Team Work and

UNIT 4 TEAM WORK AND POSITIVE Positive Attitude

ATTITUDE
Structure
4.1 Introduction
Objectives

4.2 Definition of a ‘Team’

43 Importance of Team Spirit on Board
4.4 Characteristics of Effective Team Work
4.5 Hindrances to Effective Team Work
4.6 How Clarity of Role can lead to Better Understanding among Team
Members
4.7 Definition of Attitude
4.8 Developing and Maintaining a Positive Attitude
4.9 Significance of Creating and Sustaining a Conducive Work Ethos
4.10 Summary
4.11 Answers to SAQs

4.1 INTRODUCTION
Many have heard the statement that there is “no 'I' in the word 'Team'.” This is as true
today as it has ever been. Various trades, round the globe, have found that the key to
successfully completing and accomplishing projects is often through the development of
teams. Likewise, teamwork has become an essential element for the success and survival
of the marine industry. True collaboration, however, is a problem that plagues shipping
companies when trying to develop a teamwork environment. Why is this challenge?
“There is no such thing as failure. There are only outcomes. The only time you fail is the
last time you try.” This statements signify that human beings can alter their lives by
altering their attitudes of mind. Still it is difficult for us to remain positive. Why?
Tell me, and I forgot
Show me, and I remember
Involve me, and I understand
Objectives
After studying this unit, you should be able to
• give definition of a ‘Team’,
• explain importance of team spirit on board,
• know characteristics of effective team work,
• describe hindrances to effective team work, and
• show how clarity of role can lead to better understanding
among team members
• define attitude,
• develop and maintain positive attitude, and
• explain the significance of creating and sustaining a conducive work ethos.

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English and Human
Factors 4.2 DEFINITION OF A ‘TEAM’
“None of us is as good as all of us”
The above quote in a nutshell epitomizes the meaning and the essence of a team and
leads us to the simplest definition of team:
“A team is defined as a group of people working together toward a common goal.”
“Teams” are two or more people who must coordinate their activities to accomplish a
common goal. Teams are a way of organizing people to support inter-dependence and
cooperation that requires close coordination among the team members.
We can also say that:
A Team is a collection of people, built primarily on the technical capabilities of its
members, working in pursuit of a common mission. They have been each assigned a
specific function to perform.

4.3 IMPORTANCE OF TEAM SPIRIT ON BOARD

Team spirit symbolizes the comradeship that exists among the team members. Each and
every team member puts the team’s goals above the individual goals and works in
synchronization with others to achieve that.
A collaborative team environment is therefore essential for the team’s success. Similarly,
on board the ship, three different departments namely deck, engine and crew work
together with the common objective of safe navigation. As a team leader, the Captain of
the ship assigns and clarifies roles to each member of the team in the various
departments.
The captain, the team leader guides each and every personnel to achieve the tasks defined
for him. For this he uses delegation also. By delegating the tasks to C/E, C/o, Boson he
makes sure that the work is carried out in a smooth manner under the supervision of
designated officers.
As a leader he makes arrangement and also guides other team members to achieve the
assigned tasks. Everyone in the team is expected to produce results and these results are
the outcome of a collective effort. This collective effort essentially involves team spirit.
Team spirit is the crux of team performance. Team spirit symbolises the fellowship and is
greatly responsible for the success or failure of a team.
SAQ 1
(a) What do you understand by ‘Team’?
(b) What is meant by team spirit on board the ship?
(c) Why is team spirit important on board the ship?
(d) How can you distinguish between individual and team performance?

