Can Lone Wolves Be Great Team Players?

Human personalities the world over, are divided down extrovert and introvert lines with both team players, and lone wolves present in every workplace.

Not sure which camp you are in? Ask yourself these questions:

1. Do you like discussing business questions with your colleagues when making decisions?
2. Would you prefer active brainstorming to research of data on your own?
3. Do you feel productivity inflow when working with a team?

If you answered ‘Yes’ to all of them, you’re a team player and can highlight this point in your resume. :)

Companies consider this a great advantage when hiring. Even in industries such as IT, cooperation within a team is unavoidable. Developers not only write code but have to interact with project managers, designers, quality assurance specialists, and even marketers.

If you answered ‘No’, you probably prefer to work individually. Don’t worry, we’ll tell you how to apply personal effectiveness within teamwork and explain why collaboration shouldn’t scare you. Being an individualist doesn’t mean that your next employer will consider this a weakness; far from it!

Some of us at Collabio Spaces are introverts and have worked hard to overcome the perceived obstacles this can create. We’ve come to realise that these obstacles often only exist in our thoughts. We shall share our tried and tested tips with you today.

Before we start, let’s compare both options and see what benefits they have:

Pros of Individual Work

1. Accountable for your results and better control over all processes. You might not rely so heavily on others and will, more often than not, meet the deadline.
2. Committed to new challenges. Learning on your own may be not easy, but for people who prefer independent research, it’s often an effective way of securing professional development without compromising ongoing tasks/work.
3. Full autonomy and independence from schedules of others. You won’t wait until your colleague finishes their part to start yours.
4. No miscommunication. When you don’t have to set tasks for others or explain why you have done something in a certain way, you save time and effort.
5. Deep focus, as you don’t have to switch between activities. Teamwork implies being connected throughout the day. People may ask you urgent questions, which commonly distracts. This issue doesn’t arise when you’re working alone.

Pros of Teamwork

1. ‘Together’ means ‘faster’. Distributed processes come to the finish line earlier. Your effort is multiplied by the number of colleagues!
2. Diversity. Every team member has their own set of skills, professional background and specific experience. Put these together in the context of teamwork and you have the potential for resilient and thorough results. . As the saying goes, two heads are always better than one.
3. Fewer chances for being biased. Various points of view and a critical look ‘from above’ are always helpful.
4. Support in force-majeure situations. You can rely on colleagues to continue working towards deadlines, even when you are not there. It’s just impossible when you work individually.
5. Learning from others who share only proven experience. They filter information and share only working tips. Also, mentorship in teams is very popular nowadays, so you can just learn from people and implement their best practices in your sphere.

Is there a perfect option?

Yes and no! . Both approaches have pros and cons, and it’s not recommended to choose one path over another. We’d never wish for you to lose the rich opportunities offered by the opposite way of working.

Combining the two approaches to work is an ideal we all should strive for. Even those who prefer not to communicate much with people around can become team players, when necessary. And we’ll tell you how to do it.

How to Become a Team Player If You’re an Introvert

1. Embrace the skills of being introverted. If you still prefer to work individually, it’s okay! As we’ve seen, the skills of working with degrees of independence certainly bring gains to your team. Working with our own strengths is important and will ensure teamwork thrives from its diversity. We believe that teammates will understand if you prefer coding, designing, writing or anything else to taking part in plenty of meetings!
2. Create a balance that works for you. Even in the office, there might be a corner where you tend to work, headphones in and determined to avoid interruption. Sound familiar? Of course, sometimes you’ll have to take part in discussions, but if you alternate activities, you won’t get tired of them!
3. Communicate with teammates outside of work. For many of us, it’s difficult to treat all people as easily as we treat our closest friends. Try chatting with colleagues about something of interest after business hours. It doesn’t have to be a large gathering of workmates. We bet it will be easier to interact with them on work issues at other times.
4. Do not be discouraged if teamwork does not immediately bring results. Though many companies value collaboration, it is not magic and won’t grant miracles. Be ready for some miscommunication, poor results and a bunch of improvements to implement. It is about trial and error and learning as you go. Engage curiously, add a little patience and we’re sure you will be pleased with the final results!
5. Feel free to share ideas and feedback. If you don’t want to talk much, write a message or email. Over time it will become a habit and you will see that your thoughts are highly valued, so there’s nothing to be shy of!
6. Listen to team members and take their opinions into account. Of course, you may be sure that your expertise is enough. However, colleagues may come up with more creative ideas. Treat suggestions as opportunities to grow, not as criticism. All in all, it is not about competing; it’s about moving towards a common goal!

Finding a perfect balance is key for every team member. If you’re a lone wolf, it’s on you to dedicate some effort into teamwork during business hours. For that, you should realise that:

1. You’re safe.
2. You won’t be judged.
3. You won’t be blamed for mistakes.
4. You’ll benefit from it.

All limits are in the mind! We’re sure that everyone can become a great team member, no matter what type of personality they are!