Like myself, most of you coming into business school will not have had the experience of being in a study group before, and would be at least somewhat apprehensive when arriving into a new environment and immediately get stuck working with people you have never known in your life.
Well from the picture below, you can see that it has worked out quite well for my team =)
The picture is taken after we won a team competition, and among other prizes got a bottle of champagne as reward =D
Every study group has been carefully composed to ensure that a variety of culture, work experience and interest is represented. In our team there is me - a Canadian/Chinese, as well as a Brit, a Lithuanian, a Greek and a German. We studied wildly different things from economics to international relations to biology, and had various work experiences.
In all aspects we have a very different background, and it was not easy in the beginning for everyone to work together. Some might prefer a more laid-back working style, while others would want to sit down and get the work done quickly and move on. Some of us have had training in areas like accounting and finance, while others were total beginners.
So what's the secret to working together successfully? I think it comes down to having a lot of patience and respect for everyone, understanding that we have different backgrounds, working style and speed. Sit down as a team and figure out what you want from the course, and what's the best way to work together. Finally - and most importantly - have a big sense of humour and enjoy each other's company. I truly believe that if you enjoy working together, your work will be better too.
I think it's important to note that each team has different dynamics. Some teams, like ours, meet frequently not only on campus to work, but also go out to dinner and movies often. Other teams could just meet for work and then part ways to relax individually. In the end just know how your team works best.
It could be unnerving in the beginning having to work so closely with people you barely know. But by grouping together people who might otherwise never work together, 'magic' could happen and find unexpected synergy between people who are so different. I for one have found myself in an amazing team, and the fact that we have achieved great results in competitions shows that we have worked very well together.
Go Team Munchkins!!!
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