CHAPTER 1
Introduction – The Who, What, and Why of Togetherness for Teammates

Welcome to the Together Universe, my friends! I'm so glad you're here, and I'm excited for our journey into the world of Togetherness. Perhaps you picked up this book because you're searching for solutions so that you can move away from having to put out fires all day. Or maybe you're seeking boundaries and balance. Or you're brand new in your role and want to start out with some clear structure and intention. Or you've been in your position for a long time and things are generally going just fine, but you are looking for a good old‐fashioned Together Tune‐up.

What is The Together Teammate, you may wonder. Well, after I wrote The Together Teacher and then The Together Leader, I kept seeing individuals show up in my classes who were not teachers or leaders. They also didn't necessarily work in schools; they were from nonprofits, social‐justice–focused organizations, and even … corporate settings. Or they were leaders but had less autonomy and more reactive jobs than some other folks. These people, you all, kept appearing in my classes and the tenor of your challenges was similar to leaders and teachers, but also unique. Here are a few things I heard about what your days contain:

• The incessant email/voice message/Slack/Teams notifications for the laptop help desk
• The constant interruption of a school entrance buzzer all day long
• The tracking of scheduling preferences for a manager who changes their mind constantly
• The copier that broke right before a board meeting and the materials need to go out now
• The hiring manager who wants you to set up candidate interviews first thing tomorrow
• The vendor for the holiday party that simply won't get back to you
• The manager who calls you for an urgent data report right at this minute

And yet, while you (dear reader) were carefully playing whack‐a‐mole with the unexpected, the constant deluge, and the busy – all likely with a smile and careful customer service orientation – some other more long‐term, perhaps more strategic, more systems‐level work was getting pushed to the bottom of the list. And then you are in full‐on task mode, which leads to more full‐on task mode, which can result in the same patterns over and over. And that is just today. And so, here, I hope, is a text that will help you manage and juggle all of the above. But first, what is this Togetherness of which I speak?

WHAT IS TOGETHERNESS, ANYWAY?

Ahh, it's a familiar question: Is this just another book about how to be organized? Well, no, not exactly. Organization might be part of it, but I believe it's a little more than that. To me, Togetherness evokes a feeling. See if you can picture it. I'm sure you've heard the phrase “She/he just has their ____ together.” That's the feeling we in the Together‐verse are going for, specifically:

• You have a sense of everything on your plate, even if you don't complete it all today.
• You can communicate your priorities consistently, naming trade‐offs if necessary, and your work reflects these priorities.
• You follow up on all items, both big and small, that are important to others.
• You plan ahead thoughtfully, allowing buffer time for emergencies.
• You block time for your most important priorities, but leave room for emergencies.
• You are considered reliably responsive, but not immediately playing whack‐a‐mole to everything.
• You create boundaries, if you choose, between work and life, and you honor those boundaries through careful communication.

All of these things combined equal what we call Togetherness. You may have your own definition, or things you would add or take away. But my headline is that I don't equate Togetherness with perfection. Instead, my focus is on intentionality, results, and impact. What I mean by this is it is possible to appear to be completely Together and not actually accomplish the things that matter. To create gorgeous deliverables that may look good, but not be user‐friendly enough to get to the outcomes needed. Or to “get things done” without actively applying your own critical thinking lens to how these tasks serve the ultimate goal. To me, color‐coding and formatting in a Google Sheet can be helpful strategies to get the work done well, but are never the end goal. I focus on prioritization, relationships, and making time for what matters most – which is entirely up to you, the reader, to define for yourself.

 Reader Reflection: What would Togetherness look like in your role? As we embark on this Togetherness Journey together, I do want you to keep a few things in mind:

• Togetherness is a journey, not a destination. There will not be a mountaintop moment where all of a sudden you magically hit Inbox Zero, every project is wrapped up neatly, and projects are delegated perfectly. I think of Togetherness as a set of small tweaks meant to make your work lives more effective and efficient – and, dare I say, joyful?!
• Everything in this book is an offering. It's a buffet of Togetherness, if you will. This book is not “must‐read‐then‐implement‐and‐utilize‐every‐single‐tool.” Nope, not my thing, and shouldn't be yours either. Consider this a buffet – take a little of this, try a lot of that, reject all of that. Not everything is meant to work with all people in all contexts. Put Together your own Togetherness plate.
• I assume you already have aspects of Togetherness in place. Well, of course you do. You are functioning adults with jobs and personal responsibilities and more. If you have Togetherness practices that work, then by all means keep them. Use this book to enhance around the edges, pick up a few tips, and test out a few things.

 FAQ: Does this text focus on work‐life balance as well? To the extent you are interested in going there, I do focus on balance. Over the years my classes have naturally included some attention to your personal lives, including ensuring time for rest, leisure, family, and friends. We are each one human, with one calendar, and one life. Getting more Together at work will automatically reap benefits for the personal side of things. No more being awakened by your Anxiety Brain (coined by a member of the Together Team) in the middle of the night, finding yourself fumbling for a sticky note or your phone, or asking yourself if you actually sent that email or just composed it in your brain? All of those thoughts rattling around will eventually have a negative impact on your home life, whether that takes the form of distraction, irritation, or plain old exhaustion. My sincere hope is that, if your systems at work are written down and reviewed regularly, you will “trust” that your Together System has caught everything – thus freeing your mind to enjoy time away from work. That said, if you choose to read this book through a purely professional lens, we welcome that, and you will still find it effective.

WHY THIS BOOK MATTERS TO ME

Many people know me as Maia (Papaya), MHM, or simply That Together Lady. Seriously, the last one is what someone once called me on a plane when they recognized me!? Since 2012, I have released two titles, The Together Teacher and The Together Leader, and two micro books, The Together Project Manager and The Together Work‐From‐Home Teacher. Since 2005, my small‐but‐mighty team and I have conducted hundreds of trainings for schools, districts, and nonprofit organizations. I spend as much time in the field as possible, listening to and learning from people whose work usually involves important mission‐driven outcomes, a heavy social justice component, and somewhat unpredictable environments. Combine that with passionate people trying to make the world a better place, and we have an occasional recipe for overwork and burnout. In almost every single training, I have a group of people who work, often behind‐the‐scenes, to make education and mission‐driven entities function at a high level – people like human resource managers, district IT support, cafeteria managers, special education coordinators, executive assistants to CEOs, charter network recruiters, data managers, and so on. And I have a special place in my heart for these folks, the teammates.

I've always loved behind‐the‐scenes work – and making large ideas and events come to fruition through careful planning. I literally picked my college because, when I visited at age 16, I observed a massive joyful campus event (called Kids’ Day at Tufts University) and thought, “I would like to run that community event one day.” I was attracted to the moving pieces, the gathering of people, and the ultimate goal of welcoming the community onto a campus. And lo and behold – as a sophomore, I was elected to lead Kids’ Day for the University. And while my career continued into direct service – as a teacher, as the leader of an intense summer teacher training experience, as an executive within an education organization, as a...