FOUNDATIONS OF TOGETHERNESS

 Tate Modern, London

“Unity is strength…when there is teamwork and collaboration, wonderful things can be achieved.” 
- Mattie Stepanek

“Yes, I have a team and the team is expert, and the team is courageous…we did …I didn’t do it. We’ll never forget it. It’ll always be a part of us.” Diana Nyad, the long-distance swimmer, praised her team and voiced her strong belief in the group achievement. She carried out an epic 102 mile swim from North Bimini Island, The Bahamas, to Juno Beach, Florida over open water and many other inspiring challenges. On reaching this fiftieth article, I wanted to bring the focus back to the teamwork that Findmyflis represents. It is thanks to the teams’ support and talents that my articles have been proofread, the piano registrations made, the structure of the blog and content has evolved and our skills have continued to develop, allowing us to offer more of what we are passionate about.

When Tess Burrows, an adventurer and peace-activist in her sixties, set out on the challenge of a lifetime, the South Pole Race, it became increasingly evident in her account how this mission for peace surpassed the goals of the individual. The training alone, in a range of different countries, challenges and surroundings supported by the guidance and support of an expert team brought out a level of mental and physical preparation that successfully carried her and the other two team members through the Antarctic. Each of us has something inside of us, a goal, hidden aspirations, that we would like to make a concrete reality. It takes humility to look objectively at the task ahead and acknowledge that going it completely alone because we want all the glory and recognition can be a short-sighted reaction that may gain some initial satisfaction, but long-term true happiness and meaning in life comes from striving together to achieve something greater than ourselves.

Many of us talk about doing great things and I have heard the same things brought up time and time again over the years, by myself included, but when does the 'I want' start to become a collaboration with an aspiration for more than just our own satisfaction and ultimately limited ambition? Through personal experience, I know that restraints such as finances, lack of support or other aspects can halt or considerably slow down progress and opportunities, so I am grateful for the support that I have received and also understand the frustration of external factors and being forced to go it alone, when that is not our choice. Starting on a three-year uphill journey to be able to walk normally and then later go on to run, and to regain full use of my hands to be able to play the piano again after herniated discs and a thrombosis, I learnt a lot of hard truths about my real motivation for things and the inestimable value of a team’s support.  

Playing the piano and running were such an important part of my life and for most of that journey, I had taken them and the ability to walk and do every day things for granted. That changed when I suddenly had them taken away from me. The team behind my recovery is extraordinary and I will never forget what they have given me. The help came from so many different sources; the top neurosurgeon, the hospital and ozone therapy specialists, my physiotherapist and sports coach, the support at the heated swimming pool to my husband and family, and all those who stood with me, giving me practical support to continue the three-hour daily training and to my God and church family. It started more as a victim mentality of ‘why me’, and has transformed into goals that I could never have imagined and the ability to savour every run, and every note of the piano with the chance to offer something back for this life-giving experience.

The unity between the pianist Krystian Zimerman, the conductor Leonard Bernstein and the orchestra in Brahms’ concertos, speaks magnitudes. None of them are trying to take centre stage, but they are completely absorbed in the music, working together to express to the highest level the beauty and incredible power of these masterpieces. Self has no place in a team effort. We actually get noticed more by giving ourselves fully to a group work with solid foundations because it comes naturally. In nature, each animal has its role, for example in a colony of ants. Each one works on carrying out a specific task, working consistently and persistently to achieve the shared vision and outcome. By focusing on our own role and doing all that we can to support those around us, we will get much further and open up the space to allow their talents to shine through.

In the film, the Runaway Jury based on John Grisham’s novel, Gene Hackman plays Rankin Fitch, a corrupt jury consultant who works solely on self-centred ambition and Dustin Hofmann’s character, the defence lawyer Wendell Rohr warns him about finding himself alone by his actions, which later becomes his reality. Real teamwork means being willing to admit mistakes, seeking solutions together and ways to help the team unit, and genuinely being interested in the work of those members and their goals. We can all learn so much from everyday life situations and unexpected team experiences. As Diane Nyad said during her Ted Talk 

“Never ever give up. I live it. What is the phrase from Socrates? ‘To be is to do.’ So, I don’t stand up and say “don’t ever give up.” I didn’t give up. There was action behind these words…You can chase your dreams at any age; you’re never too old…It looks like the most solitary endeavour in the world, and in many ways of course, it is. And in other ways, the most important ways, it’s a team.”