Teams365 Blog - POTENTIALS REALIZED

TEAMS365 #2427 – Weekly Journaling Prompt 113

8/22/2020

Welcome back to another Weekly Journaling Prompt. This week the prompt for you to journal around is “Resilience Means”.

What has resilience meant for you?

What has it meant for you in recent months?

What has helped you be more resilient?

What have you learned along the way?

My hope is that you will take some time today to reflect on the topic of resilience and consider how it can inform your future actions.

Enjoy the pause!
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized | Coaching Team Leaders
Coaching Skills Training | Leadership Development | Teamwork
Growing Team Leaders, One Conversation at a Time™ in the Remote Space
Contact us to discuss leadership, coaching or performance needs for your and your team
Phone: (416)996-8326

TEAMS365 #2337 – Week in Review

5/24/2020

Welcome back to another Sunday post and the week in review. This week we’ve taken a look at these six areas:

2331 – Monday: Effective Virtual Conversations Tip
2332 – Tuesday: Collaboration In The Remote Space
2333 – Wednesday: Conflict in the Remote Space
2334 – Thursday: Team Building Tip
2335 – FlashbackFriday: Four Past Collaboration Posts
2336 – Saturday Weekly Journaling Prompt: PAUSE

Enjoy the rest of the weekend!
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized | Coaching Team Leaders | Remote Pathways Podcast
Team and Leadership Development | Coaching | Everything DiSC
Phone (416)996-8326

Get your Q2 planning on with the PlanDoTrack Workbook and Planner or Coaching Business Builder

Looking to enhance your virtual conversations? Webinars? Pick up a copy of Effective Virtual Conversations at Amazon, or join me for the Virtual Facilitation Essentials program

Contact us to discuss how we can support you and your teams and organization with remote work.

Check out upcoming virtual programs on our calendar

PDF copies of PlanDoTrack now available! Get yours here.

TEAMS365 #2333 - Conflict in the Remote Space

5/20/2020

The most recent episode of the Remote Pathways podcast focuses on Conflict in the Remote Space. This is probably one of the most challenging topics for teams today as often it’s easier to pretend that conflict is not happening – avert our gaze, push it under the rug, or even hope that it will just go away – than address it.

In Episode 12 we are joined by Conflict Specialist Gayle Oudeh who is also the author of Conflict is for the Birds. She brings a wonderful metaphor to us in her writing of the different types of approaches to conflict.

Gayle also joined us for the May 7th Remote Pathways Community Call which I am embedding below.

If you weren't able to make the call live, catch up on the recording!
It's now available on YouTube.

Gayle is the author of Conflict is for the Birds: Understanding Your Conflict Management Styles.

As you’ll see in our call Gayle’s writing explores the varying ways we may approach conflict through the metaphor of birds. Listen into the call as she shares more about the different types of birds. What types are you?

Conflict is an inevitable part of change, innovation and disruption – three things which are characterizing business right now.

Our approaches to conflict are shaped by our socialization, experience and also knowledge of ourselves.

How do you approach conflict?

What do you notice about how others on the team approach conflict?
What’s important to take note of as a team right now?
What are the conversations you want to have?

Be sure to check out episode 12 of the Remote Pathways podcast as Gayle shares even more about conflict in the remote space. You can find it at your favorite podcast player or here.

Enjoy!
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized | Coaching Team Leaders | Remote Pathways Podcast
Team and Leadership Development | Coaching | Everything DiSC
Phone (416)996-8326

Get your Q2 planning on with the PlanDoTrack Workbook and Planner or Coaching Business Builder

Looking to enhance your virtual conversations? Webinars? Pick up a copy of Effective Virtual Conversations at Amazon, or join me for the Virtual Facilitation Essentials program

Contact us to discuss how we can support you and your teams and organization with remote work.

Check out upcoming virtual programs on our calendar

PDF copies of PlanDoTrack now available! Get yours here.

