When I was a little girl, my siblings and I had a little red wagon. We loved that little wagon and played with it everyday. We would ride each other, and pull each other, and push each other in it all day long, especially in the summer months. Not only was our little red wagon was for our amusement; it was also used to carry the household wood supplies for our old wood burning stove. And it was used to carry buckets filled with water from our neighbor's yard to our home for household use. That little red wagon was very functional and practical, it was our lifeline as kids living in the rural countryside. One morning when we kids went to get our little red wagon, the wheel was broken, and it made our lives difficult. To us, the whole world had stopped.
Which brings me to the importance of communication with those you work with on a team. When there is no communication or if it is broken and no one takes the initiative to establish communication (on a team, an organization, a home, a church, or a community) break down and failure is bound to happen. I have learned that when there is no communication ones purpose and destination shall be delayed.
Communication is like that wagon when every wheel is functional. But when a wheel is broken, it will stop the whole operation of the wagon. Even though there are three other wheels on the wagon, the wagon will remain unproductive in its function. The broken wheel will remain broken until someone fix it or replace it with a new one. The wagon when functioning correctly will take you from point A to Z. Communication is much like the wagon. To be effective, it has to have all parts working. Any breakdown in communication, there shall be breakdown in the function of communication within a group. When delays and breakdowns occur, the unity of any group is ineffective. No productivity occurs. Misunderstandings occur. Hurt feelings occur. Anger occurs. Blame and shame occurs. Frustrations and fears occur.
But when you call Houston and inform them there is a problem, and Huston began to work on it with a common goal in solving the problem, it shall be fixed as the wheel on the little red wagon. I lived this scenario a few weeks ago. My end results was productive because effective communication was established again. And the peace and unity of our team rode smoothly as our little red wagon with a new wheel.
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