Prides, Herds and Teams: The Value of Working Together

How well can you accomplish your goals by working alone?

Scrolling through my newsfeed recently, I came across an intense video of animals in the bush, fighting for survival.

In it, a herd of 20 to 30 buffalo rounded the bend in the path, their hooves thundering on the well-worn dusty ground as they approached their watering hole. Suddenly they stopped in their tracks, the blowing dust settling around them. They came face to face with a pride of lionesses, 6 or 7 of them, hungry and looking for their next meal. The fact that one buffalo was more than twice their size was unimportant to the lionesses. These large mammals are typical prey for the pride, as they had hungry cubs and several male lions to feed. Their goal was to isolate one animal from the others, then pounce as a group, using their powerful jaws to deliver a decisive strike to the throat, and thereby suffocate the buffalo.

The standoff began with each group eyeing one another. The buffalo knew this routine and they knew they had strength in numbers. Several buffalo at the front of the herd took turns rushing forward a few yards to butt the lionesses, more of an offensive measure than really trying to jump on them. The lionesses responded in kind, crouching, half pouncing, looking for an angle to get in between a lone buffalo and the rest of the herd.

The buffalo could only survive by working as a team. Similarly, the pride of lionesses’ only hope of finding dinner was to operate as a team. On this day, the buffalo won. Their supportive strategy worked, and they made it safely to their watering hole. 

Individual Thinking
So what lesson can we learn from these animals, whose survival instincts are so sharp? That working alone and taking the role of individual contributor to the extreme, isn’t the optimal operating mode for the group.  Individual contributors are typically described as employees who don’t have anyone reporting to them, who may be tasked to operate more independently based on their assignments, skill sets and initiative, and they don’t need to be responsible to others.

But doing so makes them susceptible to three personas that, when present in teams, leave members vulnerable, falling prey to organizational dynamics that lead to failure.

  • Loners, who say “I can do it by myself.” They can come up with all the ideas, work on the project alone, evaluate all the issues by themselves. There’s a degree of arrogance that their skill sets alone are sufficient.
  • Distracters, who say “Wait, where did everyone go? I wasn’t paying attention!” They don’t focus on the team, but instead get caught up in their own activities. They don’t tune into, care enough about or sense the spirit of the group.
  • Schemers, who say “I’m going the right way, you all should follow me.” They come up with what they think is a better idea and want to lead the group but haven’t sought buy-in to their strategy. Their motives are self-serving, and they haven’t earned the right to have followers.

Each of these behaviors can isolate individual team members in ways that hamper effectiveness, sever relationships, compromise results and result in conflict. Team members operating in one of these personas don’t value the richness of group ideas and input, they don’t value the combined energy of the team, and they don’t value the support of their fellow members.

Teams Win
But our best work happens in teams, when we depend on one another to polish ideas, work through problems and ensure that plans and execution strategies are aligned across the organization. This begins with developing relationships, understanding and valuing the strengths that each person brings to the table, and building trust.

Ultimately, like the herd of buffalo and the pride of lionesses, we must understand that there’s strength in the whole. Just like a football team where everyone must play their position to win, the wide receiver can’t decide to run his own play, the fullback can’t be distracted by the cheerleaders, and the cornerback can’t pick a different goal.

Teams win when individuals can’t. A group of good individual players can become great when working together.

Think about who’s on your team, and how you’re communicating with them and helping each other to achieve a common goal. You must effectively shift positions as needed, supporting others, sticking together when the going gets tough and delivering results. Whether you work in a large organization or as a solopreneur, you must come together with a community of contributors who possess varied and important skills to accomplish your objectives.

So, are you behaving like an individual contributor or a member of a great and successful team?

Copyright 2018 Priscilla Archangel