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 Team Work and
4.4 CHARACTERISTICS OF EFFECTIVE Positive Attitude
TEAM WORK
The following unique features characterize effective teamwork:
A Common Purpose and a Goal
Without a goal, there is no team. Strategies for understanding the common goals
are:
• Discussing with senior team members the reasons for the existence of
team;
• Asking for guidance from seniors;
• Showing determination and giving your commitment for the purpose;
and
• Prioritizing your actions in relation to the team purpose.
Trust Each Other
Team members must trust each other if they are to work together successfully. As
a junior person you at times may come across people who are not trusting. This
may have happened due to their past experiences. You have to take the
responsibility for creating trust. You have to:
• be honest;
• work to eliminate conflicts constructively;
• avoid talking behind each other’s back;
• trust team mates (you must trust them before they trust you); and
• give team members the benefit of doubt.
Clarify Roles
Knowing everyone’s role and being familiar with the responsibility of those roles
create efficiency and flexibility. Ideas for clarifying roles on the team include:
• Understanding the roles of each rank in a team;
• Relating the individual’s expectations to the team’s overall purpose;
• Clarifying responsibilities when action planning from seniors and
colleagues;
• Learning what others do on the ship; and
• Figuring out ways to help each other.
Communicate Openly and Effectively
Miscommunication can create hard feelings and undermine the success of the
team. Ideas for improving communication include:
• Erring on the side of over communicating;
• Seeking to understand all angles;
• Taking responsibility for being heard and understood. Give and take
feedback frequently;
• Working to clear up misunderstandings quickly and accurately; and
• Recognizing each team member’s efforts.

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English and Human Appreciate Diversity
Factors
People on ship come from all walks of life, with different educational and cultural
backgrounds. They all have different perspectives. Ideas for taking advantage of
team diversity include:
• Remember that reasonable people can and do differ with each other;
• Try to learn as much as you can from others;
• Evaluate a new idea based on its merits;
• Avoid remarks that draw negative attention to a person’s unique
characteristics; and
• Don’t ignore the differences among team members.
Balance the Team’s Focus
Finally, team members need to recognize that they should measure and monitor the
contribution the team makes as well as the team’s internal group dynamics and
relationships. (Sometimes team members get so involved in the process of
becoming a team they forget the reason they were made a team in the first place, or
vice versa.) Ideas for creating that balance include:
• Participating regularly in the team meetings;
• Learning to praise individual effort;
• Reviewing your own performance and appraising yourself by assessing your
significant contribution to the team effort; and
• Understanding that certain team members are to monitor task needs and
others are to monitor relationship needs (to understand why some people are
task-oriented and some are feeling-oriented on board the ship).
SAQ 2
(a) Do you think as a cadet you can contribute to the team performance? If yes
how?
(b) What can be the ways by which you can make efforts to build trust?
(c) What are the characteristics of effective teamwork?
(d) Try to assess yourself and recognize the areas that make you an effective
team worker.

4.5 HINDRANCES TO EFFECTIVE TEAM WORK

Barriers to effective teamwork are not something very different from the characteristics
of effective teamwork. These are simply the lack of characteristics that define effective
team work. Let’s take a look at some of them:
Individual Goals More Important than the Team Goal
When each individual starts thinking about his personal achievements and
aspirations, leaving behind the common goal of the team, a team is bound to
crumble.
When a particular department on board the ship tries to dominate the rest in pursuit
of becoming supreme, do you think it can ever add to efficiency?
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Miscommunication Team Work and
Positive Attitude
This can lead to misunderstandings amongst the team members on board the ship,
thus leading to human errors. To avoid accidents, mishaps and near misses on
board the ship, one has to ensure smooth and transparent flow of information.

Figure 4.1

Distrust among the Team Members

Team without trust is the same as a ship without a rudder. Trust also means
involving yourself with the tasks and responsibilities of others if a situation so
demands. In an environment where one team member does not have faith in the
other, how can operations involving multiple people function smoothly?
Lack of Role Clarity
When there is ambiguity regarding job responsibility/tasks, it creates a lot of
confusion. Most of the accidents due to human error have been caused by people
who were not clear about their jobs.
Ineffective Coordination
At times, if there is lack of coordination amongst people from varied departments
and also within the same department. This leads to a work environment where
employees compete instead of collaborating with each other and this results in a
situation where tasks and individuals are not in alignment with the group objective.
Ineffective Leadership
When the Captain or the head of any department is unable to control the loopholes
and drawbacks in teams / individuals operating under his supervision, chaos is
caused. This at times gives rise to a situation where employees are unable to find
their direction and the team fails.
SAQ 3
(a) What are the barriers to effective teamwork?
(b) List some of your individual areas that impede team work.
(c) Try to identify your own areas needing improvement. How do you plan to
work towards it?

