Project Team

 " How did she pull everything, from directly coming to work here without going through the right procedure and having the chance to travel with him on a business trip" one lady in a black suit said as they gathered around one counter, eyeing Mara as she passed.

" Say that again", another said out loud

"I wonder, even the top female in this company hasn't gotten that opportunity to go on a trip with him," someone else chimed in.

"She may be his traveling bag" another suggested, and they burst into laughter.

Mara overheard them and looked back at them with a stern look, and they immediately stopped as if they were not talking about her.

............ 

The atmosphere in the conference office was tense as Mr. Moon announced the new project teams, a project that happens once in a year.

"As you know, our company is embarking on an exciting new initiative," Mr. Moon began. "An internal competition to choose the most creative and significant initiative. The winning team will not only receive recognition and praise but also have the opportunity to implement their strategy and lead our company into the future with three-month increments of pay, each at 40%."

The employees shuffled nervously, whispering amongst themselves, eager to hear where they'd be assigned to.

"Each team will be tasked with developing a new business strategy to expand into a key market segment," Mr. Moon continued.....

"Team A will be led by the Software Development and IT department, Team B will be headed by Hardware Engineering and Biotechnology, and Life Science," Mr. Moon announced. "And finally, Team C will be headed by Sales, Marketing, and Customer Support, uh....."Mara Carter Castillo would be joining Team C for this project since she hasn't yet been assigned to a department," Mr. Moon added.

"Why have they added her to the weak team? I thought she was his new favorite. Why did he saddle her with that team?" a lady in Team B said with a mischievous grin, as her other colleague threw Mara a teasing look.

The room was filled with gasps and murmurs as they all talked about what they would do to ensure their team won this challenge.

As the meeting came to a close, Mara felt a fire ignite inside her.

"Why did you have to put her in that weak team? You know how they always come last because they don't even put much effort into their work," Mr. Moon said with concern as he walked out of the room with Max.

"Don't you think it will be difficult for her? She's a new worker here and doesn't know much about all this. She should have been in one of the stronger teams so she could learn from them," he added, looking at Max, who had his gaze fixed on the floor, watching people come and go.

"Don't you think so?" he asked again, and Max looked up at him.

"That's all the more reason why she has to be in that team. She isn't a permanent worker here, so there's no need to have her in a strong team," Max said as he walked away, leaving Mr. Moon with his thoughts.

Passing by, Mara saw other team members gathered around, discussing what product they should come up with.

During the lunch break, Mara entered a room where she had arranged to talk about the task ahead with her team members. However, her excitement quickly turned to disappointment at the sight that greeted her. Instead of the focused faces she had hoped to see, she was met with a sleepy, unfocused group of members. Some had already dozed off, while others seemed distracted by their phones.

She sat down, waiting for someone to at least come up with something so they could see the way forward. After 20 minutes, no one stood up to say anything. Slowly, she got up and walked in front of them.

"Hey, everyone," she began, peering at them with a hint of exasperation in her voice. "As we all know, the reason why we are here. What would be the reason for us to meet here if we aren't showing any seriousness? I understand we all have busy schedules and we're all already tired from today's work activities. However, the success of our project depends on our commitment and collaboration. We have a lot of work ahead of us, and we must approach it with focus and dedication since we only have one week to get things done"

She trailed off as no one said anything, and they just looked at her weirdly"Everyone was right about this team," she muttered to herself as she went back to her seat.

"Don't waste your time trying to bring something up. This team has been marked as a weak team since I started working here. No one here is willing to step up or put in the effort. You can see how unbothered they are," a lady of Mara's age said as she sat beside her.

Mara sighed heavily as she frustratedly looked around. "Why is that?" she asked, her tone sharp as she stared into the lady's face.

"When I first joined this team, I wanted to change how things are, but they ended up changing me instead into one of them," the lady said with a guilty smile.

"Things can't be like this forever," Mara said.

The lady continued, "The reason why this team has been stuck in this rut is because everyone here has been conditioned to believe that they are destined to fail."

She paused, her gaze scanning the room before she continued, "Nobody wants to be the one to rock the boat, to challenge the status quo. It's easier to go with the flow and to accept things as they are without having to stress, even if it means settling for less than we are capable of achieving. Each year we come last, it feels like a never-ending cycle of shame and we've grown to accept it" she said

"That's exactly why we need to shake things up," Mara said loudly as she stood up, drawing everyone's attention. "I don't know about you all, but I am not the type to sit and accept defeat without even trying. Change doesn't happen overnight, but it starts with each of us taking a stand and refusing to accept anything less. It's about time we make that change."

"We are no longer the weak or last team, but we are the rising team," she declared, raising her hand for more encouragement. But when no one else raised their hands in support, she slowly lowered her hands down and sat back in her seat.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, looks like your team may need another round of those inspirational words because your weak team would go back to their 'I don't care' life right after today," Kate, a lady from Team A, said as she and her friends approached Mara as she walked out of their meeting room.

"You're even saying today? Girl, they forgot it right when she landed her last words," another lady said, and they burst into laughter.

"I feel really, really bad for you, Mara, extremely mad," Kate said with a sneer. "You should plead with us to add you to our team," she added.

"Excuse me, I will take my leave," Mara said as she walked past them.

"This girl has so much arrogance," a lady said as they watched Mara go. "It serves her right," she added.