Hub911 - Emergency Services Information for all First Responders; Fire, EMS, LEO
LIKE us ->
  • Home
    • Free Medical Information Card
    • Contact Us
  • EMS
    • EMS Dept. Links
    • EMS Sponsors
    • EMS Classified Ads
    • EMS Events
    • EMS Forum
  • Fire & Rescue
    • Fire & Rescue Dept. Links
    • Fire & Rescue Sponsors
    • Fire & Rescue Classified Ads
    • Fire & Rescue Events
    • Fire & Rescue Forum
    • SOS Supply
  • Law Enforcement
    • Law Enforcement Dept. Links
    • Law Enforcement Sponsors
    • Law Enforcement Classified Ads
    • Law Enforcement Events
    • Law Enforcement Forums
  • Towing & Utilities
    • Tow Equip
    • Towing Company Links
    • Towing Company Sponsors
    • Towing Classified Ads
    • Towing Events
    • Towing & Utilities Forums
  • More
    • Dispatch
    • Explosives
    • HazMat
    • Lifeboat
    • Search & Rescue
    • U.S. Military >
      • Army
      • Navy
      • Air Force
      • Marines
      • Coast Guard
      • National Guard
      • Air National Guard
  • Forums
    • EMS Forums
    • Fire & Rescue Forums
    • Law Enforcement Forums
    • Towing & Utilities Forums
  • Info
    • Contact Us
    • Advertising >
      • Rate Page
      • Classified Ads
      • Links
      • Sponsorship
    • Resources
    • Disclaimer
    • State Listings
    • Site Map
  • Design
    • Website Design
    • SEO
    • Social Media Marketing
    • Hosting
    • Branding
    • Graphic Design
    • Printing
    • Signs and Banners
  • Blogs
    • Health Blog >
      • Mold Test Sale
    • Hub911 Blog
    • EMS Blog on Hub911
    • Fire Blog on Hub911
    • LEO Blog on Hub911
    • Towing Blog on Hub911 >
      • Positive Spin on Covid-19
      • COVID-19 and Isolationalism
    • PSA Blog
    • Hub911 Products Blog
    • Contests
    • Hub911 Recipies
  • Store
    • Service Animal Memorials
    • Contests
  • Print ID card
  • Parts Department Managment
  • New Page
  • New Page

How Well Does Your 'Crew' Work Together? by Nick Kemper

9/15/2014

0 Comments

 
Picture
I was sitting in my inspirational place this afternoon, thinking about the nature of teams. Specifically, I was thinking about the crew of the Starship Enterprise. For me, the key members were (will be?) Kirk, Spock, Bones, and Scotty. I know the other regulars were important, but when you boil it down, these are the core components of the Star Trek team. The way the characters are constructed by the writers is genius, I think. They all have different strengths. They balance each other out. They have a common purpose. They communicate with each other fully, without hidden agendas. They don't always get along, but that's clearly a strength. Together they accomplish far more than they would acting individually, combined.

I happened to get an email shortly after this meditation from my good friend Lou Tice about the four main characters in The Wizard of Oz, and how they operate as a team in that story. Another great example of how a team comes together and what it can accomplish.

Somewhere in your organization there is a team. Don't be fooled - you HAVE a team. They might have collected together like scraps of food in the kitchen drain strainer, but they are a team. It could be a management team, a department team, an inter-departmental team, a sales team, whatever. Just because they might not be operating as a team should doesn't mean they are not a team. They have a common purpose - the success of the organization. If your "team" isn't as spectacular as the Star Trek team or The Wizard of Oz team, you might start at this point in your analysis of their efficacy. Do they know what their common purpose is? Have you conveyed the specific desired results of this purpose to them? Do they have a voice in determining those specific desired results? Do you have a buy-in from every team member on the overall purpose and direction of the organization?

I'm a firm believer in win-win. I don't think there is such a thing as win-lose or lose-win. I think it's either win-win or lose-lose. For some individuals, the conditions for a personal "win" are just too expensive for the organization they are part of. This is not a good match. Either there must be a compromise, or it is best for the two to part ways. Conversely, if the organization is taking advantage of an individual, that match is not good either. If each individual within your team does not have a win-win relationship with the organization, you do not have a complete buy-in. I don't care what people chant to themselves over and over again as they endure a bad match ("I need this paycheck - I need this paycheck - I need this paycheck" or ""He's the best we can find - he's the best we can find - he's the best we can find"), you do NOT have a complete buy-in. Never assume you have a buy-in. If you're not sure, ask. "George, do we have your buy-in for this project?" Sounds simple, but the question just doesn't get asked often enough. Sometimes just asking can secure the buy-in, because what the individual may be harboring is the hidden non-buy-in, and if they are asked to expose it, they can get past whatever is blocking it. It might not be what you suspect. It might be that they honestly oppose a project that they think is not the best option for the organization. And if they lay that out for you, you can say something like, "I understand your position. We disagree on this point. What I am asking you to do is put aside your opposition and give us your complete buy-in, or tell me what it will take to get that." Kirk, Spock, Bones, and Scotty did that all the time, thought not in those words, and sometimes someone punched someone else during the exchange, but they worked through the disagreements to get to the common purpose.

