Building leadership communities is a Team game. Maybe that’s why so few have reached the pinnacle of community building like Orrin Woodward. Simply speaking, Orrin makes the Team better. He’s kind of a Tim Tebow and Vince Lombardi mixed together. Like Tebow and Lombardi, he's a winner. “Leadership is not just one quality, but rather a blend of many qualities. While no one individual possesses all of the needed talents that go into leadership, each man can develop a combination to make him a leader”, Vince Lombardi.
Within the Team community building system resides many leaders all working together for the overall goal, a million people. This drives each one of those leaders to be in constant pursuit of their personal best. I remember just a few years ago when the Team was expanding outside of its roots in Michigan. They play a game called ‘Top Gun’, an award that is given to an individual team within 'the TEAM' that brings the most of it’s members to a major convention. Knowing that a major convention has made the most impact on developing a leader, each of us knows the importance of promoting the event and takes it very seriously. At that time no one had ever won the award outside of Michigan. Running into the convention back early in 2002 was a rag tag group coming on strong from Wisconsin. The numbers to attend the convention were growing in Wisconsin and it looked like Michigan would not retain the title of ‘Top Gun’ winner much longer. It actually symbolized how the Team was maturing. Leaders were beginning to build communities away from the Michigan home base at that time. Orrin Woodward made a sweep through Wisconsin to put the “icing on the cake” for the first ever ‘Top Gun’ win outside of Michigan. Teams of leader’s who play games play to win. But a funny little twist occurred. Orrin being the crafty strategist that he is informed my good friend Bill Lewis that he was about to lose the race by about seventy tickets. This brought out one of the most memorable two - minute drills that I’ve ever seen. Bill and his good friend and partner Mark Huber went on a run of meetings with a ‘battle cry’ that resembled William Wallace from Braveheart. The final tally found Bill coming out ahead by two tickets, a major come from behind victory. Through this series of events the overall Team matured as demonstrated by the first leadership community from a state outside of Michigan. Eventually, Wisconsin won several ‘Top Guns’. And since that time, Teams have risen to win ‘Top Guns’ all over the country.
What does it take for a team to win?
- A team must learn to work towards its goal or a purpose. All winning teams have had a mission to accomplish. Each winning team buys into the teams purpose to accomplish the goal. Creating a target for your team to hit creates a group allied in singleness of purpose.
- Internal improvement to make sure that each individual is being the best self. In the community building industry this requires listening, reading, and associating to get the most out of personal growth. An example would be a pack of bike racers, each biker must make sure of their internal capability to keep pace with the pack.
- Intercommunication skill within the team is critical. Team members work interdependently. Relationships and conflict resolution are a few of the communication skills necessary to develop.
- Work ethic is the final piece. The concept in community building is called ‘go getter’ or fifteen exposures over a thirty - day period. This is where the pads are put on and you can apply the information that you learned on the field. Lombardi said, “The only place success comes before work is in the dictionary”.
Building leadership communities is different than football. During that experience you will cry, and laugh. You’ll learn about people like never before. You’ll celebrate with people as they improve their finances, relationships, parenting skills, and marriage. Most of all you’ll learn about yourself. As Lombardi said, “The quality of a person’s life is in direct proportion to their commitment to excellence, regardless of their chosen field of endeavor.” Welcome to the business of LIFE. God Bless, George Guzzardo
