Unnatural Work Teams

As a career counselor and psychotherapist, I hear a lot of sad tales about unpleasant bosses and work mates.

As an ecotherapist, it finally dawned on me that it is completely unnatural for human beings to be randomly yoked to unrelated strangers on a work team!

I always go back to the Pleistocene as my touchstone. This is when homo sapiens came into being, and thinking about how people lived then helps me understand what is “natural” for human animals. And of course back then we lived and worked in small groups of mostly related people.

No sane group member would think of going on a dangerous hunting expedition with people he’d never hunted with before! He would probably have known every member of the group since childhood and have been well aware of their individual strengths and weaknesses, which would tell him who to count on and what not to expect.

And for the same reason, what group of tribal women would choose to include an unrelated stranger in a sacred birthing experience?

So why do we expect modern people to form instantly functional work teams?

Many therapists and consultants make an excellent living trying to perform this magic feat for corporations: turning strangers into tribal members. All kinds of bonding exercises, personality analysis, stress experiences, hype-filled rah rah conferences, etc. are used to try to encapsulate in a few days what used to take a lifetime of blood and family/community connection.

Honestly, the more I look at how unnaturally we live, I’m astonished that modern people are able to function at all! But we really AREN’T functioning, are we? We’re dysfunctioning. We’re destroying ourselves and the planet with our bizarre behavior. So maybe we should take a second look at the ancestral and present-day cultures that have figured out how to live in harmony with nature and our own human nature to see how they organized work teams and community.

Comments

[heather]

Yes, you're right. We're so warped. Just looking at people who spend a whole day in an office... that is just so very wrong. And yet, of course, I can sit all day at my computer: writing and e-mailing people about sustainability. But I suppose we are in the system and have to work within the system sometimes. But I feel like a radical "thing" is forming in me, to shake things up again, to make sure I'm not NOT with my tribe. Thanks for this, Linda: it's a precious reminder. (Imagine if you spent all day, every day with ecopsychology-friendly people? That'd be a start!)

[Working with in the system]

Sometimes we need to buck the trend, but sometimes we just need to relate to the trend. Work environments are largely artificial, but in many ways they are wonderful places. You most likely share interests, corporate culture, and educational backgrounds with your coworkers. These are things you may NOT share with your family. Stepping out of the system may be best for many people, but stepping MORE into the system may be best for others. Forge relationships with those around you. Find the common ground. Work together. Discover each others strengths and play to them. Specialization, co-operation, organization, communication...these are largely what makes society work when it works well. Be brave, get to know those around you. Form relationships with them. Work together. If you are not part of the team and feel alienated (and many of us do) then either make a stronger effort at connection or consider a change of environment/team if you have that freedom. Yes we are connected to our jobs, so lets also get connected with the people who work with us. Likewise, make sure that you agree with the basic operating priciples of your workplace. If you dont, think about the why, how, and lastly the ought of things. Connect yourself to the big picture. You can influence its outcome better if you do.