So, I wrote my very first speech too...

Riddle me this:

I am me, and only one, trying hard to get things done.

But, open up the space to many, and time there is; more than plenty.

Coincidentally the answer to this riddle just happens to be why we’re all gathered here today?

 Teamwork!

The slogans, we’ve heard them all:

None of us is as smart as all of us.

Sticks in a bundle are unbreakable.

A boat doesn’t go forward if each one is rowing their own way.

And, a personal favourite:

When he took the time to help the man up the mountain, lo, he scaled it himself.

There has to be some truth to these corny cringe-worthy clichés, because building a team involves more than just putting the ‘right people’ together.

We are here today.

We are all the ‘right people’.

We have the experience, the qualifications, the talent… but what is missing is an equal commitment in working together for the good of [Our Company]; for [our department], for each other, for our clients and the individuals and families we help.

This is what teams do.

This is what we will do, from now on.

Teamwork is important. It promotes productivity, strengthens bonds between employees and builds self-esteem.

It harbors trust, openness and self-disclosure, support, respect, individual responsibility and accountability.

Bad team members are easy to spot.

They are manipulative, they are gossips, they complain about everything and everyone. These bad teammates play the ‘blame game’ and look for reasons to exclude people. Simply, they lack empathy.

Sounds like a schoolyard doesn’t it?

But us (our team), as adults and teammates, need to weed this behaviour from of our mortuary.

We need to master the skills of clear and effective communication; of expressing feelings in an open, non-threatening way, of listening carefully, and sensing how others feel based on non-verbal communication.

We need to be able to initiate conversations if we sense tensions brewing, and reflect on interactions of the group while encouraging the same.

Sounds easy, yeah?

We need to build positive relationships with one another.

We need to promote ourselves because we do great work!

We need to take responsibility for our own actions, good or bad, and we need to right any mistakes.

Ask questions!

Know when to listen.

Use words like ‘us’ and ‘we’, not ‘I’ and ‘me’.

We don’t need to like each other. It would be nice, but a harmonious relationship is not essential for great teamwork.

What matters is the professional behaviour we use.

Unspoken assumptions and issues can be very destructive to productive group functioning.

We have a great teamwork simile displayed in nature:

Geese flying in their unmistakeable ‘V’ formation have a 71 percent greater flying range than a bird on its own. This is due to the uplift created as they flap their wings.

If a bird falls out of formation, it suddenly feels the drag and resistance of trying to do it alone. And if a goose gets sick or falls out of formation, two other birds follow it down to lend help and protection.

Like geese, we share a common direction: our [department].

We can get where we are going faster and easier on the thrust of one another.

We will stay in formation with teammates who are headed the same way.

And we will stand together… until the end, as a team.