Because there's no I in T-E-A-M.
I once worked at a restaurant where there were barely enough knives to go around. At the end of each shift, the servers were expected to create a total of 40 silverware wraps before being checked out by the manager. Due to the knife shortage, this created a massive scramble at the end of each shift, with people hoarding knives, hovering by the dishwashers like hawks, and, occasionally, stabbing one another. (Okay, that was just a rumor.)
Clearly, this led to a breakdown in teamwork. Giving the knives to one person would mean that another person wouldn’t have them. Asking an entire staff of 20 servers to wait around until the absolute last knife is washed and wrapped wasn’t realistic, as it would have meant an extra two hours for people on the early shift.
I had a conversation with an angry waiter who confronted me about the knives I had carefully washed myself. “Can I have those?” he asked. Well, actually, I was going to use them. “That’s not very good teamwork,” he said, and then he stomped away in a huff. And he had a point: if I were an altruistic person, I’d have given him the knives and waited/hovered around for the next batch. However, it’s not exactly good teamwork to go around demanding people give you something simply because you want it, even if the word “teamwork” is your ammunition of choice.
We could have split the knives, which would have meant we both had to wait for the next batch, and I didn’t see the point in that. If the other server has to wait for knives either way, would it begrudge him to let a co-worker go home?
This is why a simple thing like supplies can lead to a complete breakdown in teamwork. At a different restaurant where knives were abundant, the servers would pile in a back booth at the end of each shift and wrap silverware when we had time. No one counted their 40 rolls, because it didn’t matter—it was all getting done in a swift manner, and no one was frantic that we would be waiting around endlessly at the end of the shift. Not only did the job get done more efficiently, but there were no hard feelings leftover, and we were more willing to help one another in different situations.
This advice, and more, in a response to a reader about how to get employees to work well together.
Now play nice.