TEAMS365 #2327 –Team Building Tip 244

5/14/2020

Welcome back to another Team Building Tip. This week we are at Tip #244. A few months ago, in early March, I released a new Remote Working Whitepaper. In it I share what I term the 7 Remote Enablers: 7 Things that help remote work flow. One of them is Clarity. Another is Communication. As a team, it’s often the things metaphorically “below the waterline” which aren’t visible or explicit.

Things that might require some clarification are:

The assumptions we’re making about the projects we are jointly working on – “I’m working on this…No you are.”
What are our roles and responsibilities?
Who needs to do what, when?
What am I reporting out to others?
What do we do if we have a disagreement?
If I have a problem, I should work through it versus if I have a problem, I should raise it for discussion.
Resourcing.
Authority – Who is able to do what?

It’s often the unspoken, or unclear, that creates confusion or even conflict.

As a team get into the practice of checking your assumptions and also seeing what needs to be made explicit.

Enjoy the conversations!
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized | Coaching Team Leaders | Remote Pathways Podcast
Team and Leadership Development | Coaching | Everything DiSC
Phone (416)996-8326

Get your Q2 planning on with the PlanDoTrack Workbook and Planner or Coaching Business Builder

Looking to enhance your virtual conversations? Webinars? Pick up a copy of Effective Virtual Conversations at Amazon, or join me for the Virtual Facilitation Essentials program

Contact us to discuss how we can support you and your teams and organization with remote work.

Check out upcoming virtual programs on our calendar

PDF copies of PlanDoTrack now available! Get yours here.

#TEAMS365 #2006 Flashback Friday: Tools for your Toolkit – Leaders and Business Owners

6/28/2019

This week as part of the Flashback Friday we are getting into the landscape of tools for business owners and leaders. Whether we lead a team, or run our own show, honing certain skills can help to accelerate our success.

I wanted to take us back to Teams365 #1540: Tools for Your Toolkit – Leaders and Business owners.

Here’s what I wrote:

Much of my work as a coach and consultant with leaders and teams revolves around support to leaders and business owners. One area we regularly return to is our toolbox or those resources we have at our disposal. Many of these we acquire from our own experiences, as well as the valuable networks of mentors and peers we belong to. This week we'll be focusing on several of the different tools which can be useful in our toolkit. Some of the tools you will want to make sure you have on hand are:

#1 - Tools for Virtual Conversations - Check out yesterday's Effective Virtual Conversations tip #36 (Teams365 #1539) where I mention five different tools you'll want to make sure you master for more engaged, memorable conversations in the virtual space.

#2 - Tools for Decision Making - Check out this audio post #Teams365 #495 where I cover two tools for decision making

#3 - Tools for Delegation - Delegation is one of the most challenging areas for team leaders and business owners. As our work evolves it can often feel difficult to pass projects off to others. Check out my past post #391 on The Dreaded D Word - Delegation, where I share with you a quick activity to undertake to identify some of the areas you could delegate

#4 - Problem Solving Tools - Check out this short audio posts on 3 tools for problem solving in Teams365 #488 here.

#5 - Planning Tools - Without a clear vision, and a plan to execute, our efforts may become unfocused. Drucker wrote "what doesn't get measured, doesn't get done". What are the planning tools you refer to regularly? Whether we are undertaking a SWOT, or a strategic Issues mapping activity, or building in regular pause points to take stock of where we are, planning is critical for success. Check out the multiple posts on planning here.

#6 - Conflict Resolution Tools - Conflict is inevitable in teams, especially given that most teams which excel are highly diverse. Learning to work across differences, and adjust our styles is part and parcel of collaboration and conflict resolution. Check out Teams365 #1196 for my post on Navigating Conflict in Teams.

#7 - Collaboration Tools - Going hand in hand with conflict is collaboration. Having a toolkit of resources to help you incorporate different ideas and perspectives, unearth assumptions, and leverage the best of a team is critical for teams and businesses today. I've written multiple posts on collaboration in the past, from partnering to ingredients for collaboration

#8 - Coaching Tools - The final tool-set I would add is that of coaching tools. Coaching encompasses listening, questioning and helping others create their own solutions. In today's ever changing VUCA world, coaching is playing an even more important role. This is a focus of the bulk of my work with clients. What can you do to boost your peer coaching skills, or developing these skills in your team? Check out past posts on coaching here.

