25Friend or Teammate?
WE GO TO the movies with good friends. We go to battle with great teammates. The Program considers a friend anyone who is a good person with whom we enjoy spending our time (a “good” person doesn’t lie, cheat, or steal). A teammate is a member of our organization with whom we accomplish a mission. Friends are held to two standards: be a good person and be enjoyable to spend time with. Teammates are held to two standards as well: meet our organization’s standards and then hold our teammates accountable to achieving them.
We go to the movies with good friends. We go to battle with great teammates.
There are very few people who don’t desire to be well liked—some more than others, but we all have an ego. If you don’t think you do, right now, go and find a group photo that you are in. Look at it. Answer the following question truthfully: Who did you look for first?
Not only do we want to be well liked, we want to be loved! For many individuals on a team, some of whom are even high performers, this desire to be popular, to be a good friend to everyone, is more important than being a great teammate who meets the standard and then holds their teammates accountable to doing so. Holding a teammate accountable is uncomfortable. When we hold some teammates accountable, it can upset them, make them angry at us, or even cause them not to like us or want to be friends with us.
Almost every organization has people who are very popular, whom everyone likes a lot. They ...
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