Netball: A New Team Analogy (for me)

Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about team collaboration and how best to explain the sometimes elusive magic of effective teamwork. One analogy that keeps coming to mind is netball. While it may not be the most obvious metaphor, netball actually provides a surprisingly rich lens for understanding how strong teams operate. Yes, netball.

For starters, in netball, everyone has a specific position with clear boundaries — both in terms of where they can move and what they’re meant to do. Sound familiar? Like in any good team, you’re not meant to be everywhere, doing everything. You need to know your zone, play to your strengths, and trust that others are holding theirs. Chaos breaks out pretty fast if the Goal Defence decides to be the hero and take over the whole court. (We’ve all worked with that person.)

But here’s the part I really love: once you catch the ball, you have to stop moving. Totally still. So, if you want to be useful, you have to do your real work before you get the ball — by positioning yourself smartly, anticipating the play, and being ready to support the next move. That’s such a brilliant way to think about work. It’s not just about reacting — it’s about being proactive, strategic, and always looking to help move things forward.

And finally — only two people on the whole team are allowed to score. That’s it. Everyone else? Your job is to set them up, clear the way, and make magic happen from the wings. It’s a nice reminder that success isn’t always about who puts the ball through the hoop; it’s about the collective rhythm, the unsung passes, and the sneaky clever moves off the ball. I genuinely think this is an underrated analogy for how great teams work — and I’m definitely using it in my next presentation (whenever that might be).