Team work is better than Individual heroism - Essay Example

Running head: Team Work Is Better than Individual Heroism Team Work Is Better Than Individual Heroism Insert Insert Grade Insert Name10 July 2012There are several reasons why teamwork is better than individual heroism as a course of approach. For example, a simple task of cleaning a room may take an individual one hour yet a group can accomplish the task in twenty minutes. Similarly, an individual’s duty may not be well accomplished as compared to a team because of the many skills represented by a group.

Teamwork refers to the combination of people’s efforts and abilities in the common purpose of accomplishing a task (West 54-56). Such a unity is primarily based on a need to complete a specific task. Teamwork guarantees collaboration, support and cooperation. Individual heroism, on the other hand, denotes the self-centered technique of approaching things from a personal perspective. Team work is better than individual heroism because through teamwork people of different abilities and skills unite for the accomplishment of a common purpose.

For instance, if a group of people runs a business, it becomes easy to distribute the tasks amongst themselves thus making the venture successful. As a result, it is easier for teamwork to succeed in any endeavor due to the synergy of pooled resources and potentialities. On the other hand, individual heroism depicts selfishness and may not achieve much due to the solitary approach involved. Whereas teamwork could be convenient through the distribution of tasks, individual heroism is self-exhaustive and cumbersome.

Teamwork provides an avenue for interaction, cooperation and sharing that result into better society and healthy living. For instance, when people meet to accomplish a joint task, they interact and share their experiences through which they strengthen each other. Teamwork achieves far much more than the task at hand because it offers opportunities for social and individual advancement through the involvement of different people in a single task. The experience of teamwork is so satisfying that the task need not be accomplished in totality; because the joy and success of teamwork lies in cooperation, which is a huge source of actualization.

Through teamwork, it is possible for individuals to learn and correct their areas of weakness for better performance. A case in point is a situation when a group of people perform a common duty through which they observe and learn from one another. This is contrary to individual heroism, which seals all opportunities for growth and development by glorifying personal achievement at the expense of nurturing potential. Accordingly, individual heroism fosters personal glory and self centeredness thus killing the spirit of learning.

In fact, in teamwork there are no losers and winners because of collective responsibility, when the team succeeds every member shares the glory thus creating a sense of belonging among them. In summary, individual heroism glorifies personal achievement and fails to nurture talent thus being a source of eventual defeat and frustration. Teamwork, on the other hand, nurtures talent, corrects flaws and harbors growth and development that are the core principles of success. Therefore, teamwork is a success-formula which also leads to happiness and self actualization while individual heroism is an end in itself.

Furthermore, individual heroism nurtures self-centeredness that creates an attitude of isolation that eventually leads to defeat and frustration. Teamwork through its broader roles of creating platforms for learning, growth and interaction creates a win-win atmosphere that guarantees success in the long run.Work CitedWest, Michael. Effective Teamwork: Practical Lessons from Organizational Research. Washington: John Wiley & Sons, 2012. Print