Individuals Don’t Solve Problems — Teams Do

“Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.” — Helen Keller

These are wise words from Helen Keller that ring truer today than ever before. As the way we work transforms and we continue to encounter new problems, collaboration is needed more than ever. Continuous complexity and novel challenges in constantly changing fast-paced environments mean that a single individual will not be able to solve problems. Yes — individuals can get things done. However, if we want to elevate the work we do, anticipate future challenges, and garner perspectives across disciplines to fully appreciate the context, collaboration is imperative.

I challenge you, the dedicated reader, to think about some of your toughest challenges your organization or team has faced. Think about how your challenge was solved and who was involved in solving that problem. I hope you will be hard-pressed to identify a situation collaboration did not produce a better result.