leaning forward

            The best and most successful way to live life is to set goals. Goals are very important in everyday life. Everyone sets goalswhether they realize it or not. Goals can very in length of time. They can be long lasting, i.e. over months or years, or short like weeks or even days. Goals can even vary in size like big tasks that may be hard to complete, or simple everyday tasks that just need to get done. Goals can be made anywhere and by anyone, or any group of people. Whatever the task may be, setting a goal will help you or the team, meet the task at hand.

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I am currently participating in my second year as a student athlete on the University of Hawaii Women’s Soccer team. Being involved in the program is a dream come true. Over the years that I have been involved in soccer, both in Australia and America, I have had the opportunity to play in many different teams. All of which contained many diverse personalities of coaching staff, managers, players and parents. In the book Exploring Leadership, a team is described as being “a blending of people with diverse backgrounds, histories, styles, talents, and personalities”.I have learned through much experience that every team environment is different. The dynamics of a sporting team can be altered with the addition or loss of just one personality. Whether it is a positive or negative change it can be hard to adjust to all the same. Having said this it needs to be a priority of the group as a whole to strive for unity and compatibility. It is a common theme that a captain is selected to be the leading voice and authority on the team however many people, including my team, have adopted the idea that every one involved should be able to equally voice their opinion and desires. This has been proven to aid in not only the development of the team members individually, but has also increased the sense of camaraderie and equality among all the players on the team.

The book states that “strength is not in the individuals, but in the team. Put a groups of superstars together on any team, whether it be baseball, hockey, football or soccer and they will still lose if they operate as individual superstars. But once they start operating as a team they become unbeatable.” Take for example the English Football (soccer) team. This team is comprised of some of the most skilful, talented and competitive players in the world. Players including David Beckham, Stephan Gerrard, Frank Lampard, Michael Owen, Wayne Rooney and Ashely Cole, participated in both the 2002 and 2006 world Cups in Korea and Germany respectively. However in both world cups this team of champions never progressed further then the semi-finals round. The manager, Sven-Göran Eriksson copped much criticism from the English press about mismanaging this “dream” team. However the reality of the situation was that all these players had other obligations and ties to their club teams and therefore lacked time, energy and motivation to practice together as a national unit. Some critics believe that if England had selected other players that were not so distracted by personal ties to clubs and more motivated to perform for their country rather then to obtain personal gain.

My team here at UH has been trying to adopt a more inclusive environment by organising groups activities in a social setting away from the soccer field or the weight room. This allows a feeling of camaraderie to be developed. Our coach has always said that when things are not going to plan on the pitch then it is the responsibility for all 11 players on the field and the players on the bench to support each other as a unit. If a team is not built to work for each other when the going gets tough then the team will never be a successful.

When creating a successful team one needs to think of individual a team goals that keep things in perspective and allows something to strive for. These goals must be clear in order to achieve success. At the beginning of each semester my team takes the time to formulate goals that are both concise and attainable on both the pitch and in the weight room. The book relates this process to the SMART rubric as it provides a framework for team to use as goals are established.

Acoording to this rubric goals should be:

 Specific – the goal must be clear to everyone

 Measurable – is it quantifiable

 Attainable –the goal must be realistic and possible to achieve

 Relevant – the goal is in alignment with the organisation and its overall strategy.

I believe that through team work, goal setting, inclusivness and correct leadership a successful and happy team can be created. It is a champion team rather then a team of champions, that, in the then end will be the overall winners. Laura Euers

I am a student currently attending the Shidler College of business at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. Being in the business school is great because as a child I always knew I wanted to study business. One thing I did not expect was the amount of time spent working on group projects. I have been in many group projects or group activities before, but nothing like the group projects I have been a part of in the business school. I say this because the projects I am a part of now are very time consuming. In addition to that, the projects require a lot of interaction with other group members which can sometimes be very troublesome. For every business class I have taken thus far, there has always been in assignment that required us to do a group project. I will be explaining the stages of group development from my own experience.

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Elements of Community

A community is described as a social group that not only shares an identity and structured pattern of interaction, but also a common geographical territory. When you are in a community, there are a few attributes that will make this community efficient and successful in achieving its goals. These attributes are communication, trust, participation, and teamwork. Having these three attributes will help the community in achieving success. According to Gardner, practicing the following eight elements allow for effective communities:

1. Wholeness incorporating diversity

2. A shared culture

3. Good internal communication

4. Caring, trust, and teamwork

5. Group maintenance and governance

6. Participation and shared leadership tasks

7. Development of young people (or new members)

8. Links with the outside world

I have been able to analyze the elements of a community in my organization – UH golf team. After the quick analysis, it has shown me how and why we succeed or fail to meet our agenda.

Wholeness and incorporating diversity can be seen in the vast differences in people on my team. Not only are we all from different areas of the world (Australia, Colombia, Hong Kong, and Hawaii), we have very different lives and were only brought together by one common interest – golf. With the diversity within our team, we have been able to learn from each other and grow as members and leaders. The diversity of our background has given each and one of us a piece of the team, and without one piece of a team, we do not feel whole. We have thus created a team bond that gives us a feeling of importance to our community.

Our shared culture is in our identities as student-athletes at the University of Hawaii. By having this shared culture, we are able to be empathetic towards one another and help when one is in need.

Good internal communication is key to a successful community. There was a time when we had to transition into a new coach and many team members found it difficult to cope, which caused a lot of tension as feelings and emotions were left unsaid. When we had a little intervention to sort these issues out, it made me realize that we cannot move on and achieve our desires or improve without getting things off your chest.

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Interacting in teams and groups is an integral part of ones higher-level education.  Furthermore, it is of the utmost importance to understand how groups are formed and how your individual role is developed.  To the accreditation of the Shidler College of Business at the University of Hawai’i at Manoa, group work is something reinforced time and time again as part of the curriculum.  In our Educational Administration Development of Student Leadership class, we are using Exploring Leadership written by Susan R. Komives et al as a guiding basis to the seminar discussion.  Chapter seven focuses on interacting in teams and groups.  The concepts of group development by way of the five stage process: Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing, Adjourning.  This peaked my interest because as a management major, I have studied this development stage before. (more…)