Teamwork ~ This word should not be separated.

In a mid of racial issues hard hitting this land, my beloved country, I received this noble mail from a young and energetic GM cum friend which indicate the essence of success of an organization depends on the team work, unity and lead by a dynamic leader.

My few words exchanged with him this morning hint me the message of this mail is not only applicable for a success of an organization but should be the kick off for the whole nation.

Malaysian should be united regardless race or religion. The hope of Malaysians wisdom of unity and harmony is in our hand and blessed by almighty. We should begin now. Never too late!

Cheers,
Lvbala

Dear Colleagues,

A man once dreamt about heaven and hell. He saw that in hell, there was a huge table laden with various types of food. Seated around the table were starving people with very long forks attached to the ends of their arms. They could stab the food but they couldn’t put it in their mouths because the forks were too long. All of them screamed in frustration as they tried in vain to eat the food. In heaven, the same table was there, with the same sumptuous spread on top. But the people looked happy. They smiled as they enjoyed the food. What they were doing was stabbing the food and putting it in each other’s mouths!

This fable aptly demonstrates the power of teamwork. The residents of hell thought of only themselves and thus, failed to get at the food. In contrast, the citizens of heaven realised that by helping others, they ended up helping themselves. They not only ate the food, they had fun feeding each other.

A company with hundreds of staff and management is fertile ground for the practice of teamwork. Different types and levels of knowledge and skills could be found within the confines of our University. Different backgrounds, experiences and achievements add colour to our profile. What can we do with such a variety? We could harness it to achieve goals, dreams and targets.

If that is our plan, then teamwork is the strategy. There are people who have made a success of working on their own. But for organisations, it is important for its people to work collectively for a common purpose.

However, for teamwork to work, some elements are necessary. Firstly, the team needs good leadership. The leader should not only be capable and competent but is also able to motivate and inspire the team to take a positive approach to work and be committed. Next in line is clear communication. All members of the team must be able to express and share their ideas, views, thoughts and concerns for the benefit of all. Team members also need to understand their individual roles and responsibilities. If they do not know what they are expected to do, how are they to do it and what they are expected to achieve, it would come as no surprise if they end up with what they started with: nothing.

Working as a team is not without its challenges. And when different people have to work together, personalities are bound to clash. Conflicts may arise. It would be great if team members could sit down together and address it head on instead of avoiding it. There are people who believe problems will go away if they ignore them long enough. In the case of teams, this is a myth.

It is important that we realise this and work on improving it. As we make this journey towards the end of this very eventful year, I hope each of us will realise the power of working as a team. Why? Because the word TEAM stands for Together Everyone Achieves More.

Best regards
CR