Teamwork is the collaborative effort of a group to achieve a common goal or to complete a task in the most effective and efficient way. When team members value each other's strengths, they are able to avoid conflict, boost group unity, and therefore produce a much better project compared to working alone. Teamwork brings people together and motivates them to assist one another to get things done. Moreover, teamwork also enables the group to overcome obstacles that would have stymied an individual and allows for faster and easier progress to be made. Further benefits of teamwork include expansion of perspective,
shared workload, fostered creativity, and a diversified workplace etc.
However, teamwork is not always as easy. This is because in a team there are many contrasting personality types that may clash and cause misunderstandings. These misunderstandings may be small, such as a conflict or disagreement, but sometimes it can cause major problems that can hinder the project. Because of this, the group may not be able to achieve its goal and progress will be made at a slower rate. Further disadvantages of working in a team include personalities that dominate conversations, unequal division of labour, feeling that contributions are unwanted, and competitions within the workplace etc.
How can we overcome this?
Ways to overcome these challenges depends on the situation the group is in. If an individual feels like they are dominating and contributing without letting others speak, they should become aware of the situation and encourage others to speak up. As well as this, everyone should make sure that the group is getting the same amount of workload, and be clear about the behaviours and responsibilities desired.