I learned a lot this weekend about being part of a team.  Everything we learned will definitely help us function efficiently moving forward.  Our group has been pretty productive so far, but now I think that we are really headed in the right direction.  Everything is falling into place and we are collaborating well.

The article we read,  “High-Performing Teams Need Psychological Safety. Here’s How to Create it,” taught me a lot.  The point about not taking risks and knowing that your group will support you no matter what stood out to me.  In these next few months, we will have to take risks and we will make mistakes and it will be important for everyone to back each other up.  Also, the article taught me to be more empathetic towards my group members. It isn’t a realistic expectation for everyone to be on the google hangout every single time or for everyone to do all of their work.  We all understand that everyone is busy and that we are trying our best to be high-functioning.  Blaming each other will never be helpful and we will all not always be successful and it’s key to forgive and keep moving forward.

The TED talk has a lot about division and groups being stereotyped as total opposites.  As we start interviewing we will have to acknowledge that there are two sides to the story and different people will have different reasons for why they believe what they believe.  Our group is very passionate about the banning of the Confederate Flag, however many people are very attached and passionate about the flag as something they value identify with.  I think it’s important to not assume anything before you get the real story.  When we start interviewing it will be very important to have an open mind.

I had lots of fun this weekend (especially playing frisbee in the dark!) I am excited to see how our work ends up.