Being an Essential Part of a High Performing Creative Team - MOD 3 Inquiry

Last week I woke up at 5am to prepare to give the final presentation for the last day of my Bachelors Programme. It's been a wild ride, and it would be incredibly difficult to fully incapsulate every detail of my learning in a blog post. However, I did want to share some of the major takeaways from my inquiry on "Being an Essential Part of a High Performing Creative Team" in hopes that it will aid the readers, whether current or future students:

While engineering a perfect team is thoroughly subjective, I believe that based on the acquisition of information gained throughout my research, my review of literature, and reflection on my own professional practice, there are viable ways to increase the likelihood of being an essential part of a high-performing creative team.  These include:  

1. Contributing to a positive, psychologically-safe environment with others, working toward a clearly defined goal or purpose.  
   
2. Being a good communicator is crucial. Without effective communication, teams often become dysfunctional.
3. Practice your craft and creativity. While collaboration is important, teammates also value skilled and highly trained professionals. 
4. Be engaged and driven while approachable. Humility is the rarest but most important characteristic people look for in a creative teammate. 
5. Be self-aware. Knowing your strengths and weaknesses can make you a much more well-rounded, and practical teammate.  It is important to understand that most of these skills can be practiced and developed, but first comes having the humility to reflect and know the areas in which you are lacking.

In the words of U.S. businessman and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie; "Teamwork is the ability to work together toward a common vision. The ability to direct individual accomplishments toward organizational objectives. It is the fuel that allows common people to attain uncommon results.”

I believe these are not only relevant in relation to creative team settings, but also in interactions with colleagues at school, teachers and faculty, and approaching the rest of your educational career. I hope these principals aid you moving forward in your life, as I know this learning and undertaking has and will continue to positively impact mine.