I have interests in many things, but two of my passions are working with young people and athletics. In particular, I love team sports because they combine these passions. Unless one is truly involved with a team throughout an entire sports season, it is hard to fully understand how difficult it is to establish positive team chemistry in which all members of the team feel valued while also contributing their various talents.
You rarely see a successful team without good team chemistry. The members of that team have learned to use each other’s talents in ways that best help the team meet its goals. At the same time, you rarely find an unsuccessful team with great team chemistry. It may happen from time to time, but it is rare.
Not everyone on a football team can be the star quarterback. Not everyone on the basketball team is going to “start.” Team sports have a way of taking a group of very different people and focusing them on one singular goal or purpose. One of the obvious values that team sports create is the concept of teamwork. For the team to be successful, the group must communicate well, be dedicated to preparation, and learn to work together. When an individual puts himself before the team, the outcome can be disastrous.
While I also like to follow politics, I wonder how many of our politicians competed in team sports? Thenew universal health care reform bill that was passed this week was a victory for many and a loss for many others depending on what side of the issue they are on.
I will not take a stand on one side or the other of the healthcare debate in order to avoid polarizing myself from 50 percent of the readership, but I have to wonder how our nation came to this place of polarization on so many fronts.
If our representatives in Congress are supposed to be a “team” that represents “the people,” then they are largely unsuccessful. There is no team chemistry when roughly half the members are bitterly opposed to the other half. It is like watching two teams compete against each other simply for the sake of doing so. So, the people of this nation are basically watching two halfbaked teams compete against one another for what purpose?
The leaders of our nation need a lesson in teamwork, as do many of us as citizens. Parents expect their children to play well and work together with others. At the same time, every time we adults have a problem with something, we find it nearly impossible to work with others to find a solution.
It is easier to complain, attack, and judge others. You will never hear a coach tell his or her team that teamwork is easy. Things that are meaningful and essential to success never are.
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