A CHALLENGING BOX TO CHECK
Becoming a champion is a journey, not a destination. In the defining areas of life and performance, you never really arrive. That's because each day brings with it a new responsibility, to meet the standard that becoming your best requires. There are boxes to check for your effort and your attitude, for your response to adversity and your willingness to compete. For many of us on this journey, one of the most challenging boxes to check is the one focused on our work as a teammate.
Each one of those areas - your effort and your attitude, your response to adversity, your willingness to compete...and yes, your commitment to being a teammate - help to define who you are and how worthy you are of winning in any area of life. Each one is challenging in its own way, but none may be more difficult or more important than being a teammate.
Why is being a teammate so difficult?
1. Being a teammate is so difficult because it’s not natural. Each of us are hard-wired - first and foremost - to look out for ourselves. What being a great teammate requires from you rarely aligns with your own interests. A commitment to selflessness, servanthood, and sacrifice requires your attention and your intention.
2. Being a teammate is so difficult because other people can get in our way. If you are driven to win in some important area of life, teammates can easily become more of a burden than they are a blessing. When they aren’t as committed as you or as willing to do what it takes to be successful, it’s easy to resent their place in your experience and the responsibility you have to them.
3. Being a teammate is so difficult because doing it wrong can be quick and costly. In any relationship, building trust takes time, but betraying that trust can happen in a heartbeat. One stupid or selfish decision can have a lasting negative impact on the people around you, and can complicate your interactions with them moving forward.
Why is being a teammate so important?
1. Being a teammate is so important because what you bring to the table on your own isn’t usually enough. You can find talented individuals almost everywhere, but real, authentic success almost always requires more than individual talent. In that way, your poor performance in this area has the potential to keep you from the success you say you’re after.
2. Being a teammate is so important because it’s a lasting source of meaning and significance. We have a tendency to think what we do for ourselves matters most, but there’s a reason Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “The most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?’” He knew that this commitment is what ultimately defines our legacy.
3. Being a teammate is so important because it’s a role you’ll be playing your entire life. As an athlete, as a professional, as a spouse, as a parent, and as a friend, winning requires a commitment to bringing out the best in those around you.
If you find yourself struggling to meet a winning standard in this area of life, well…join the club. It is one of the most challenging boxes for the champion to check. But while being a teammate never gets easier, it is important to recognize that you can get better. Like your effort or attitude, your response to adversity, or your willingness to compete, being a teammate is a skill you can cultivate and develop. I want to challenge and encourage you to keep clarifying for yourself why meeting that standard in this area is so important, what exactly it looks like from you, and how you can keep learning and improving.
If you’re looking for a resource to help you reach your potential, I'd encourage you to check out my friend John O’Sullivan’s awesome new book he co-authored with the great Jerry Lynch titled, The Champion Teammate: Timeless Lessons to Connect, Compete, and Lead in Sports and Life. It’s filled with powerful stories and practical strategies for becoming your best as a teammate, and for bringing out the best in those around you.