What I am learning about teams

As one who has always wanted to lead rather than follow, I must say that understanding the true power of teamwork has been as hard for me as the biblical eye in the needle versus the rich man. Because it is easy to say Yes! to a theory and a whole other thing altogether to really practice the things that make team work difficult to master especially when those things call to a change in mindset.

Living and teaching/facilitating the 'Behaviours of a cohesive team' has helped because I can look at what the individuals and the team leader are struggling and recognise my own journey of denial, assumptions and habit breaking. Its like watching myself in an action flick.. sorry, a real life drama. Recognising patterns from the outside, my own patterns. Being a silent observer where I don't have to judge myself.

And I know that they teach this in mindfulness or meditation: Be a silent Non-judgemental observer of your thoughts, actions and begin to see them for what they are. A play for power, an action stemming from a fear; fear that your team mate might not deliver as well as you will, or can and will. Fear of irrelevance, FEAR OF JUDGEMENT, fear to fail.

And as much as we can keep saying that well, we all know this things. We have read them over and over again. We know what the data is telling us. How come they keep coming at each session almost in the exact same script that the next team will write?

I have learnt the one thing " You are not the solution, you are part of the solution". It seems like a simple enough sentence. Simple. Very.

Not quite.