We all enjoy being part of a group-there's no better work than teamwork, right? Actually, I disagree. Teamwork can be hard. In fact, it was so difficult that I left my office job and started working from home on my own. It's a much better fit for me, and it has made me think about why teamwork can make our jobs harder rather than easier.
Personalities (个性) can make teamwork difficult. There's often someone on the team that puts their needs first. The team often goes along with this person, whose ideas might not be the best, just the loudest. Just one difficult personality can make teamwork hard. Combine (结合) several challenging personality types, and it's even harder.
Not having enough time together can also make teamwork challenging. For example, I was once on a team where we never had enough time to meet as a group. To successfully work as a team, you need time together-and lots of it.
A final reason teamwork is difficult is because there's often no training on how to work on a team. You can't just put people in a room and expect them to work well with each other. You need to build trust with your team members. Think of football players: They aren't just given a ball and told to play. They practice, and they train.
Team can be hard, but working alone has its challenges, too. When my computer doesn't work, I don't have an IT person to turn to. When I have a great idea, I don't have anyone to share it with to see if it really is a great idea. Don't get me wrong-I still like my team of one and enjoy making all of the important decisions myself. But now I realize what was wrong with the teamwork I did in the past and how good teamwork could be if done correctly. And that's useful information-because one day I might want to turn my ME TEAM into a WE TEAM.
