Describe a situation in which yo have worked as part of a team. What did you find diffcult?

I have participated in various situations in my life, working together as a team.

I think that the difficulty in working with teams is that for a team to work together creatively, is that it requires that each member of the team is able to surrender their own viewpoints and ideas when indicated, to meld oneself into the prevailing group opinion or energy. This is the path of least resistance, yet the reality is that few 'personalities' are able to do this. To surrender one's precious opinion, to those one sees as less smart, capable, intelligent, creative, able, etc., feels to the one who is surrendering that they are losing control and letting others less capable run the show.

I can't really report what was most rewarding, because I was never involved in what I know as a truly creative team. Okay, there were some moments, and when this happened, then it was rewarding because when we listened to each other, when we valued each other's viewpoints, then we inspired each other, and as a group we came up with new ideas. When this 'new idea' formed, then it only happened because each of us gave up a part of ourselves. This is the key to creative group energy, it's all about surrender of the individual ego to the collective energy of the group Creativity happens as a group as the individuals drop parts of themselves, this is how we grow together as a whole. Anybody not willing to let go of parts of themselves, that are indicated by the prevailing group energy, then become blocks to the creativity forming. I think a team like this can still be formed so I have my hope, but I think it's needs a new attitude. This attitude has to be for the individual's involved to realize that 'by themsevles' they will never have all the answers. We must realized that each person has a role to play, and each person has an answer that is unique to themselves. Thus we might realize the value of each player, and start asking questions of the other, and finding out what they know, different from what we know. For me all people are valuable in a team and these people are those who are there 'right now'. Life shows me that everything I need I have and whomever is present in a team, is exactly what is needed for all of us to grow as a group. I don't think Life dishes out so many mistakes to us. It's how we see it, how personalies judge each other, that makes us want to think that we would be a successful group if only we had 'different people'. This is true in one-to-one personal relationships just as well as the team in a job or creative enterprise. Whenever a problem comes up for us in life and needs solving, which we don't have the answer to we should ask everyone we can for input. As life is unpredictable and changing, we can know that these problems will come up all the time, because life is continuously unfolding. So how I see it is that Life is giving us creative opportunies each day to form teams, but mostly it doesn't happen because of the personalitie's way of looking at Life, is one of judgements and these have a tendency to be negative.

People that I think would qualify to be members on a creative team, would be independent and self-sovereign. For me this means that they have good self-esteem and could easily work alone, yet know that with a group the collective energy is stronger. The kind of team I could work with, would have to be a collection of people that feel as equals, no ideas of superiorty nor inferiority could exist. Every member would be equally valued for their contribution, no matter their level of awareness nor of percieved abilities. In a creative team their should be no leader, all decisions and goals need to be made by conscensus by the majority of the group. We need to realize that in such a scenario, we have to surrender our control of the group and of life. This is the hard part for individuals. The more equaly everybody is involved in this, the more everyone's individual qualities are considered, then this is the best possible scenario to be creative. Independent people aren't saying that they need to work alone, they can easily work with a team of peers. But if there is no such group, then they will just bide their time doing what they do best, until something like this presents itself and they need to make a decision.

Betsy

There have been times when living and working with a 'team', when there was felt 'togetherness'. Sometimes this happened in simple practical things, for example: To start the diesel engine of a motor plow, which had to be done with a rope around a disk on the motor, one had to pull on the rope with all ones strength, many times and often it was not possible because my strength was not enough and I was exhausted after several intents. So I put a long rope on this starter wheel and six people of the 'team' pulled all together. They had to do it all at the same time, so they pulled and they had to do it only once, then the motor started! There was the experience of togetherness working as a team!... Another example: There were times, when there was a constant flew of information within the team, because there was communication between each member and so the whole team was informed about everything what was necessary and what happened. It worked the same like with ants or bees; they always know what goes on, without loudspeakers or blackboards. That shows that there is a 'team' that function. Probably with ants and bees it works because there are no personalities involved. With humans this is not possible because there are so many personal needs that are projected on the situation or people, creating jealousy, anger and all kind of weird reactions, blocking the flow of communication and finally making the being together impossible. We can pretend to be very clever, knowing every thing, surrendering and whatever more sophisticated spiritual attitudes there might be possible, but we are not even able to build a functioning team like the bees or ants, unless there is a strong goal every body is engaged in or there is a strong leader every body else can follow. Every thing else seems to be an illusion because people are stuck in their personal needs and not capable to go beyond this. The evolution of humans obviously needs many generations more before something like a 'team' with free members is possible.

