Putting Your Team Together

I saw a video of a military officer describing what it takes to complete Navy Seal training. He said when you see a soldier coming into BUDs training looking like the star quarterback, you know the chances of him making it to the end is slim. It’s the guys who work as a team that make it to the end. Seal teams with the shortest and weakest men outperform the bigger stronger guys because the worked as a team. 

While I am no Navy Seal, I have seen this principle in every job I ever worked. It wasn’t the amount of work you had to do, or how much you got paid, or how difficult the work was, what it all came down to was how well you worked with your coworkers. I once worked in a hospital where I was floated to work different units. When given the choice to choose, I would pick the units where the staff worked well together even if it meant I would have been busy on my feet for the entire shift. 

For you this means two things. First, you must not try to be the star quarterback and try to conquer life’s challenges on your own. Second, you must be weary and excited about who you surround yourself with in all aspects of your life. This includes friends, coworkers, employers, employees, and family. 

When building a team you need to focus on quality rather than quantity. In the age we live in, more and more people are working hard at improving their network through social media. I understand why this is necessary, but too much focus on building quantity will ultimately lead to a loss of focus in quality. An example of this would be spending time on social media while ignoring your family at home. 

Think of yourself as a a soldier in BUDs training, trying to survive the six months of grueling training with your team. As a team player, you would notice when a teammate is being challenged by a drill instructor, and needs someone to tell him, ‘keep going. You’re doing good'. There might be times when you might have shoulder an extra load when other team members get tired. As a team player you will not be angry with another member for making a mistake, which might cost you eating your food in the cold ocean. This mentality does not only give you strength it also means you could tap into the strength of others when you are at your weakest. Because if you work at helping others in need, most of those people will take notice. And when you’re at your weakest, they will be there to help you in return. 

So, focus on building your team. If you don’t like the people you work with, it is time you start getting ready for a change. If your friends are leading you down the wrong path, then start working on making new friends. The people in your family are a little bit more tricky. You simply cannot change your mother or father, and getting a divorce is a major decision. While there may be times to end communication with a parent or ending a marriage, I suggest that you don’t make those decisions with haste. Understand that your relationship with your family is the most vital when it comes to your happiness. Think of them as your fellow soldiers who are dealing with their own struggles. Be there for them. Listen to them. Take a genuine interest in their lives. Work hard at cultivating your relationship with your family, not just because it will make you more happy, but also because you want them to be happy. 

If the time does come when you feel that you desperately need to be separated from a family member then you should. It sounds harsh, but keeping someone close to you and constantly in your life because of honor isn’t logical. If you do it out of love, then that’s another story. 

What qualities should you look for when you’re building a team. First, you need to find people you trust. Trust is more important than beauty and riches combine. Being surrounded by people you trust will not only make you happy, it will also make you prosperous. There are two kinds of societies, high-trust societies and low trust societies. Prosperity happens in high-trust societies, and corruption happens in low trust societies. This can be seen in the macro level in countries. Countries where the people, government, and cooperations trust each other there is a lot of prosperity. And when the people, government, and cooperations lose trust each other it creates an environment ripe for corruption, where there are losers and people slightly better off than losers. 

This same principle happens on the micro level of families, workplaces, and among friends. For you to be happy and prosperous you need to trust the people surrounding you and they need to trust you. If you do not trust the people in your life, you will be in a never ending battle. 

The next quality you need to seek as you put together your team is confidence and optimism. My sister once told me a story about Thomas Edison. She said when he was a child, Thomas Edison got a letter from his school to give to his mother. When his mother read it, she told the young Edison what was said in the letter. She told him that because he was so smart the school wasn’t the right environment for someone with his capabilities, and they wanted her to send him to a school for gifted children. His mother then told him that she wouldn’t send him to a school for gifted children, but instead home school him. 

Thomas Edison went on to become the great inventor we all know, and when his mother died he found the letter the school had sent to her. When he read it he realized that the letter said that the school believed he had learning disabilities, and suggested that his mother put him in a school for special children.

I never fact checked this story because it will break my heart if I find out it isn't true. I love it because it shows the power of someone believing in you. Genghis Khan’s mother believed he was destined to conquer the world. Sigmund Freud’s mother believed he was destined for great things. And the mother of Alexander the Great believed that he was the son of Zeus. 

Another story that I love was a study done where students were randomly separated into two classes. The teachers in one class was told that the children were intellectually gifted. In the other class the teachers were told that the students were intellectually challenged. As you would expect, the students in the class where the teachers believed they were gifted received higher marks on exams than the ones where the teachers believed they were intellectually challenged. I kept this study in mind when I thought a group of junior high school students. I went into the class with the knowledge that my belief in them would go a long way. And when I started teaching them with that belief in mind, they rewarded me by proving me right. And the more they proved me right the more I believed in their abilities. I am proud to say that by the end of the class the students all did remarkably well. 
So, when looking to put together your team, understand the power of your belief in them and their belief in you.