Teamwork – effective and fun!

By Jeff Becraft

One of the most epic moments in my life happened in a grocery store. It was on an alumni trip back in the Youth Corps days.

There were about 18 of us and we had headed up to North Carolina to get out of town, spend some time together, and help a children’s home.

Before we arrived at our destination, we pulled into a grocery store to get the groceries we needed for the weekend.

There we were, standing in the parking lot, circled around, with a grocery list handwritten on a piece of notebook paper that included items from a previous year and additions and edits from what people personally wanted. Each person was assigned 1-3 items to get when we went in.

So off we went and each person scattered throughout the store. As people showed up with their items, we all got in a long line and went through the checkout line one at a time. The woman working as the cashier had a great attitude and she worked with us. Gabby went behind the counter and as the cashier rang up each item (with a smile on her face), Gabby would grab it, put the items in a bag, and then hand the bag to one of our crew standing there. No grocery bag ever touched the first grocery cart.

As our group of people headed to the vehicles, each carrying at least one bag, we had gone in the store, bought over $300 worth of groceries, bagged them, and exited the store… all in a grand total of 5 minutes.

It is amazing what can be accomplished when we work together as a team. Not to mention, it is a fun way to live.

Jeff Becraft is the Director Emeritus for Youth Corps and has dedicated much of his life to helping shift the vision of people’s lives. Youth Corps is a life-changing leadership development experience that inspires high school students to be leaders in the Midlands and beyond. You can connect with Jeff at [email protected].