Join a Team

One of the best feelings in the world is to feel truly connected with others. Do you know how good it feels to be in a small group where you know you belong, where people accept you and feel that you’re important to them? Just about all humans are wired to deeply appreciate this feeling of belonging. The good news is that you can create these moments — you don’t have to just hope that they happen to you. Belonging is a skill, and you can find ways to practice and develop it. Joining a team is one of the best ways.

Teams can create that deep sense of belonging that we all need. And a team doesn’t just mean sports — it can be any group that comes together with a shared purpose. It could be an academic team, all the people working at a restaurant on a given shift, or a support team for a friend going through a hard time. What matters is that the team has a shared mission and succeeds or fails based on how well they work together, more than on any one person’s skill.

Getting Started: Consider this list of team experiences below and see if one speaks to you. If you’re reading this in a place where you have to socially distance for the pandemic, there are still possibilities here that could work, like joining an academic team, a project group, or a team working on a political issue.

Athletics: Join a school team or a club team outside of school. Remember that many teams do not require experience already.  
Academic Teams: Many schools have a range of academic teams, some of which compete with other schools or may travel like athletic groups. This could be Model United Nations or Model Congress, Math Club, Robotics Teams, Debate Team, etc. 
Work Teams: When you’re old enough to work, you have the opportunity to be part of a team in your workplace. Say you’re part of a small group running a cafe together, or working at a bookstore or ice cream store. 
Study & Project Groups: This is one you can create yourself, say to prepare for an upcoming school test or an entrance exam. There’s a clear shared purpose, and with the right partners you might find that your academic work is smoother and a lot more fun. You might also have team opportunities in working on a school project together.
Event Groups: More complicated events usually need a team of people working closely together. You could help a team organize a school event, a party for someone, a holiday gathering or a religious event, among many others.  
Politics & Activism: Helping with politics or social justice activism often provides a strong sense of team, and help is always needed here. Say an election is coming up and there is an exciting candidate running for a local office — they may be delighted to have your help on the campaign, and you can be a part of that team. Similarly, there are always non-profit or activist groups working on issues like protecting the environment, and they often have team volunteer opportunities, from beach clean-ups to staffing fundraising events. 
Outdoor Expeditions: Going on a long hike together, setting up camp, and enjoying the beauties and difficulties of being in nature together can be ideal team experiences. You have to look out for each other, communicate, and cook and clean for each other. Look for outdoor programs which organize groups, whether informal hiking groups, or more organized associations like the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS).

If one of these speaks more to you, give it a try. Treat it as an experiment.

You might set yourself a given amount of time to make sure you don’t stop too early if it feels awkward at first — say, a commitment to try a team for at least one month, and then decide if you want to continue. It takes time to learn the unwritten rules and feel settled in a new group. But eventually, if there is openness and shared purpose, people naturally start to form bonds and a sense of being a team. Then you’ll get to enjoy that sweet feeling of being part of a close-knit, supportive group working on a goal together, whether that’s to do a history project or play a basketball game.