Building Community
A few years after I started my business, I received a letter asking me to come to a meeting at Madison College (MATC) to give input about my upcoming needs for new employees. The meeting ended with a committee formed that would write a federal grant to develop a program for people with disabilities to enter the technical job market. The committee brought together a collaboration of people in business, education, and government. From the beginning, we could all see that this population provided a valuable, untapped resource from which we could help “grow” employees in an expanding economic field. And, it fits perfectly with my company values – I agreed to chair the committee.
I knew that the only common element in the group was that each of us had some sort of technological expertise and/or needs. The idea of working with people outside my field intrigued me. I thought it might give me a new way of looking at things, how true this has been! We were all strangers brought together simply because of our particular knowledge base. I don’t know how we were chosen or who compiled the list. It wasn’t anyone I knew and I’m sure this was true for the others as well.
We all quickly realized we didn’t even speak the same language; the terminology in each field was so different that we had to agree on how to interpret the words for common use. We took the words that one group used to describe things and compared them to how the same word was used in the other fields. It was confusing, difficult, and, at times, annoying. But it quickly became clear that if we could find our way, we had much to learn from each other. We had become a team!
Our Team gelled beautifully and throughout the project, we retained almost everyone from the original group. Over time, there were a couple of members who left when they changed jobs but returned to the team once they were settled in. And sadly, the person who developed our business plan died unexpectedly. He gave so generously of his time and heart. I know that he would be so proud that we developed the project into a nonprofit business after the grant funding ended.
When I look back at how the team started, I realize how rare the circumstances must have been that allowed strangers with the right motivation to learn to accommodate each other so well, so quickly. What was it that made our team a highly functioning one? One reason I believe is that we started out with our common goal very much aligned. We respected each other and all wanted the same result. Perhaps, more importantly, we made the decision to spend time learning to trust each other, value each other’s ideas and share responsibility. We consciously became interdependent and contributed our skills without ego entering into the situation. Incredibly, though we didn’t always agree, there were never any issues that could not be resolved through open and honest communication. That’s still true today as we work on The EmployAbilty Project.
Highly functioning teams are powerful. They can solve problems effectively and efficiently. They can be an agent for change in corporations and in life. Most teams are carefully chosen with the end result in mind. Most of the time, this is a good approach. I think our team evolved quickly because we were thrown together and found the cause mutually important. I wonder if that forced us to be more open and creative to achieve our objective?
Today our team continues to evolve with new members who have extraordinary talents and big hearts; we have mentored and helped train people who in turn help others. It is a cycle of success for those involved. Our lives have changed in ways that none of us would have anticipated. As we counsel those who come to us for services, we realize how much we are connected to them, our community and to each other. What a gift!