discussions are broken up by humor, it’s a very good sign the
enterprise is healthy. Teams that emphasize fun and good spirits
lift effectiveness.
Billy would tell stories on himself. For instance, he liked to
tell of the time in a small town when he asked a boy how to get
to the post office. After getting directions, Billy invited him to
come to the meeting that evening. “You can hear me telling
everyone how to get to heaven.”
The boy’s response? “I don’t think
I’ll be there. You don’t even know your
way to the post office.”
Billy also liked to tell of a pastor
who said in a sermon, “Apart from
Christ, there never was a perfect man.”
Someone in the congregation interrupted him, saying, “Oh, yes,
there was. My wife’s first husband!”
Grady Wilson’s autobiography, Count It All Joy, has an entire
chapter on humor in the Graham team called “Laughing All the
Way to Heaven.” It describes practical jokes played on each other,
and Billy’s good-natured acceptance of jokes played on him—and
at times, his reciprocating. Although extremely serious about their
mission and the eternal stakes, the team could laugh together and
play together.
Billy generally did not have the gift of making others laugh,
but here’s what is vital: he could join in others’ humor and could
laugh at himself—even when under the spotlight or on camera
when he had blown a line.
Proverbs sums it up: “A merry heart does good, like medicine.”
To Galvanize a Team, Articulate a Compelling Goal
Large challenges energize and coalesce teams. In sports, prepar-
ing for the Super Bowl or World Series has an amazing effect on
concentration, energy, and determination. Every player is fully
psyched to achieve the goal and will do whatever possible to win.
In many cases individual preferences and chances for personal
glory must be shoved aside for the full-court press toward victory.
Forming the TeamTeams have more fun. This
is not a trivial point, because
the kind of fun they have is
integral to their performance.
JON R. KATZENBACH AND
DOUGLAS K. SMITH