Like I always keep telling people who ask me about one of the biggest challenges of pursuing an MBA program, “There’s no bigger challenge than working in groups” Now I don’t want to be sounding like its a big pain to be working with people. But at the same time, I don’t want to paint a rosy picture. I’ve had my own share of fun & problems, but at times the scales might tilt slightly towards the problems side.

In almost all MBA programs, you are given plenty of assignments that require you to work in a group. And most of the times, you don’t get to choose with whom you would want to work with. Professors generally choose whom you work with which gives you an equal chance to work with the best and the worst of the lot. The following is my list of the best and worst things to happen while working with teams -

The Good

1. During the initial days of your program, its a great way to know new people and make some really good friends
2. You get to learn how to work with different people, being patient and being a team worker
3. You start appreciating the work others bring to the table
4. Its a great feeling when your team excels and receives appreciation from faculty members
5. A chance to learn things that you previously didn’t know.

The Bad

1. Some people are inherently lazy and don’t turn up for work
2. Few of them don’t work on weekends, either don’t respond to phone calls or switch off mobile phones
3. Working with bossy people can only makes things worse when you want to contribute your ideas but don’t get a chance to be heard.
4. You might be put in a team where your worst enemy is a member! Lol
5. If you are the lazy person in the team, fingers would be pointing in your direction.

So can you think of any?

Love
Sen