Team sports have always been a significant, important and fulfilling part of my life. Whilst the same can be said for thousands of people across the UK, of course, there is a huge proportion of our population to whom the thought of working/sweating/training/losing together with a group of other people is incomprehensible.

So, whether you’ve always been involved in sport, never been involved in it or just don’t like it because of past experiences, in this short article, I will espouse the benefits of team sports and the skills it can arm you with for life and for your career.

For those concerned about joining a team, being part of a team or simply wanting to avoid sport (at any age) and its stereotypes, allow me to let recently crowned “Queen of the Jungle”, Jill Scott MBE to support me. On a recent broadcast from the jungle, she said, “Being involved in sport, it’s not about being involved at an elite level; it’s about learning how to win and how to lose and helping others”. It would be fair to say a good chunk of her popularity was because she lived out the precise values she mentioned. Learn. Help others.

Now, of course, winning does help, but that really should be seen as the outcome of a strong process rather than the actual process itself. As Michael Jordan once said, “I’ve failed over and over in my life and that is why I succeed”. To become successful or to win (¹) takes effort, it takes commitment and it takes discipline. All these attributes will be beneficial to anyone in their personal life and chosen career.

Team sports can instil in you a huge sense of community and respect for others. In creating a positive and productive workplace, these are definitely characteristics to be cherished and embraced. In my experience as a participant and an observer there is a strong sense of “being in it together” In all successful (²) teams. There are common goals, team values, “ways of working” and a togetherness that manifests in positive examples of action (adding value) in a team. These are best described by Allistair McCaw, author of “Champion Minded” and “Habit’s that make a champion”

1. Arrive early
2. Come prepared
3. Be a great communicator
4. Encourage others
5. Display a high work ethic
6. Be a problem solver
7. Show compassion
8. Bring a good energy
9. Be supportive
10. Do more than what’s asked

 

If you were looking to find a new employee for your team, you would be hard-pressed to ignore a candidate displaying all or some of these attributes. Team environments can generate, develop and positively embed these characteristics

Widening perspectives. Certainly not every sports team in the world is wholly diverse but, in my experience, sports team are a fantastic cultural mix, combining people of different backgrounds, upbringings, ethnicities, senses of humour, skills, weaknesses, leaders, soldiers, artists, physicality and attitude, to name but a few. This diversity within the changing room, training ground or playing field really allows the team members to grow beyond their own horizons. I recall with great affection my first football match in London in my early twenties. The team was made up of students, city professionals, carpenters, salesmen & teachers. They came from London, Wales, Birmingham, Nigeria & Liverpool. Some were loud and brash, others quiet and strong. How they behaved on the pitch was often different to how they behaved off it. A real social “smorgasbord” and something to be welcomed and applauded. I think back to Cricket sides I played with in London ~ backgrounds from Wales, London, north of England, West Indies, Australia, New Zealand, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, the Home Counties. All with a common goal to play, hopefully successful, cricket and embed lifelong friendships. One thing I can say with great confidence is that if I saw any of those team-mates in the street we’d hug, laugh and share great memories. I can’t say the same about the majority people I’ve worked with or met through work to date. Of course, there are many respected characters, but certainly not the same sense of togetherness that is generated with a sports team.

An under-looked benefit of participating within a sports team is Time Management. Within a team, you have a responsibility to prepare your kit, plan your travel and arrive on time to warm-up and play at a variety of different locations for training, meetings or matches. The most significant responsibility in these circumstances is to not let the other members of the team down. Turn up late for training and the coaches training plan is shelved. Turn up late to a match and you don’t make the starting line-up, or the team starts short of players. Turn up late and face the wrath of your team-mates!! As mentioned above, strong team cultures will see players turning up early and well-prepared. Often this mentality driven and self-managed by the team values and not just a draconian management approach. To some people being on time is regarded as optional. I do not subscribe to this at all. I think it is courteous to be on time for an arranged meeting, regardless of the perceived ‘status’ of the participants. Being “fashionably late” is just being late and potentially disrupting other people’s arrangements. There is no kudos in that. In general, sports people have a strong aptitude for good timekeeping and I love that.

Being disciplined and honest in timekeeping also indirectly adds another strength – communication. If you are held up inadvertently, you do your utmost to let the team know, as soon as possible. The more notice a coach/manager/team-mate/captain/physio/groundsman etc has, the easier it is for them to make adjustments. This works just as importantly in a professional/career environment and good communication is paramount in strong performing teams.

Of course, the obvious benefits of playing Sport are the Physical benefits and teamwork. These are well-documented elsewhere by people far better qualified than me.

The final element I want to stress as a benefit of playing Sport is that it can contribute to better Stress and Pressure Management. It is only sport but being in an important situation with your team-mates depending upon you can give you valid experience of coping under “pressure”, even if it is not real-life. Your team-mates, supporters, coaches and management want the team to win or improve and often Sport can help develop strategies to deal with stress/pressure in a non-professional or “annual performance review” environment.

To summarise, I know I am biased. I know other fields in life can produce well-rounded, trustworthy, reliable and talented people. I wanted to write something positive about the role Sport can play in a person’s life and development, so please forgive me for the positive sport focus. In general, sport develops and produces people who are disciplined, committed, diligent, courteous and robust. They make good team members and, generally, bring a positive approach to life/work/team. If I was offered the option to watch something or play sport, I would play sport, almost every time. I would recommend involvement in Sports clubs, even if only in an administrative capacity of your active participation days are in the past. Sport has capacity for disappointment and joy in equal measure, but as Jill Scott says…………” it’s about learning how to win and how to lose and helping others”.

(¹) To Win – my general definition of winning is to be a little bit better than you were yesterday. Of course, winning can also be a narrow definition aligned to a precise match – “we won 1-0” – or series of matches, but not all situations involve opposition.

(²) success is relative. You may be part of district team reserve squad or first choice for an elite professional outfit. You may be on a manufacturing production line, or you may be tasked with building the next lunar module. They are all teams.