There is not just you.

By Yameng Zhang

When you are on your own, you are the one who make the decision, whatever the outcome is, you are the one who should take the responsibility for. That’s the easy scenario. When you are part of a group, you are safer because there are other people who can be blame for making mistakes, at the meantime, whatever the group has accomplished, you will be rewarded no matter how much you did distribute. However, the downside is, even you are not the one who made the mistake, you may be blamed for being part of its causes; even you are the one who did all the hard works, you have to share the glory with all the others because there is not just you.

At a wedding, you take vows, saying that you will not leave her/him no matter what happens. Teamwork works the same as a marriage but it is not romantic at all.

It’s a non-sweet commitment

The first day you became a team member, you are trapped. It means you’ve got to be at places, run errands and take responsiblities.

You promise your time.

Whenever you are late, you didn’t just waste your time, everyone’s time was wasted because you failed to keep your commitment of tardy.

You promise your energy.

You cannot say “no” just because you are tired because no one would be willing to work for your part so that you can take a nap.

You promise your capability.

If no one forced you to say “yes” and you said it, that means you’ve got what it takes to get things done. So, make sure you know what you can and what you can’t. Besides, never say “yes” just because it may make you look good.

You promise your ears.

There is no boss in a team, everyone should be a listener. The explanation is, believe it or not, there is never a best way to solve a problem. But the good thing is, the more opinions you hear, the more solutions you may have. So when things happen, you can pick one and do it your way. So, listen, always do.

You promise a good heart.

A good team is composed of bolts and nuts. Every bolt should be there for a nut because only when they are there for each other, nothing will fall apart. Help whoever it is in your team, so that when you need a hand, you can feel grateful.

You promise you won’t leave. 

There are times things just won’t work out as you thought it should. When that time comes, don’t be a quitter, don’t be a complainer, don’t be a crier, be a cheerleader. What to cheer for? Cheer for everyone kept their promises and made a good team.