At work, there is a competition right now. As a way of encouraging sales, we are all competing to rack up the largest number of sales. I will do the best I can. And as someone who has won other sales competitions, I am not all that threatened. I will either win or lose. But I find myself challenged in another way. I'm very team oriented. And there's an aspect of this 'contest' that begs for teamwork. If our unit beats other units in our district, we will win a catered luncheon. That is the aspect of this contest that really motivates me. How can we work together? What can I do to support my teammates? We will win as ''WE', not as 'I' .
There have been times that our teamwork has suffered. Through petty squabbles. And being overly critical of our teammates. Is this a time we can heal some of that? It can be. We can forge new positive relationships. Or we can choose to remain in the negativity. Which will mean we will fail as a team. I find the challenge in that fascinating. I know quite a bit about how poor teamwork impacts organizations. In one memorable situation, I worked with a non-profit in which verbal fights in the boardroom led to the loss of the entire agency. At the time, my behavior wasn't perfect. I didn't do what I needed to do to keep the program going. And that has been a source of regret for me.
What has this got to do with recovery? Quite a bit, actually. For me, depression has been a solitary disease. I feel alone when I'm depressed. Everything is on my shoulders. I can't reach out to other people because 'they won't understand'. Ironically, I have spent much of my professional life advocating for the team approach to recovery. When I worked for addiction programs, I became very aware of why support groups work. Because it becomes about 'WE'. Not about 'I'. Through an extensive history of watching people find success or failure in such groups, I think I get what works. It is in being able to recognize how we are stronger as a group then any one of us is as an individual. We all have strengths. We all have weaknesses. When we rely on each other, we become stronger. And our weaknesses may have less of an impact.
Here is the catch to this: When I allow negativity and self-pride overshadow what I gain from the team, I can destroy the team. And that is what will happen at work. We will win as 'WE'. Or lose as 'I'. I will soon see what the team decides....
There have been times that our teamwork has suffered. Through petty squabbles. And being overly critical of our teammates. Is this a time we can heal some of that? It can be. We can forge new positive relationships. Or we can choose to remain in the negativity. Which will mean we will fail as a team. I find the challenge in that fascinating. I know quite a bit about how poor teamwork impacts organizations. In one memorable situation, I worked with a non-profit in which verbal fights in the boardroom led to the loss of the entire agency. At the time, my behavior wasn't perfect. I didn't do what I needed to do to keep the program going. And that has been a source of regret for me.
What has this got to do with recovery? Quite a bit, actually. For me, depression has been a solitary disease. I feel alone when I'm depressed. Everything is on my shoulders. I can't reach out to other people because 'they won't understand'. Ironically, I have spent much of my professional life advocating for the team approach to recovery. When I worked for addiction programs, I became very aware of why support groups work. Because it becomes about 'WE'. Not about 'I'. Through an extensive history of watching people find success or failure in such groups, I think I get what works. It is in being able to recognize how we are stronger as a group then any one of us is as an individual. We all have strengths. We all have weaknesses. When we rely on each other, we become stronger. And our weaknesses may have less of an impact.
Here is the catch to this: When I allow negativity and self-pride overshadow what I gain from the team, I can destroy the team. And that is what will happen at work. We will win as 'WE'. Or lose as 'I'. I will soon see what the team decides....
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