others on your team at work, the more you win in business.
So what’s your focus? To win at all costs? To knock down your teammates so you can be the best? OR is it to work together, to become invested in the outcome, to participate to the fullest, to play the role you may not want to play if it is what is necessary, and to assist your teammates? If you become that kind of player, your team is well on its way to winning a championship!
Carrie Root is a project manager at entreQuest who works closely with companies to coordinate their course of achievement towards corporate growth and implement strategic training programs throughout the ranks of their organization.
