JOINT BASE CHARLESTON, S.C. -- Please bear with me as the tone is set for this article. I coach a little league football team in the local Summerville area. We were having a good season, cruising along winning football games. One fateful Saturday we found ourselves behind on the scoreboard for the first time, the coaches saw no issue as we know what our guys are capable of. What we didn't realize was that our players were not prepared to face adversity, and they didn't react well. It wasn't long before fingers were being pointed, arguments ensued and players started quitting on the team.

The next practice we played tug-of-war with each individual player, it wasn't long before each of them were defeated individually. However, when they all picked up the rope and performed as a team, it wasn't long before they defeated their short fat coach. As we looked at them we could almost see the light come on in each one of their heads. As a team they were capable of winning, but individually, they stood no chance.

I liken this scenario to the current government shutdown, though it's on a much more serious level. As a base community we are facing a large amount of adversity. Money constraints are making it difficult to perform even the simplest of tasks let alone the mission. Yet in the last week we have witnessed how much can truly happen when we operate as a team. In a period in which financial constraints could easily drive many of us to give in, base organizations instead pulled together as a team to ensure the mission continued successfully. It's been amazing to watch.

Yes, this article is supposed to offer a "Diamond Tip", but what do you offer a group of people who have stared adversity in the eye and beaten it?