I hope that you will take a few minutes today to take note of the tools you are already have in your toolkit, and those you want to develop this year. What are the skills which will help you take your business or your team to the next level?

Best wishes,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton – Potentials Realized
Leadership | Teamwork | Business Success
Author of multiple books including Effective Virtual Conversations (2017), PlanDoTrack (2019) and From One to Many: Best Practices for Team and Group Coaching (2013)
Follow along with the #90DaysPlanDoTrack series over at Instagram @CoachingBizBuilder
Join the conversation at the Conversation Sparker Zone - our online community where you can explore virtual and team issues, coaching, productivity and business development.
Pick up a copy of Volume 1 of the Weekly Journaling Prompts in a digital format. Print it out and take it with you for some inspiration and writing on the go! Available at the Potentials Realized Store.

#TEAMS365 #1941 Four Teamwork Essentials for 2019

4/24/2019

As we move into the last week of the month of April, many teams are staring to kick it into high gear. With summer vacations starting in a few weeks or months, now is the time teams really need to get results. What are the core things teams want to keep an eye on this year?

Efficient meetings. We know that teams need updates and meetings abound. Are they the most effective? I have shared my top 8 Essential Meeting Questions from Effective Virtual Conversations several times, and they warrant inclusion again. Meetings are a huge time expenditure and getting them right is so important.

How to have conflict, constructively and respectfully. Being able to have conflict and work across differences constructively and respectfully is really important. Teams thrive when there is a difference of opinion and different insights; however, not every team is encouraged to, or can, work through differences.

Harnessing strengths and styles. One of the greatest challenges in teams is finding the balance between individualism and collective alignment. This is going to be different for each team, with some teams on the end of the spectrum where there “is no I in team” and it’s all about the collective system, and there will be other team experiences (especially remote and virtual teams) where it is more about the individual person.

Open feedback loops. Regular and frequent feedback and communication is imperative in a business context which is changing rapidly. How is information shared across the team? Open communication and feedback loops are critical for success. What are the mechanisms people have to offer feedback? Where is feedback not getting through? Where is genuine feedback NOT being offered? Why? What’s the cost of this – short term and long term?

What are the core issues you are noticing in your teams right now?

What focus and conversations are needed?

Wishing you the best,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton – Potentials Realized
Leadership | Teamwork | Business Success
Author of multiple books including Effective Virtual Conversations (2017), PlanDoTrack (2018) and From One to Many: Best Practices for Team and Group Coaching (2013)
Follow along with the #90DaysPlanDoTrack series over at Instagram @CoachingBizBuilder
Now available – PlanDoTrack Workbook and Planner - Order a copy today on Amazon
Join the conversation at the Conversation Sparker Zone - our online community where you can explore virtual and team issues, coaching, productivity and business development).
Check out the new 19 Tips for Productivity On-Demand Course. If this is your year to get things moving, check it out now. Join Jenn for bi-weekly live group calls until July. $129 US. Learn more and enroll here.

#TEAMS365 #1927 - Creating a Strong Team Identity

4/10/2019

Team identity and culture is something that we all shape. Team identity is critical in the context of virtual and remote teams. It helps us understand who we are and how we do things. A strong team identity helps me know that as a member of this team, I am expected to:

Raise issues quickly
Rather than complain, seek for solutions
Support others and provide information to others on a regular basis about the work I am undertaking, opportunities I see for collaboration

Ways we can start to form a strong team identity include:

Having the team identity key values. For example, innovation or respect.
For each one of these values, have the team identify the behaviors which illustrate that value. For example, for respect – Consider impact before speaking; take ownership of mistakes; reply to requests in a timely manner (and as a team identify what timely means); when raising issues also offer possible solutions.
Having the team own “How we do things here. What’s acceptable and what’s not”. In owning it, we call out behaviors which are not aligned with our agreements.
Identifying logos, icons or metaphors of what the team is. For example, a team that is about creating a WOW experience might embrace “The Orange Bird” as their mascot.
Creating a drawing or tableaux of what the team is aspiring to. Several years ago, vision boards were very popular. Teams too can have their own team vision board which they can situate in an area of high traffic. If its’ a virtual team, take a photo and include in it any sides you are sharing with your virtual meetings. Review it regularly.