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English and Human
Factors 4.6 HOW CLARITY OF ROLE CAN LEAD TO
BETTER UNDERSTANDING AMONG TEAM
MEMBERS
Teamwork is a collaborative effort and requires dedicated involvement of all team
members to make the efforts a success. The organization onboard ship represents a
dynamic team work environment which requires a clear and strong leadership,
cooperation and understanding between all team members to ensure safe and smooth
operation of ships. Continuous co-operation and understanding among team members
assumes a greater significance in the context of the ship because:
• Ships are at sea for long periods of time where team members are in very
close physical proximity to one another.
• Each department onboard ship is vital to the safe and smooth running of the
ship and any misunderstanding can have catastrophic effect on the
environment or the safety of the ship.
• Ship’s safety and operations are “24 hours a day and 365 days a year”
processes hence there is a need to maintain continuous cooperation and
understanding.
Role clarity is a foundational step for building and maintaining an effective team work
atmosphere. Role clarity is a process where each team member is aware of his
responsibilities in an organization. Establishing clarity of role and responsibilities for
each rank onboard ship is the utmost priority for regulatory bodies like International
Maritime Organization (IMO). International Ship Management Code (ISM Code) states
that “The Company should define and document the responsibility, authority and
interrelation of all personnel who manage, perform and verify work relating to and
affecting safety and pollution prevention.”
Onboard ship, role clarity is established by
• Documenting detailed job profile and responsibilities of each rank onboard
ship.
• Establishing proper organization structure and procedure for interrelation
between various departments’ onboard ship and also between ship and shore
based staff.
• Establishing common goals on productivity, safety of life and environment
and then implementing policies to achieve those goals.
Role clarity leads to better understanding and cooperation among team members as it
facilitates the following.
• Cohesiveness among Team Members
Well defined responsibilities and procedures of interrelation between team
members decrease the friction within a team, hence helping the team leader
get greater performance, interaction, and productivity from the team.
• Mutual Respect among Team Members
When everyone is aware what is expected of him and what he can expect
from others, it leads to mutual respect, cooperation, and support within the
team.
• Decisive Leadership
Clarifying the role of each individual in a team leads to a well defined chain
of command and reporting procedures. A proper chain of command helps in
removing the confusion among all the members of the team so that there is
less conflict among various departments’ onboard ships.
• Self Motivation
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 Awareness about one’s own responsibility leads to genuine interdependence Team Work and
within teams and a team member will feel motivated to perform his role to Positive Attitude
perfection. This results in the feeling that all team members are valued and
are being given support. This positive spirit is the building block necessary
to create an effective team.
• Better Emergency Preparedness
Being prepared for any emergency is of vital importance onboard a ship.
Role clarity makes everyone aware of what role to perform and what to
expect from others in the time of emergency. This dependence on each other
breeds a feeling of solidarity and trust that leads to better understanding
amongst team members.
• Focused Approach
Role clarity ensures that all members of the team spend their energy focused
towards a common goal of ensuring safe and smooth operations. With job
responsibilities well defined, the Captain can delegate some works to
departments heads hence there is a proper utilization of resources.
SAQ 4
(a) Why it is necessary to have better understanding among team members
onboard ship?
(b) What is role clarity and how it is implemented onboard ship?
(c) What are the benefits of role clarity that lead to better understanding among
team members?

4.7 DEFINITION OF ATTITUDE

Attitude is an evaluative statement or judgement of an individual concerning objects,
people, or events. They reflect how one feels about something. When I say, “I like my
job”, I am expressing my attitude about work.
Attitudes lead people to behave in a fairly consistent way toward similar objects.
Attitudes are very difficult to change, as they settle down into a consistent pattern after a
while.

4.8 DEVELOPING AND MAINTAINING A

POSITIVE ATTITUDE
Life on board, away from near and dear ones, does lead to a high degree of loneliness and
this can often lead to:
• Bitterness
• Resentment
• A purposeless life
• Ill health
• High stress levels.

