Team Work for Dummies
What’s team work, and why you suck at it — or not.
“A good team is like a €500 bill. Everybody knows it exists, but nobody has ever seen one.”
I don’t know anybody who says he (or she) is not good at team work. In fact, it’s one of the most repeated expressions in résumés and cover letters. HR experts, however, recommend not to abuse it. It’s not that you can’t use it, but you would be better off explaining the results you’ve achieved as a result of a collaboration, rather than just throwing the words to make the CV look nicer.
Being good at teamwork is not good or bad. At least, it’s not better or worse than any other work skill. Just as not everyone is able to do spreadsheets with macros, and that’s alright, not all jobs involve teamwork. Teamwork implies not just doing your part of the job, but doing it when it’s required and where it’s required within a whole process. Synchronization is vital for teamwork. Versatility is another quality of good team workers.
That said, I love teamwork and I’m very good at it. I love the feeling of a team engaging like a chain.
Anyway, as you have probably noticed, there are people who say that they like teamwork — or that they are good at it — who really don’t know what they are talking about, so I’m going to explain how teamwork works with a few examples.
Case 1: A dinner.
Situation one:
You have invited some friends over for dinner, and you want to cook for them. You take on the whole process by yourself: you choose the menu, you shop, you prepare the dishes, and you even eat them! This is NOT teamwork (considering, of course, that eating together is not work).
Situation two:
You have invited some friends over for dinner, but you have asked each friend to bring something. In the end, everyone collaborates with the dinner and is supposed to bring a starter, a main dish or a dessert. Your friends arrive at your place and two have brought a cake, one has brought some starters, and another a bottle of wine. What was supposed to be a cool friends dinner, ends up being a complete disaster. This is NOT teamwork (it’s a mess.)
Situation three:
You have invited some friends over for dinner, and two of them want to help you cook, so they get to your place very early. A third has also helped you with the shopping, and she brings some vegetables and drinks. You cook, helped by your friends, who will peel potatoes, wash tomatoes, or slice and chop anything else that has to be sliced or chopped for you. This is teamwork. You need the help of your peers to do a good job. You need to be synchronized and engaged to deliver the work properly.
Case 2: A soccer team.
Situation one:
You have loved soccer since you can remember. You were the most popular soccer player at school, and everybody wanted to play with you. You were the only one who touched the ball from the beginning to the end of the match. You played forward, midfield and defense, and sometimes, even as a goalkeeper. And all at the same time. The rest of your teammates played your ego game. Wonderful. That’s NOT teamwork. It’s just how children play any sport.
Situation two:
You have loved soccer since you can remember, and you meet some friends every week to play amateur matches. You buy your own clothes and wash them, and rent the field every week. Everyone knows their position, but come game day, the hyper one is the one who most changes his position and takes over the game. This is NOT teamwork (this is a group of friends having fun.)
Situation three:
You have loved soccer since you can remember, and you have become a professional soccer player. You train every single day and watch some videos about tactics. You know you are a good defender but not a natural scorer. Yet, one particular day, after a couple of passes, you are in position to just kick the ball into the goal. Hurray! Taking advantage of your colleagues’ work, and being there when required, that’s teamwork.
