So I almost laughed out loud when I typed the title for this post. The reason being that I just “survived” an eight person, ten day intensive consulting project for Entergy/ my Brand Promotions class. Although we technically got the assignment earlier in the semester, there were some logistical issues and we had to merge two teams and we only met for the first time about ten days before the project was actually due. With that being said, and with this very successful project (Entergy actually wrote us letters of recommendations for our work) fresh on my mind, I decided to compile my top five things, in no particular order that I’ve learned about working on a team based project……. Drum roll please.
1. No matter how tired/frustrated/hungry you get always listen to your teammates’ ideas because you never know what brilliant idea someone will come up with in the midnight hour.
2. Use the white board/computer projector at all times. If people can’t see an idea translated into words or pictures then it tends to take much longer for everyone to understand.
3. When in doubt enlist the help of your professor. There are always misunderstandings in teams. So when you don’t know, ask.
4. When you feel like quitting, work one more hour and then walk away from it. 60 minutes isn’t the magic number, but the point is when you feel like I can’t work anymore push yourself just a little harder and you’ll be amazed at how much more you accomplish.
5. Last but certainly not least, pull your weight and be prepared to pick up the slack of others. While this didn’t happen on the Entergy project it has happened to me in the past. You don’t want to be “that person” who doesn’t hold their weight, and you don’t want to get a bad grade because someone else didn’t do their work.
Amina