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English and Human Hence developing and maintaining positive attitude is of prime importance on board.
Factors Developing and maintaining a positive attitude is perhaps one of the most important
things a person can do for himself.
The messages we give ourselves dictate not only our moods and behaviour but can have a
powerful impact on our physical and mental condition. This is not the same as feeling
happy − it’s creating a whole outlook despite how you may feel.
This could be done in a number of ways by:
Living in the Present
Today matters – tomorrow is unknown and yesterday is history. Those who are
able to live in the present, accept their circumstances and embrace what each day
has to offer will find it much easier to maintain that important positive attitude.
Being Grateful
What are the ten things you are grateful for today? How quickly you can name the
ten is a pretty key indicator of your state of mind. In the midst of the sea, away
from family and friends it can be easy to lose sight of those things which would
otherwise be a great source of joy or support.
Seeking out and celebrating those things for which you are grateful is a powerful
way of reminding yourself about the positive things in your life. At first it might
be difficult but it does get easier to recognize the small things worth noting that
make life more pleasant − the rain stopped when you had to work on the deck, the
cook prepared the lunch of your choice, you did your assignment much before the
allotted, deadline, etc. Setting yourself the exercise of finding things to be grateful
for is guaranteed to lift your spirits.
Setting Yourself Realistic Goals
It is part of the human condition to want to grow and develop. We do this all the
time by setting ourselves goals from learning to cook a new dish to bringing down
the golf handicap. Setting and achieving goals is a powerful boost for anyone.
For those feeling lonely, loneliness it may revolve around how fast you get back to
work, how quickly you feel like your old self. While achieving goals is a great
tonic, setting unrealistic goals and therefore setting yourself up to fail is
destructive. No-one likes to fail; repeated failure means you will only give yourself
a hard time at a period in your life when you need to learn to be kind to yourself.
Laughter as Medicine
“A clown is like an aspirin, only he works twice as fast.” Groucho Marx. The
ultimate physical manifestation of a positive attitude is laughter and for a treatment
that is absolutely free the benefits are astonishing. A good belly laugh is a great
cardiovascular workout, raising and lowering the heart rate and blood pressure,
enhancing alertness and memory and lifting depression.
The Bad Stuff
With all that a positive attitude and a good laugh have going for them – why is it
often so difficult for people to embrace them? One school of thought is that a
negative attitude serves some purpose for certain individuals. It means that others
will try to cheer you up or solve your problems. Nothing is ever your fault and you
absolve yourself of any responsibility if a course of action doesn’t work out the
way you planned. It also means that others have no expectations of you. A
negative attitude may mean that you accept that your situation will not improve
and there is no need to plan for a future where your situation can improve. That
kind of negative thinking becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.

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SAQ 5 Team Work and
Positive Attitude
(a) What do you understand by positive attitude?
(b) How can you maintain a positive attitude?
(c) What is the greatest difficulty faced by you while overcoming your negative
frame of mind?

4.9 SIGNIFICANCE OF CREATING AND

SUSTAINING A CONDUCIVE WORK ETHOS
With the reduction in manpower on board the ship, there has been an increase in work
pressure on every individual. Now people have to work round the clock. With this,
productivity too has generally increased. Even the productivity per work hour has
increased.
With time, there has been constant changes in the marine industry which is basically a
result of change in pace. All of us today are confronted with more and more changes at a
faster and faster pace. This has also resulted in the increase in stress levels. Is that good
or bad?
A pleasurable work environment at sea can reduce lots of stress despite tough working
conditions and big challenges ahead. This congenial work environment can mean a
responsible and interesting job, nice people to work with, more opportunities to unfold
before you and to accomplish your goals or aspirations.
A conducive work ethos is statement of the behaviours and values to which every
individual aspires in work. A shared ethos helps everyone to work as a team to achieve a
common purpose.
Following are the significant aspects of a shared ethos:
• It leads to a work environment which is functional , healthy and safe;
• It fosters learning which is both responsive and critical;
• It empowers every individual with an ability to find and use information;
• It teaches a respect for the rights of others;
• It fosters personal qualities of self acceptance, initiative and self confidence;
• It cultivates ability to work with people from diverse nationality and
educational background in a cooperative manner; and
• It results in reduced stress levels.
You can also contribute towards creating and maintaining a conducive work ethos
on board the ship:
• by maintaining effective interpersonal relationships;
• by trusting people and knowing that at times you will have to start the
relationship of trust;
• by being good, honest and cooperative with people on board the ship;
• by maintaining high self esteem and self regard for yourself and others;
• by understanding the work pressure and rights of others; and
• by always adopting and also checking that all operations are being carried
out in compliance with safety rule and procedures.

