As you know, I am not an avid sports enthusiast. Some of you might challenge this a bit, as I tend to site sports analogies quite often in my posts. For me, the synergy between playing the game, whether in sports or everyday life, is so closely aligned that it is hard not to extract some great personal lessons. This week’s win by the US Women’s soccer team is no different.
Clearly, there is great energy and excitement about the recent win against Brazil. As I was listening to the comments from the team, something else caught my attention: the fact that it has been twelve years since their last major win. When a few team members were asked what has changed since 1999, they didn’t focus on their training or improved skills. They talked about how they had to set aside their personal differences, motivations, self-serving needs, and lingering legacy issues to begin functioning like a real team. Individually, they are some of the best soccer players in the world, yet without genuine respect and trust of one another, they always fell short of the big victory… until now.
We play on many different teams in our lives, whether it is in the workplace, on a committee, with friends or even in our families. It is easy, almost natural, to get trapped into the belief that our own strengths, experience, and knowledge as individuals can supersede the need to get the emotional and relational parts in order. It seems a lot easier to focus on things we can see on the outside rather than dealing with some of the sticky, not always fun, personal stuff.
I believe there is something to be learned from watching this team, and I look forward to seeing how they do in the coming days. Most important, I see it as a great reminder for all of us as to what it takes to truly be a winning team!
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