Perhaps it is partially because I am a fairly introverted person, but I gained a reputation already from childhood and youth as being a "loner."
Many years later, once I started working in "real" jobs, the common remark made by my bosses and co-workers alike was that I was not much of a "team player," but an "individual contributor."
I suppose there is a fair amount of truth to the old saying "Does not play well with others," when it comes to my life!
Of course, it's not that I don't like people — I do! — it's more a matter of lacking the patience to sit around and arrive at some way to do things "by consensus," and discovering that the chosen solution is neither efficient nor particularly successful and perhaps was only chosen because it was the most workable for a group, working together.
In fact, I almost got fired once, for remarking on something like that!
I'm not denying that there is definitely value to teamwork, but sometimes I feel like our very group oriented world gets a little too obsessed with turning things actually best done by individuals into a group project... when it really shouldn't be.
I am also well aware that I tend to have somewhat unorthodox approaches to problem solving, and will do things in ways "that never would have occurred" to a great many people. And that can be very difficult to explain in group situations, where everyone has a more mainstream approach.
So where is my "issue," really?
Just personal opinion: I think the world has become a little too teamwork oriented, to such a degree that those who are actually able to make valuable individual contributions are almost unwelcome to participate in life.
I remember my friend Clint, back when we worked in the IT industry... he was an outstanding coder, but was always being pressured to becoming a "team lead," because of his accomplishments.
In spite of his insistence that he excelled at coding, not at managing people, he ended up being asked to look for another job after turning down the 3rd of 4th offer of promotion.
Where the value in that?
Thankfully, I feel blessed to have bypassed most of this whole argument by choosing the path of self-employment... and thus being my own manager.
However, entrepreneurship isn't the right choice for all who are primarily individual contributors. And so, I just wish society placed more value on "having a skill," rather than being a team player on their way to management success!
Thanks for reading, and have a great remainder of your week!
How about YOU? Are you a good team player? Do you work better in groups, or by yourself? Do leave a comment — share your experiences — be part of the conversation!
(All text and images by the author, unless otherwise credited. This is ORIGINAL CONTENT, created expressly for this platform — NOT A CROSSPOST!!!)
Created at 2023.02.08 22:37 PST
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