Teamwork is Important for an Enderun Student

An Enderun student works well in a group. That’s exactly what Ms. Marissa Felix said before announcing the first topic in Enderun Experience: Introduction 1 (GE 100) and introducing the four speakers for that day. I went to the Multi-purpose Covered Court not really knowing what was going to happen at our GE Magisterial Lecture last Wednesday, June 22, 2011. Little did I know that I would be enlightened by the talk about one of the most important things that we will need to learn to achieve at Enderun: teamwork. No man is an island. To achieve great things, one needs a team. Working anywhere, like in a restaurant or a hotel, one needs a team that works well together to achieve success. Throughout Enderun Experience, the students will be bombarded with group work, which is why a talk about teamwork was the perfect start.

The first speaker was Dr. Francis Santamaria, who is a Sports Psychologist, Management Consultant, and Coach of the Philippine Olympic Team. He talked about how he motivates athletes. Motivation starts with one’s self. One must always have a sense of purpose. One must ask one’s self why we one is here. For example, students should answer why they chose their career, why they are at Enderun and what they expect to learn. Dr. Santamaria also said that one must reflect and ask one’s self where one is at and where one will proceed at the end of each day to be motivated the next day. One should set goals and motivate one’s self to achieve them. Confidence is also a big factor. If one doesn’t have self-confidence, then fake it. The body follows the mind. Psychology has changed, before one used to think that what one sees is reality, now one knows that what one believes in is reality. Confidence is energy. One must review what one likes about one’s self and that brings out one’s confidence. If a team is prepared for whatever is to come, then the team is confident. A team must always be ready. Confidence can be seen as easily as looking at students at school: they had the confidence to choose Enderun over other colleges and face the challenges. Following the advice of Dr. Santamaria, teamwork is easier to achieve because one must be self-actualized and prepared to be able to contribute to a team. In a team, according to Dr. Santamaria, each member should identify what he or she can bring to the table to help achieve teamwork.

The second speaker was Commander Genesis Dolojan, who was part of the Philippine Navy for 18 years and had just arrived from Afghanistan after 6 years of being part of the United Nations Peacekeeping Unit. After High school, he joined the Philippine Military Academy where he trained for four years with young boys aged seventeen to nineteen from different regions of the Philippines. Throughout those four years, they went through hardship and rigorous training where he learned how to build teamwork. For them, the fault of one was the fault of all. Just like in a team, when one makes a mistake, others get affected. In a team, you are one. At twenty-one, Commander Dolojan had joined the Philippine Navy and was already leading people twice his age. In a team, leadership is important. The leader must plan and organize, so that everyone knows where to go, is guided, and knows one’s task. Teamwork takes time, if one isn’t cooperating, one should motivate, communicate, encourage, and listen. One should not give up on a member. Communication between members is significant as well. Most importantly, the leader must set an example for the team members to follow. One must gain the trust of the other members as a leader by earning their respect. One must know what one is saying and doing through experience to gain credibility. Commander Dolojan also shared his experience in the U.N. System. In a totally different environment consisting of different nationalities, with a complicated set-up, teamwork is important. To achieve teamwork, there must be national balance where not one predominates another, gender equality, and cultural sensitivity. One must learn how to respect the different cultures of others.

The third speaker was Mr. Peter Olivares, the team manager of ILLAM (International Little League Association of Manila)/Philippines Little League Baseball. He volunteered to coach the team and has been doing so since 2003. Mr. Olivares talked about teamwork by discussing the 17 Indisputable Laws of Teamwork that John C. Maxwell wrote about in his book. One must realize that in order to achieve greatness, one needs other people. In a team, the goal is more important than each member’s personal agenda. One should also remember that each member has it’s own niche. One member might be bad at one thing but great at another; the important thing is to find out and utilize their strengths. For example, in his team, he has slow runners, but they are also strong hitters. A team must also have a vision of where it wants to go, why, and how it’ll get there. The team members must also know that they are all equal and even the best should be able to give to the others. A team must also be able to count on one another for anything. In order to achieve success, each team member must contribute hard work, sacrifice, time, and personal development. The team must share the same values, which gives them their identity and defines the team. This attracts the type of team members the team needs. To promote harmony, communication is key. Respectful communication even when disagreements happen is important. The difference between two same teams is leadership. Good leadership is essential. Different circumstances call for different leaders. When a team has a high morale it can deal with anything. Lastly, investing in the team compounds over time. Putting in time and work for the team will pay off once the team achieves success. In Mr. Olivares’ case, it was when they reached the World Series by investing time and hard work to train coaches and umpires. For students, if they work hard, get good grades, then they will be rewarded with good employment.

The fourth and final speaker was Mr. Ferdinand V. Agustin, the President of Lyncor, Inc., the Corporation that owns Bayo, the Filipino retail brand. He is also an Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Philippines 2004 Finalist and an Enderun graduate. He reminded the students that teamwork has always been part of our lives. Since the day of one’s birth, a medical team worked together to make sure one’s mother had a safe delivery. Teamwork brought the students to Enderun. The parents, the school, the faculty, and students – it was a team effort that made the students committed to Enderun. In everything one does, there is teamwork, which is why it is so important. Mr. Agustin ended the talk with a quote by Henry Ford, “Coming together is beginning. Keeping together is progress. Working together is success.”