Cooperation: The Partner of Competition

“It’s a competitive world out there. Teach these kids to fight their way to the top. Otherwise, they are going to be stepped on, walked over, overlooked, become losers.” That’s how we adults often present the world of competition to the Kids. The Family Team and our Pack need to be clear on how it is going to deal with Competition as all of us work together.

This is another one of those issues that we deal with entirely differently with our kids than we do with ourselves and with other adults. We adults deal in competitive ways in very few situations and when we do we make some significant adjustments in how we will compete. For example, when we make a friendly bet on the golf course, we check out our handicaps and make adjustments.

There are places in our adult lives where we have no doubts about being fully Cooperative and being absolutely sure that there is no Competition involved in the operation. My wife, Bobbie, played French horn in two symphony orchestras and we talked a lot about the differences and similarities of her experiences in music and my experiences playing and coaching various sports. We agreed on one thing without any reservations; the players must cooperate completely in order for the organization to be successful.

The essence of cooperation is in having people working together toward pre-determined goals -- it is the essence of The Family Team and our Packs. It’s essential that the individuals involved communicate openly and clearly with one another. They must work cooperatively; they can’t get into the trap of hiding their discoveries or ideas so that they will be one-up on their associates. If they do, the whole project is in jeopardy. (Can you imagine the string section of the orchestra competing with the woodwinds or one bassoonist battling another?)

I learned very quickly that in order to compete successfully, I had to teach the players on my team to cooperate fully -- it is often called Teamwork.