In a blog post last fall, I identified “teaming” as one of the eight essential leadership skills that everyone who wants to make positive change in the world needs to have. In fact, I identified it as the first of the eight. This likely sends shivers down the spine of every student who has ever been forced to do a group project in a class.
Sometimes they are positive experiences, but more often than not they are painful, involving a complex dance of seemingly having to force others to do things the “right” way, to get them to complete their parts of the project on time, and to drag them along with you to get to completion. Few students actively seek opportunities for group work, preferring to work alone in their own way and in their own time.
But there’s a saying that highlights why working in groups is effective: If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.
“Far” doesn’t just mean distance. It also refers to the magnitude and importance of the challenge. The greater the stakes, the greater the scope, and the greater the potential impact, the greater the need to do it in a group. In a team.
And thus, the greater the need to be able to work effectively in a team. Not just in a grin-and-bear-it kind of way, but in a way that allows you to harness the imagination, creativity, and skills of everyone involved and promote the kind of interactions that elevate everyone’s contributions.
Teaming, the ability to work effectively in a team, is so critical that emphasize and practice the skills associated with it throughout the School of the Environment, both in our formal classes and through workshops taught by experts and practitioners. Effective environmental leadership demands it.