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English and Human SAQ 6
Factors
(a) What do you understand by work ethos? What is its significance?
(b) How can you contribute toward creating and maintaining a conducive work
ethos?

4.10 SUMMARY
This chapter has introduced the concept of “teamwork”. Definition and importance of
teamwork have been described. The characteristics that are important for effective
teamwork have been recognized.
To a person who is new to the ship, techniques were given wherein he can build trust
with seniors, identify common goal of the team, communicate effectively with others on
board the ship, clarify roles and try to balance the focus of the team after appreciating
and recognizing the diversity.
Many barriers to effective functioning of a team were described.
Now-a-days with the advent of new technologies and increasing cost, manpower has
been considerably reduced on board the ship. Tough climatic and working conditions
further aggravate the feeling of loneliness, resentment, etc. leading to a negative state of
mind.
In this unit, the importance of positive attitude has been mentioned. Also the ways by
which you can make efforts to maintain it have been described. Importance of conducive
work ethos has also been discussed.

4.11 ANSWERS TO SAQs

SAQ 1
(a) Give the definition of ‘Team’ given in 8.2 section of the unit.
(b) Team spirit symbolizes the commandership that exists among the team
members. Each every team member put the team’s goals above individuals
goals and works in synchronization with others to achieve that Team spirit
symbolizes fellowship upon which the success or failure of the team
depends.
(c) Team spirit is important to achieve the teams goal, to work in
synchronization to delegate task of division for smooth functioning of the
different departments with team spirit only can a team be successful and
achieve its goals.
SAQ 2
(a) Attempt yourself
(b) To build trust you need to be
(i) Honest
(ii) Eliminate conflicts
(iii) So not back bite
(iv) Trust team mates
(v) Give space to team mates and also a benefit of doubt.
(c) Characteristics of effective teamwork are
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 (i) Common goal Team Work and
Positive Attitude
(ii) Trust
(iii) Role clarity
(iv) Effective communication Elaborate in your own words
(v) Appreciation
(vi) Balance of job delegated
SAQ 3
(a) Answer is in 8.5 section of the unit
(b) Attempt yourself
(c) Attempt yourself
SAQ 4
(a) Better understanding amongst team mates on board ship is necessary
because of the following for
(i) For safe and smooth functioning of the ship
(ii) Ship is at sea for a very long duration hence team members
who need to work in close proximity need to have a good
understanding with each other.
(iii) Each department is important therefore no scope of any
misunderstanding as it can lead to unpleasantness which can
be desired goals.
(b) Role clarity makes a person aware of his work and responsibility in
the organisation. It is established by documenting detailed job profile
and responsibilities.
Role clarity is also essential to establish proper organisational
structure and procedure. This will help to have enter-relation and co-
ordination between various departments on board the ship and the
staff at shore.
(c) Answer will include all the points given from cohesiveness to
focused approach in section 8.6 of this unit.

SAQ 5
(a) Attitude which makes a person evaluate and judge a person or a
situation in its right perspective is called positive attitude.
(b) To maintain positive attitude write all the points given in 9.3 section of the
unit.
(c) Greatest difficulty faced while overcoming negative attitude is that (i) one
feels that one is right and you are not at fault secondly you feel others will
come and help you and cheer you up hence you absolve yourself from
overcoming a problem.
SAQ 6
(a) Work ethos is the statement of behavior and values to which every
individual aspires in work.
Significant aspects of shared ethos are

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English and Human (i) Provides a healthy and functional work atmosphere
Factors
(ii) Learning is both responsive and critical
(iii) Enables every individual to find and use information
(iv) Teaches to respect the rights of others
(v) Fosters personal qualities of self acceptance self confidence
and initiative
(vi) Makes a person adjustable by being able to work with people
of diverse culture nationality, educational background.
(vii) Reduces stress
(b) To create and maintaining conducive work ethos are
- Maintain effective interpersonal relationship
- Trust people
- Be understanding to others about their work pressure are and
their rights
- By checking that all operations are being carried on in
compliance with safety rules and procedure

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