Smells Like Team Spirit!

There is no “I” in team, but it can sure feel like it when you’re the only one hitting the court with any enthusiasm. Team spirit is the key component in any victory, and if your team doesn’t have it-well, then you don’t have it!

Keeping your team pumped up, excited and working as a team can be hard, especially when you consider the fact that you’re basically working against human nature. There’s only so long that a group of people can be together and doing the same activity before competition, petty complaints and boredom breaks up your commitment to a single goal.

The question is, how do you keep that commitment going when all you want to do is throw in the towel? Here are some fun team building exercises to keep your team working together both on and off the court:

1) Plan a team night away from anything even resembling volleyball and let your team get to know each other off the court. This is especially important when you have new players. Building relationships between your players will help stop the sniping and power struggles that can be devastating to your team spirit.

2) Build trust building exercises into your daily routine. If your players can’t trust each other, they can’t effectively communicate with each other on and off the court. Toes will be stepped on, and team spirit will be in shambles.

3) Be sure no one is playing favorites. Do you really have players that aren’t getting much court time? Is one player constantly getting lauded while the others stand by and watch? There is no “I” in team, and putting one there is going to annihilate your team spirit.

4) Get silly! Doing something ridiculous, like jumping on a trampoline or bouncing on exercise balls, builds fun memories and brings teams together at the same time. If it works for Fortune 500 companies, it can work for you!

5) Practice as a team, and rotate regularly. Shifting players around on the court is not only going to make them better players, it’s also going to give them a chance to show off their weak spots-and ask each other for help.

There are plenty of ways to foster team spirit in your team, so give me a
V-O-L-L-E-Y-B-A-L-L and go out there and make it happen!

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