Lesson of the Geese

This morning I woke to the sound of geese. I had read until 3:00 AM due to not being able to "shut down" (I am in a good book) and so I was surprised to wake at that early hour hearing the geese. I had the windows open to let in the wonderful outdoor air and I suppose that is why I heard the geese.

It is always a wonderful sound of Fall for me to hear these marvelous birds and I love to see them flying. I went back to sleep and slept for a couple more hours and when I woke up later and was sitting in the living room checking my e-mail I heard them again.. It reminded me of this piece which I had read years ago and it is one I really like on the value of working together. I hope you are hearing the geese and will enjoy this little essay.

Lessons of the Geese

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.

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.

Quite similar to people who are part of a team and share a common direction get where they are going quicker and easier, because they are traveling 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 in the same way that we are going. When the lead Goose gets tired, he rotates back in the wings 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 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, 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 their message that: "IT IS INDEED A REWARD, A CHALLENGE AND A PRIVILEGE TO BE A CONTRIBUTING MEMBER OF A TEAM"

Author Unknown