How gaming taught me to be better at work

Here’s what I learn from playing competitive games in a team, and why communication, team play, planned-out strategies, and well-defined roles are important for every team.

You may have been a major player, a matchmaker, or just a casual someone who as a kid used to play Counter-Strike, or other competitive games in a team, and if you did so, I am pretty sure you can relate to what I want to talk about today — teamplay.

Better communication and teamwork, planned out strategies, developing a bunch of different skills together, and taking other people's advice and feedback on your playstyle – it’s all part of working within a team.

Let me tell you what I learned about teamplay from playing just a few competitive games (CS:GO, Starcraft 2, and Dota 2) on a casual basis.

#1 — You are not alone, and you don’t want to be alone

First of all, think of your team members as an alias, part of your way to success. A big mistake nowadays is thinking of your mates as enemies.

Many companies and organizations are promoting internal competition, therefore talking teammates to be more competitive with each other… and even if a little competitiveness is good, still they’re not enemies, and everyone should be respected.

If you work in a healthy environment, you all share the same goals and mission, so why not support this mission by treating each other like an alliance instead of enemies?

#2–Scout and give info

In CS:GO, teammates are holding different positions across the map, constantly updating each other on the opposite team’s status. This way, the team is doing the necessary research and scouting for the competition and can come together and fight the opponent easily, knowing what their next move might be, as well as their weaknesses.

So next time you are looking for a way to improve your gameplay in real-life, try giving information to your teammates about what has been going on around you – meetings, events, communication with key stakeholders, key findings from competitive research, etc.

It is much more important to spread your knowledge than to hold it back for yourself unless instructed to. Eventually, this knowledge will reflect your overall powers as a team and result in much more impact on the whole situation.

#3–Know your strengths

Everyone has their strength – maybe you are more agile and act fast in a situation that develops quickly out of nowhere, or maybe you are a more steady person. It is important to know your strengths and let your team know your position.

Once you have identified your style of play, let your teammates know that. During the game, it is important that the leader (or… the manager) can easily position yourself in the best way possible so that you feel more empowered in your position.

#4–Know your role

If you ever played CS:GO competitive in a team (the right way), you’ll know that every player has an individual role:

The Fragger

In CS:GO this role is filled by two players – the Early Fragger, and the Playmaker, as they constantly support each other through the game. Whoever goes first is the Early Fragger – he gets to kill the first enemies, and give information as soon as possible to the rest of the team members before he is shut down. The Playmaker, just next to him, makes a “trade kill” on anyone who kills the Early Fragger.

Ok, obviously at work we don't “kill each other”, but it is a good metaphor of racing for the win, and making the best for the project we’re working on.

The Support

The person holding this role is supposed to carry out flashbangs and grenades in the right place, at the right time. You might think that it’s an easy job, but this person needs to know every single map and situation that could develop during the game, in order not to flashbang or hurt his own teammates. He needs to inform of his decisions, as well as listen to others for their commands.

Kind of reminds you of a role someone might have at work, right? Of someone who knows the field very well, and is able to build a strategy for every situation during a project, to support the goal instead of causing trouble.

The Leader (Team Lead)

This is the team player who knows exactly what the team is doing, how to do it and has run through various different strategies in their head, again and again, knowing what’s wrong, what works best, and why. It is one of the hardest roles, but as equally as important as the rest (remember that).

Being one requires you to work constantly with the rest of the team on setting out strategies, calling out players, and being able to control the game. The in-game leader role requires a lot of experience, practice, and multitasking, and if you don’t consider yourself to be the one, better leave this to someone else.

#5–Play eco

In most games you have a round which is called “eco” — in this round, nobody buys anything and rushes the enemy unexpectedly altogether (joining forces) with just basic weaponry. The idea is to save money and potentially buy equipment in the next round. In order for this strategy to work, the team has to act together. Otherwise – it’s a fail.

In fact, it is possible to compare this in-game situation to real-life – think of a start-up for example – you start with no to less money, but you join forces with your team, going against the large competition, in order to have more resources for the next round.

#6–Share what you can’t eat

In most team competitive games it is very common that you buy weapons for your team when you have more money than they do. That way the team can allocate resources and go stronger against the competition.

The same thing is at work – share your knowledge, share your resources, and share your inspiration. That way you and your team can grow stronger together. There is no point in keeping it all for yourself.

I wrote this article back in 2018 when I was playing CS:GO. I decided to share it now because I thought it all makes sense.

Thanks for reading. ✌️