Just recently I had someone share the idea of being team as compared to being part of a team.
We didn’t have time to talk further, and yet when they said it, I was taken – and so I’ve been left to evaluate why this resonated for me so deeply and wanted to share some thoughts in case this lands as compelling for you and your team as well.
In the world we tend to play as individuals – taking care of our own square footage. And there’s many days when quite honestly that feels like both a lot and enough.
We share, here’s who I am and what I’m up to in the world. Then we learn about the other. Then we might work together – two-gether. Still often separate in our contribution.
I talk about the importance of Interdependency Awareness in a team and how “each piece is mission critical to the whole and the whole is mission critical to each piece.” However as I think about it, this still falls within the paradigm of independently thinking of our individual selves as part of something – a piece in the grand puzzle – rather than a drop in the ocean. The other analogy that occurs to me, that straddles both of these, are starlings who instinctively dance in flight together as one – as a collective.
I am taken by my own dichotomy – a somewhat lone wolf who has taken pride in my own square footage and yet desires to both create and experience a stronger sense of community, belonging and inclusion. I love those deep, meaningful conversations and exchanges that leave us delightfully perplexed and in a state of consideration and wonderment – almost always leading to a surprising insight, awareness or innovation. These don’t occur solo.
So I ask myself, and I ask you if you’re compelled, what would it look like to be team rather than be a part of a team?
I have a few answers that I’m beginning to formulate, however I’d love to hear yours and those of your team.
And for more great scoop on what it means to be team, check out Culture Works. Also available on Amazon.
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Kris Boesch is the CEO and Founder of Choose People, a company that transforms company cultures, increases employee happiness and boosts the bottom-line. She is a nationally renowned speaker and workplace culture expert. Boesch is also the author of Culture Works: How to Create Happiness in the Workplace and developer of the Choose People 360° Culture Audit. Kris is also a proud mother, dancing diva and dog lover.
