I had the opportunity this morning to say some things I had been afraid to say. It took more courage than I thought I had. Much to my surprise, the other person (my boss) accepted my point of view and made the comment that what I said had never been explained in that way before and made a lot of sense. I made a difference today in how the rest of the team will be treated from here on out.
The long and short of the issue is that there really is no “I” in “Team” but when the team is forced to compete against each other, then that places an “I” in “Team” which doesn’t help the team in any way, shape, or form. I called the entire team on it but especially our boss. I told her I felt some of the reason she isn’t seeing the passion, drive and cooperation from us that she wants to see is because we don’t know what she wants. Are we working together today or are we working against each other today? Can we depend on each other or not? Are we “I” or “Team”?
Please don’t think I’m against competition. One team against another creates great competition. It encourages you to do your best work. But competition inside the team can only lead to destruction. You don’t know who to trust or what to believe. I spoke up against that, not competition on the whole.
I feel empowered for using my voice the way I wanted to use my voice. I had something to say that I needed to say and I said it. I didn’t swallow it and hope someone else would see the injustice and fix it. I did it myself.
As Gandhi said, “Be the change you wish to see in the world.”
