Let us continue from the earlier article , about leveraging the slip stream.
Imagine a scenario, where a bunch of cyclists are gathered for a marathon. Now, one cyclist decides to dash ahead and starts to expend every last drop of energy into pedalling as fast as possible, to get as far ahead as he/she can go. But how long do you think this person would be able to travel with regard to the other cyclists?
While in the first few hours, the cyclist would be able to establish a significant lead, over a period of time, he/she will slow down significantly due to intense fatigue. Most of these races stretch for distances of 50 kilometres and above, and because the lead person gets tired, others slowly start to catch up.
A career is no different. Many people put in so much of effort initially that they soon face a burnout. Others then catch up and overtake this person.
Collective effort
That is why the idea of collective effort is very important. The biggest constraint to idea is the concern that an individual’s performance would not be noticed, because of which they might lose out on growth opportunities.
Recognising this apprehension, many organisations actively encourage a sense of collective identity and group effort through numerous management training programmes.
However, in the end, it ultimately boils down to the individual. If a person is not a team player, he/she will lose out on the opportunity of taking advantage of the slip stream.
Multiple benefits
The reality is that when a young professional becomes part of a collective identity and is open to helping and taking help from the team members, they benefit in multiple ways.
Phasing out effort : This enables people conserve their physical and mental energy, so they can generate bursts of speed whenever required.
In real-life scenarios, this would translate into a person being able to put in long hours during a crisis scenario. This will be made possible only if the person has enough physical and mental bandwidth to manage such a situation.
On the contrary, if a person has been working hard consistently, the chances are he/she will collapse during a crisis. This would be because of his/her burnout.
Learn as you go : People might actually learn more when they go slow, and this might become a key competitive advantage in the years ahead.
A cyclist who is not rushing in a race can afford to observe the terrain and even take a few moments to enjoy the view. This would definitely help in terms of refreshing his/her mind and staying motivated. Similarly, a young professional who is not constantly rushing might get the opportunity to observe and learn from different situations.
Another equally important aspect to keep in mind is that no bird can always hope to fly only in the slip stream. If that were to happen, the flock might shun such a bird.
The same logic applies to professionals. No one likes to work with people who are ready to share the rewards and recognition, while shirking work and responsibilities. Such people will soon be left behind.