Team building and footgolf: playing individually to learn how to win together
WHAT IS TEAM BUILDING?
The term ‘team building’ literally means ‘building a team’ and refers to a set of activities designed to transform a group of people into a more united, self-aware and collaborative team.
Through recreational, educational or sporting experiences, corporate team building helps to improve mutual trust, communication between colleagues and the ability to work together to achieve common goals.
Nothing new so far, right?
Our latest experience, however, was slightly different from traditional team-building activities. We spent a day together playing footgolf, an original and engaging sport that combines some of the rules of golf with football techniques.
What made it special? Although we were taking part in a team-building activity, we played individually.
A choice that, at least at first, might seem to go against the grain. Yet it was precisely this approach that allowed us to reflect on a dynamic we experience every day at work too: everyone carries out their own tasks, but nobody really works alone.
FOOTGOLF: A TEAM-BUILDING EXPERIENCE THAT BREAKS THE MOLD
Footgolf is played on a course similar to a golf course, but instead of clubs and golf balls, a football is used. The aim is to complete each hole with as few kicks as possible.
It requires precision, concentration, strategy and the ability to adapt to the obstacles on the course.
Each player has their own ball, their own score and an individual target to achieve. It isn’t strictly a team game, and everyone is responsible for their own result.
Yet, during the game, no one was truly isolated.
We observed each other’s techniques, compared different approaches to the course and tried to work out how to improve our next shot. We encouraged one another, shared tips and, of course, had a laugh at the most unlikely attempts.
Although we were playing individually, we continued to influence and learn from one another.
And that is precisely where footgolf turned into a genuine team-building activity.
EVEN IN THE OFFICE, WE ALL HAVE OUR OWN PLAYGROUND
In our day-to-day working lives, we are often focused on our tasks, deadlines and the work we need to complete. We enter our own ‘bubble’ and may feel as though we are working alone.
We do our utmost to complete a task, but as soon as we achieve one goal, we discover that five more have cropped up in the meantime.
In reality, every task is linked to the work of other people.
Those responsible for uploading products to marketplaces enable the sales department to sell them online. The procurement department selects the products that the marketing, sales and logistics teams will subsequently work on. Managers make important decisions, coordinate activities and take on responsibilities that contribute to the growth of the entire company.
Everyone has their own role, their own area of responsibility and their own goal to achieve. However, the final result depends on the combined efforts of everyone involved.
We are like a chain: each link has a specific function, but it is the connection between the links that makes it truly strong.
OBSERVING OTHERS’ WORK TO IMPROVE YOUR OWN
Whilst playing footgolf, we watched the other players to work out what stance to adopt, how much power to put into the ball, and which trajectory to choose.
We didn’t do this to judge them, but to learn.
The same approach can also be applied at work.
A few days before our team-building day, a colleague asked me who was responsible for uploading the instructions to the website. Her question arose from the need to adapt certain documents to new regulations concerning rechargeable household appliances.
By discussing the matter with her and the procurement department, I had the opportunity to take a closer look at the process involved in updating product instructions. Gaining a better understanding of their needs and working methods allowed me to broaden my perspective and even identify a possible solution to improve the process.
In a way, it was exactly what we experienced whilst playing footgolf: I observed how others worked, gained a better understanding of the challenges they faced, and used that information to improve my own contribution as well.
Collaboration between colleagues often stems precisely from these moments of exchange.
When we have a better understanding of what other departments do, we can grasp the consequences of our decisions, prevent potential problems and work more efficiently.
TEAM BUILDING ALSO MEANS LEARNING FROM OTHERS
In a game, we observe others’ techniques because we want to score more points, improve our performance and, of course, win.
That same energy should also guide us in the office.
It is not a question of turning work into an individual competition, but of keeping alive the desire to do better, the curiosity about what is happening in other departments, and the humility to learn from the people working alongside us.
An effective team is not made up of people who all carry out the same tasks. On the contrary, it is made up of professionals with different skills, responsibilities and perspectives, capable of putting their expertise at the service of a common goal.
To build good teamwork, the following are needed:
listening and communication;
mutual trust;
understanding of roles;
sharing of information;
willingness to engage in discussion;
awareness of the impact of one’s work on others.
Corporate team-building activities are important precisely because they help us rediscover these dynamics outside the daily routine.
A DAY OF SPORT, COMPETITION AND SHARING
Our team-building exercise wasn’t about ‘teamwork’ in the traditional sense, with everyone competing together against a common opponent.
It was something different.
Footgolf showed us that it’s possible to play as individuals and, at the same time, feel part of a group. Everyone tackled their own course, but kept an eye on the others, comparing notes and sharing the experience.
Just as happens in the workplace.
Every day, each of us carries out our own responsibilities, makes decisions and strives to achieve our own goals. But the result of our work only takes on greater value when it is linked to that of others.
The real message of this day is therefore simple: even when it feels as though we are playing on our own, we can only truly succeed if we learn to look out for one another, understand one another and improve together.
Because behind every individual achievement, there is always a team that helps make it possible.
