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Let me begin by making it clear this is not a movie review—an endorsement, perhaps, but not a review.

I had the pleasure of seeing the movie Wonder last week and found it to be both entertaining and incredibly inspiring.

The movie is based on R.J. Palacio’s best-selling novel by the same name. It is the story of Auggie Pullman, a fifth grader who suffers from facial deformities related to Treacher Collins syndrome, and his attempt to attend a mainstream school for the first time in his life.

In previous blogs, I have written about the significance of “good teammate moves”—those small sacrifices we make for our teammates and the gestures of kindness we extend to them. Sometimes we underestimate how impactful our seemingly small gestures can be to the recipient. Wonder is filled with fantastic illustrations of good teammate moves.

However, there is one scene in particular that I feel really captures how powerful a good teammate move can be.

Auggie, bullied and ostracized, finds himself eating alone in the school’s cafeteria. It is a very sad and emotional scene.

The other students are either deliberately ignoring him or hurling not too subtle insults at him. But then a courageous little girl by the name of Summer stands up and carries her lunch tray over to Auggie’s table and sits down.

Her good teammate move changes everything. Auggie starts to like school. The other kids become accepting of him and start to see beyond his physical deformities. Summer’s gesture initiates an entire shift in the culture of their school.

She is an example of an especially important type of good teammate I call the wondermate.

People always cite the wonders of teamwork (efficiency, synergy, productivity, etc.), but genuine teamwork doesn’t happen without good teammates. And having a team full of good teammates rarely happens without the emergence of the wondermate.

The wondermate is that first teammate who demonstrates the courage needed to stand up and initiate change. The wondermate is the first person to take action.

They are the ones who inspire other good teammates to get onboard and join the movement. Without wondermates, the wonders of teamwork never happen.

Is it leadership? Maybe. Is it being a good teammate? Absolutely.

If you are looking for change on your team, be on the lookout for the wondermate. But be careful, the wondermate you’re looking may be you.

As always, remember: Good teammates care. Good teammates share. Good teammates listen. Go be a good teammate.

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