I once asked a group of students what one plus one plus one equals. Most said two, but one cleverly said “It depends on if it is in math or chemistry.” I added, “It would also change if we are talking about synergy because then the answer would be eight”. They were quite confused, but I explained with a pencil analogy. I gave a student a pencil and asked if he would break it. He did. I then gave him a stack of pencils and asked him to try to break them which he could not. One would think that two pencils would be twice as hard to break as one pencil, but it is more than twice as hard. Three pencils are not three times harder to break than one, they are about eight times harder to break. For reasons I do not understand, you get more power when you combine forces with others than you would have even if you added up the individual components. That’s synergy.
Synergy over energy
There are numerous examples of synergy; such as a band, a business, or a marriage. I have recently seen synergy in my life while working on my hobbies. I began an Instagram page on my own. I have enjoyed working on the page, but it only has forty-five followers. I later began a separate Instagram page in which I combined forces with a mentor, and our page has over 2,800 followers. Of course, multiple variables contribute to the success of an Instagram page, but I can attest to the synergistic power that I feel by collaborating with someone else on the page.
You get synergy by joining with almost any group working on accomplishing good. I felt so much more productive while being part of an acapella group than I did while I was trying to write music on my own. Even my individual contribution was much greater in the acapella group. In that case, I believe a big part of that synergy is the motivation that you get by working with others. It is difficult for me to stay motivated on a project, even if it is really important, unless I have others encouraging me and holding me accountable.
People have achieved incredible things on their own, but there is still so much help on the way. I am about to start a master’s degree, and I could possibly make the claim that I am doing that on my own since I don’t know anyone else going through the same degree, but I would quickly lose the motivation without my professors there guiding me. For example, if it were possible to get a master’s degree just on YouTube, I probably would not make it through fully without the synergy that my professors will bring to me.
The point of this is to say that you might have a great idea to make the world a better place. Maybe you have a lot of great ideas. It is a lot more difficult unless you synergize with a group of like-minded people. Even if you are motivated to do difficult things, you will not accomplish as much good as possible if you come and synergize. Turn your one individual contribution into something indefinitely large as you synergize.
That could be as simple as asking a family member or friend to work on a project with you. You could join a support group or a club or team that is specific to your project. For example, if you are wanting to invest in real estate, you could join a mentorship group for investing. If you wanted to do humanitarian work in Africa, you would be far better off joining a group that already does that than trying to set up a trip all on your own. Think about an awesome project that you are not motivated to complete. Consider that reaching out to others and creating synergy might be the key to your success.
"Synergy is the creation of a whole that is greater than the simple sum of its parts." - Buckminster Fuller
Our whole purpose at Believe is to work together in helping each other achieve good in the world. Bring your project or idea to us, and we will help you make it happen as well as give you opportunities to help make others’ dreams happen. Join us , and your life might never be the same.
