Training to be Champions...

Have you ever thought about your place of employment as a team of people training for the Big Game...the Epic Win? In the beginning it is pretty clumsy, no one seems to know each others strengths and weaknesses, errors are made, but after awhile, things begin to fall into place....you become a team.

In order for a team to function, there needs to be trust and the expectation that the other members are going to do their job. If you are constantly worrying that the other members are doing their jobs, how can you fully do yours?

I used to play soccer all the time. When I play on an all women's team, I play in the goal. It is a pretty demanding position, considering you are literally the last line of defense. I took my job seriously. I am a competitor and I don't like to lose! Anyway, being in the goal requires a lot of trust...first you have to trust the midfielders are going to follow their men and fight for the ball and then you have to trust that the defenders are going to keep it out of your goal area. If they fail (but try valiantly), then it is up to me to defend the heck out of it! If I have to worry that my players may inadvertently try to shoot on me, then the trust is lost...I don't become the last line of defense because I am now defending not only the opponent but my own players as well..

I am a middle school teacher and my "team" of teachers are integral to my success. I work on a small team of core teachers and we (mostly) share a group of students. We talk about children, problem solve, think of ways to help them be more successful. We come up with common ideas we can run through all the core classes so the students can hear things over and over... We are a  team and our team's focus is student success...that is our Epic Win.

As this last few days of school are nearing, I want to finish with the Epic Win, the Big Game...but in order for that to happen, my team has to continue training, working together, anticipate one another, and continue to have trust....with that, we are unstoppable!

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