The phrase, “There’s no I in team,” has been bandied about in team sports for decades. Although the phrase’s origins may not be readily apparent, the sentiment the phrase conveys is. Selfish players do not a good team make, me first players are not conducive to team success, individuals need to sacrifice for the greater common good.
Two players almost universally acknowledged as the greatest champions in team sports today, Lebron James and Tom Brady, are also noted for valuing their various teams’ successes. For all their individual accomplishments and individual statistical milestones, both players, at least from an outsider’s perspective, seem to be motivated by the collective successes they’ve shared with their teammates.
But another trait that sets Lebron James and Tom Brady apart from most of their contemporaries, and precious few of their contemporaries are still playing the game at all, not to mention at the highest levels. That trait is an obsessive focus on their own individual preparation to play a team sport. Both players are focused on taking care of their bodies, from their diets to their exercise routines to adequate rest and many other details, big and small. Both players take nothing for granted. Both players know that the best way to help their team is to be the best they can be.
This is the essence of the I in team, and what is necessary for any team to reach its full potential. Certainly, for any team to reach its full potential, the individuals need to put team goals before individual goals. Equally, a team full of individuals who are not focused on their own individual preparation will never reach its full potential.
For any collective of individuals to excel, those individuals must sacrifice for the common goal. Similarly, the collective effort cannot exceed the sum of each individual’s effort.