Insights
Harnessing the Power of Competition in Team Building
In every team, competition inevitably emerges. Individuals often compete for the best idea, attention, or simply to satisfy their ego. This competitive spirit can be harnessed positively, transforming it into a driving force for innovation and problem-solving. The key lies in how we frame competition within the team dynamic.
Solving for Conflict in Teams
I have found that through the many workshops I have done, that MOST of the time, when everyone gets a chance to share their wants and needs, it's not all that hard to build out win-win scenarios. Everyone needs to slow down, define the problem clearly, and flush out all perspectives. Once the nuance of the situation is unearthed, it's simple to see the higher level solution.
Building Empathy in Teams With Personal Stories
Steve from accounting becomes Steve the guy who played baseball in the Little League World Series. Your team has a ton of stories like this and when shared, they will add depth and dimension to the relationships in your team. When we can hear, see, and understand the depth and dimension behind our teammates histories, we gain appreciation for them as a person. We understand they are more than the role they fill.
Team Engagement, Retention, and Experience, OH MY!
Engagement, Retention, and Experience, OH MY! This was the the theme of last nights joyful networking event. Some of the questions: 🤔 Build a model that shows what environments or conditions you have found to be most conducive to fostering employee engagement🤔💡 Build a model that that shows what strategies you have used to measure and improve retention rates🤔💡🤖 Build a model that shows how technology has transformed engagement, retention, and/or employee experience in your organization. This goes to show the power of LEGO Serious Play and how it can connect and engage both teams and people who don’t work together.
Defining Objectives for Team Off Site Meetings
Coming up with an objective is the most difficult part of what we do. This was true when I ran workshops and off-sites internally and continues in my client work today. Here is a tip - Use a pre-mortem approach when thinking about the outcomes. Imagine your offsite/workshop is over, and it was a grand success! What does it feel like? What are people saying? How does work change moving forward?
Does Your Team Have an Air Sandwich Communication Challenge?
One of the biggest challenges that compounds the air sandwich effect is the level of domain expertise from a hierarchy lens. As leaders look at the forest, and operational staff looks at the trees. Someone has to figure out the transition between the two. The best fix? Finding common ground through empathy and understanding. True understanding from all levels allows for everyone to seek win-win scenarios because success is defined clearly for all.
How Much Time Do You Spend Observing Your Team?
Try this out 🤔 ▶ Delegate an activity for someone else to run, something where everyone needs to share their input, possibly a brainstorm or something similar. 👀 Participate yourself, but spend your time also paying attention to how people are interacting. Not just the speaker but the team as a whole. The idea here isn't to spy or call people out (Don't do that!) Instead, look and listen. 👀Are people attentive? Supportive? Do they build off of one another or do they take their turn and shut down?
Enhancing Team Dynamics: The Time-Tested Philosophy of Valuing Employees
Delve into historical insights from Harvey S. Firestone and Mary Parker Follett to understand how valuing employees can lead to enhancing team dynamics, high team performance, and impeccable team communication.
Boost Team Morale: Increase Autonomy to Give People Agency
The quest on how to improve team performance is multifaceted. While numerous strategies can be employed, emphasizing autonomy stands out as a potent tool in the modern workplace. It's about trust, empowerment, and enabling growth. When teams feel autonomous, they're not just satisfied—they're motivated, innovative, and consistently deliver peak performance.
Ways to Boost Employee Morale : Focus on Accountability
Accountability, when approached with empathy, clarity, and a forward-looking mindset, transforms from a mere buzzword to a dynamic force. It paves the way for organizations to not just achieve their goals but to continually evolve, innovate, and thrive in an ever-changing business landscape.
Listen with Curiosity to Uncover Team Tension Points
To truly uncover what might be affecting employee morale, approach conversations with genuine curiosity. Here are three approaches that will help you understand what is truly getting in the way of your team’s success.
Celebration: The Key Ingredient to Build and Sustain High Performing Teams
In essence, celebrations, whether they're team outings, appreciation emails, or award ceremonies, serve as fuel for motivation. They keep teams energized, appreciated, and committed to their roles. If the vision is to build high performing teams, then celebrating every step of the journey is non-negotiable.