InkyPinkie

Okay, I do desire folks might quit asking this style of query. IF that is to head on an program kind for a role or merchandising then you definately MUST use your possess revel in. If you blag anybody else's revel in for the program, then how are you going to manage should you get to the interview degree and the panel begins asking you all varieties of certain questions approximately that reply. I'll let you know, shall I? You received;t. It shall be SOOO noticeable to the interview panel that you haven't used your possess revel in (coz that's ALL the interviewers are eager about - what revel in and implemented potential YOU have - now not a few stranger off YA - bthey're now not appointing them!!!). This variety of factor is considered by way of the panel as disrespectful and cheating and while (now not if) they discover you out, they'll terminate the interview. So wherein is the factor for you??? Trust me, I've interviewed folks for jobs for twenty years, and that is probably the most ordinary intent of interview failure.

To follow the leader.

While serving as a translator during a Missionary Trip; we made meetings very often to schedule our actions and minutes later we had to meet again to reschedule, I found that a stressing task.

It was at the same time very rewarding to learn to follow instructions, to work as a team. Everytime we rescheduled the leader proved to reasons why we did.

There is always a free rider in a group - someone who wants full credit yet contributes nothing - or next to it.

If you are lucky, you have someone who thinks 'outside of the box' when you seem to hit a roadblock.

A good question and this probably will be a long answer, because it is a situation in which I have been working for the last thirty years. My initial idea was to form a team of 'like minded' or 'kindred spirits', that means people who were interested to live together in a free set up with the intention to do something together and each of them for themselves in an essential way to make 'a change' in the sense that they use the space and opportunity to work on themselves... and then also make an input into the common pool… Helping people where it is necessary without asking for an award.

To describe the difficulties in this intention I could write a book, what was rewarding can be said in one sentence, although this might be worth the pain described in a book.

To realize this idea I worked very hard several years on the physical level and created a place with living space for about twenty people. Then I invited people to come as guests or permanent members. To give it a form people could understand, I called it ‘Intentional Community’, as there was no better name. That was a mistake, because people then had specific expectations coming out of a concept and then they tried to live this, but not relating to the actual situation. This turned out to be one of the mayor difficulties with people, they all have an image how things should be and then when they come and things doesn’t fit into their picture, then they are resistant, complain and look for the fault outside. It seems normal that nearly all people have some parents’ issues and if they don’t like something, then they give the fault to me, as a kind of father figure and it is not possible or only in very rare cases, to point this out. They just don’t want to listen to maybe get out of this attitude to project their own condition into the outside.

After ten years of ups and downs I thought: One must be crazy trying to realize such a project… but I continued. I had offered the place to all kind of groups, therapy, healing, yoga, meditation, tai chi, etc. and it was interesting to meet all kind of people, but in a very structured frame in which the expectation of people were more or less fulfilled. But after a few years of this experience I finished all groups because it felt as part of the usual consumer habits; people were paying and then consumed what was offered, going into exercises they were told and then were satisfy having certain experiences… But I had doubts that an artificial set up like a therapy group would be necessary. Yes, I believe that might help to start ones transformation, but if one can see and understand that life is our best teacher and gives us all opportunities to learn and transform in the most effective way, then one doesn’t need ‘professional help’. So I went back to my original idea to live and work together with people who have the same interest in their personal growing.

It turned out that there are only very few people really interested. They all say that they want to know themselves, but then it shows that what they really want is self confirmation of their established self image and if something comes across that doesn’t serve for this purpose, then they reject this opportunity to look at themselves. For quite some time I could not understand how it is possible to misunderstand ‘self knowledge’ to such an extreme. But now I know that people only see what they want to see and they understand or misunderstand every thing in the way so that it serves them, there is no logic or rationality. So people are constantly coming and going. When writing, they make themselves interesting by telling beautiful things about themselves and how much they desire a life in nature, living with other people, working not for money but because it makes sense, how much they are interested in growth and self knowledge, that they don’t smoke, drink and take drugs and that they would do any kind of work necessary and that they are interested in meditation and other ways to improve their awareness. It sounds so good! And then when they are here: Oh boy! They come with a perfect package of expectations and as this never fits perfectly, then they are disappointed and give the fault to the outside, that would be the right moment to look at themselves to realize that they are conditioned, but that’s not what they want and willing to do. So they are not content and are looking to give the fault to the place or to me, without asking any question or questioning themselves. Then it shows, that they nearly all are smoking, not doing it openly but hidden in their rooms. It is not even seldom that they drink alcohol or take drugs.

How can one believe that a transformation might be possible if one is not honest to oneself and to others? Smoker and people who take alcohol and drugs are not willing and able to look at themselves and when they drink and smoke then this helps them to avoid looking at themselves. So it became pretty clear that with such people my intention must fail… So several times I came to the moment when I wanted to give up, but then there came somebody who seemed to be different and brought a new energy and so we went on. This happened again and again. Those few people, who were capable to be member of such a project, had their own intentions and then they left and started their own project, although as far as I know, most of them gave up after a few years…

To be continued… Answer this question and make your comment!

BeiYin