In
the fall when you see geese heading south for the winter flying along in the
"V" formation, you might be interested in knowing what science has
discovered about why they fly that way. It has been learned that as each
bird flaps its wings, it creates uplift for the bird immediately following.
By flying in a "V" formation, the whole flock adds at least 71%
greater flying range than if each bird flew on its own.
People
who are part of a team and share a common direction get where they are going
quicker and easier, because they are travelling on the trust of one another
and lift each other up along the way.
Whenever
a goose falls out of formation, it suddenly feels the drag and resistance of
trying to go through it alone and quickly gets back into formation to take
advantage of the power of the flock.
If
we have as much sense as a goose, we will stay in formation and share
information with those who are headed the same way that we are going.
When
the lead goose gets tired, he rotates back in the wing and another goose
takes over.
It
pays to share leadership and take turns doing hard jobs.
The geese honk from behind to encourage those
up front to keep their speed.
Words
of support and inspiration help energize those on the front line, helping
them to keep pace in spite of the day-to-day pressures and fatigue. It is
important that our honking be encouraging. Otherwise it’s just – well
honking!
Finally,
when a goose gets sick or is wounded by a gunshot and falls out, two geese
fall out of the formation and follow the injured one down to help and
protect him. They stay with him until he is either able to fly or until he
is dead, and then they launch out with another
formation to catch up with their group.
When
one of us is down, it’s up to the others to stand by us in our time of
trouble. If we have the sense of a goose, we will stand by each other when
things get rough. We will stay in formation with those headed where we want
to go.
The
next time you see a formation of geese, remember...
IT
IS A REWARD, A CHALLENGE AND A PRIVILEGE to be a contributing member of a
TEAM.
How's
that for some introspection???