The best team I was ever a part of was my little league team when I was in the 5th grade. I vividly remember everyone on that team. Each player had particular strengths. No one was a bench-warmer. For the players who didn't have a high skill-level, our Coach found or developed one or two particular skills in those players and then capitalized on them. No one played a single position. Everyone backed up at least one other position. The greatest accomplishment might have been that everyone felt like an integral part of the team. Everyone felt valued. I was one of the younger kids on the team, and I always felt welcomed and included and even protected by the older kids on the team. I really don't know how the Coach pulled it off so well, but I do remember him being very specific in his expectations. We lost our first game, 7-0. He didn't make a big deal out of it. He affirmed our value, told us he believed in us, continued to stress fundamentals, and we won every other game the rest of the season, including beating the team that beat us in that first game in the league championship game at the end of the season.

It seems that it has become increasingly hard in our world to compensate individuals based on the value of their contribution to the organization and to simultaneously foster a constructive "team" atmosphere. It is a challenge, to be sure. It seems like we're making it harder to be flexible in how we construct our teams and our organizations. Guess what? No one said being successful was going to be easy. To succeed, you have to be ready to fail. I encourage you to evaluate your organization, and groups within your organization, as a team. If you are one of the grunts, part of the team, I encourage you to evaluate your position within the team and what you bring to the team in terms of value. Just imagine: a world of teams just like the Enterprise crew. Wouldn't that be interesting?

You really can't ask for much more than for life to be interesting.

Have a safe and profitable week.

Sincerely,
Nick Kemper
www.TowPartsNow.com

 

0 Comments

    Hub911.com

    Please tell us your story!

    Archives

    March 2020
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    February 2016
    December 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012

    Categories

    All
    2013
    911
    9/11
    Accident
    Amanda
    Anger In The Work Place
    Animals
    April Fools Day
    Auto Trans
    Bathroom
    Beer
    Being Chased By Car
    Briefcase
    Broken Wrecker
    Ca
    Cab Mess
    Cars
    Catch 20
    Catch 21
    Catch 22
    Changing Tire
    Chasing Car
    Claw
    Close Calls
    Clown Car Towing
    Commission
    Crash
    Datsun
    Dirty Shirt
    Dispatch
    Driving
    Drug Screen
    Drug Test
    Drunk Driving
    Eagle
    Emergency
    Emergency Disneyland
    Emergency Service Information
    Emergency Services
    Emergency Services Info
    Emergency Services Information
    Employee Drug Test
    Employees
    Employees Caring
    Employee Turnover
    Equipment
    Escape
    Fall Back
    Federal Building
    Finding Something Lost
    Fixing Your Truck
    Friends
    Frustration
    Funny Tow Story
    Gatecrasher
    Handle Angry Employees
    Harley
    Hate My Job
    Hib911.com
    Hiring Ems
    Hiring In The Towing Industry
    Hiring Nightmares
    Hiring Warm Bodies
    Hook And Book
    How To Motivate
    Http://www.essentialnow.com
    Http://www.hub911.com
    Hub911
    Hub 911
    Hub911.com
    Hub911.com
    Humor
    Impaired Driving
    Impound
    Impound Lot
    Info
    Information
    It's The Law
    Jobs Are Like Boats
    Kids
    Late
    Law
    Lazy Co-worker
    Lonely Road
    Lot
    Love Hate Relationship With Job
    Love My Job
    Luck
    Mad Customers
    Mad Man
    Management Difficult Employee
    Messy Truck
    Mi
    Motorcycle
    Municipal Contracts
    N
    Newsletter
    New Years Eve
    Nick Kemper
    Night
    Nissan
    Not Short
    Offended By Drug Test
    Oklahoma City Bombing
    Olds
    Painted Truck
    Paint Job
    Parking Violation
    Pets
    Police
    Police Tow
    Priceless
    Pride In Your Ride
    Professional Dress
    Respect Tow Truck Operators
    Restuarant Parking
    Road Party
    Rtto
    Runaway Car
    Sheriff
    Sherry Wood
    Shortcut
    Slow Down Move Over
    Spilling Pop
    Spring Forward
    Stolen
    Subaru
    Tactic To Cope With Anger
    The Hub
    Tickets
    Time Change
    Tire Friction
    Tires And Suspension
    Tow-agencies
    Tow Call
    Tow-company-managers
    Tow Crash
    Towing
    Towing And Equipment
    Towing Complaints
    Towing Mishap
    Towing Wrecker
    Towpartnow
    Tow Part Now
    Towpartsnow
    Tow Parts Now
    Towpartsnow.com
    TowPartsNow.com
    Tow Show
    Tow Truck
    Tow Truck Mess
    Train
    Trains
    Trick Or Treat
    Tricks Crossrails
    Trucks
    Uniform Compliance
    Vacation
    Vacationers
    Vehicle Owner
    Work
    Wreck
    Wrecker
    Wreckers

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.