It's common to compare teams to families. “We’re all a big family here”, "Welcome to the family!"
I don’t buy that analogy.
For me, teams are like ship crews. Each member has a defined role, a specific task. Personal connections are essential but the crew’s focus is always the mission - getting to that destination.
Your success depends on each crew member doing their job well. If someone isn’t contributing or pulling their weight, there’s a process for handling that and sometimes it means making tough decisions.
Unlike a family, you’re not tied to each other indefinitely. The journey ends, projects are completed, and people move on to new voyages or even new ships.
In the end, a well-functioning team feels less like a family and more like a crew of professionals working together to keep the ship afloat and heading in the right direction.
