Essay on Group Dynamics

The reality of the saying Two is better than one resonates well when one gets a chance to engage in group activities. I was in a neighborhood group whose sole purpose was to make my quarters a safe and habitable place. Our roles included addressing land issues, dealing with disturbances, and making necessary neighborhood improvements. In this essay, I will document my experience with this community group.

A team is expected to encourage its members to reason when faced with situations (Pritchard, Weaver, & Ashwood, 2012). Different sets of skills ought to be pooled to invent ways of handling cases with the intent to save time and money; as was our case. I was privileged to interact with resourceful people from diverse professional backgrounds. These individuals offered possible solutions to economic, social, and health issues, among others. It was not necessary to hire professionals or to go to court over matters that required our immediate attention. For instance, we were presented with cases of burglary in three days. A close look into the issue revealed that the installation of CCTV cameras would be an ideal way not only to identify the culprits but also to determine their entry points. A few days after the connection, the thief was caught; the loophole was identified and sealed.

Efficient and open communication was another of our teams pillars (Pritchard, Weaver, & Ashwood, 2012). We met twice a week to review progress reports and to share our neighbors concerns. The members of the community knew that they could reach us on the phone at whatever time of day with an assurance that their needs would be promptly addressed. Whenever things went wrong, information got to us instantaneously thanks to the effective communication. Our offices were open to the public twenty-four hours a day and seven days in a week since each member had a specific day for duty. Thanks to this strength, we received timely reports, and the concerned individuals acted promptly to restore normalcy. Damaged sidewalks or faulty streetlights never took more than a day or two to repair.

In a world where people are increasingly becoming self-centered, my group successfully created an atmosphere of fondness. Individuals freely interacted with each other and cared about their neighbors well-being. This loving environment was made possible through the groups advocacy for being each others keepers. People were encouraged to watch over their friends houses and children as though they were their own. Inherently, crime rates tremendously declined in the same way that cases of hostility among neighbors reduced.

However, it was challenging to involve the city government with the neighborhoods operations. The two-way communication between the residents and the city could not be streamlined since some of the group members viewed the government as a stumbling block (Conyne, 2014). There was an instance where the members felt the need to build a school within the community. The idea did not materialize since it was hard to schedule a meeting with the necessary government authorities without a quorum.

Conclusively, having defined goals worked in my groups favor. Each member played distinct and important role hence cultivating trust and mutual understanding among members. Effective communication was a vital pillar in the teams success since it encouraged accountability and transparency. My group boasts of fostering cohesion among the members of the society despite the challenges that we faced in our bid to involve the city government in the neighborhoods activities.

References

Conyne, R. K. (2014). Group work leadership: An introduction for helpers. Thousand oaks: Sage publications, inc.

Pritchard, R. D., Weaver, S. J., & Ashwood, E. L. (2012). Evidence-based productivity improvement. New York, NY: Routledge.