Bad behavior doesn’t just happen. It’s permitted. What are you doing to call it out?

Best wishes,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton – Potentials Realized
Leadership | Teamwork | Business Success
Author of multiple books including Effective Virtual Conversations (2017), PlanDoTrack (2018) and From One to Many: Best Practices for Team and Group Coaching (2013)
Follow along with the #90DaysPlanDoTrack series over at Instagram @CoachingBizBuilder
Now available – PlanDoTrack Workbook and Planner - Order a copy today on Amazon
Join the conversation at the Conversation Sparker Zone - our online community where you can explore virtual and team issues, coaching, productivity and business development).
Check out the new 19 Tips for Productivity On-Demand Course. If this is your year to get things moving, check it out now. Join Jenn for bi-weekly live group calls until July. $129 US. Learn more and enroll here.

#TEAMS365 #1926 – Building Trust and Connection as a Team

4/9/2019

A few weeks ago, I was speaking to a large group of professionals active in the area of team development. We found ourselves getting into the heart of a key topic for leaders, team members and team developers alike – Building Trust and Connection as a Team. What are the different ways you are building trust, and also eroding it?

Trust and connection are essential for team success. This is especially true in virtual and remote contexts. When trust levels are low, we may see behaviors such as:

Territorialism – Mine vs. Yours. Us vs. them. Headquarters vs. Remote Workers
Stereotyping
Lack of accountability
Lack of ownership
Blaming

None of these are productive or positive. Over time these behaviors lead to toxicity and conflict, threatening the fabric of your talent.

What are the things we can do to build trust and connection across the team?

A few years ago, I created a short video which I’ve shown to multiple groups. It focuses on 9 behaviors we can practice as a team to boost trust and connection. I originally wrote about them in Teams365.

These behaviors are:

Walk the Talk
Fairness
Build on Strengths
Take Ownership (For What Works and What Doesn't)
Fairness
Transparency
Creating Connections
Clear Expectations and Communication
Regular one-on-ones/communication

As you read through these ask yourself, where are you on a scale of 1-10 (with 1 being low and 10 being high):

If this is a topic of importance to you and your team, consider exploring this additional Teams365 post about Trust and Connection:
Teams365 1184: Team Building Tip #129

Best,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton – Potentials Realized
Leadership | Teamwork | Business Success
Author of multiple books including Effective Virtual Conversations (2017), PlanDoTrack (2018) and From One to Many: Best Practices for Team and Group Coaching (2013)
Follow along with the #90DaysPlanDoTrack series over at Instagram @CoachingBizBuilder
Now available – PlanDoTrack Workbook and Planner - Order a copy today on Amazon
Join the conversation at the Conversation Sparker Zone - our online community where you can explore virtual and team issues, coaching, productivity and business development).
Check out the new 19 Tips for Productivity On-Demand Course. If this is your year to get things moving, check it out now. Join Jenn for bi-weekly live group calls until July. $129 US. Learn more and enroll here.

#TEAMS365 #1751 – Conflict Management

10/17/2018

Today’s post brings us back to another teamwork skill, that of conflict management. With teams excelling because of their differences, conflict is inevitable. In fact, it’s likely that conflict will be part of a creative, and innovative team environment.

In working through conflict, it is important to think about the following:
How do you approach conflict? Are you a conflict averter? Are you an embracer of conflict? Are you a conflict creator?

How is conflict addressed in your organization? Within your team? Is this the best way to approach conflict?

As you think about the approaches you use around conflict how does it relate to the importance of the relationships which exist? The results you are looking after? If you were to adjust your approach for the benefit of the results and relationships you are looking for, what changes would you make?

On this note, we usually want to adjust our approach to conflict based on how important the end result and relationships are. If the result is important, we may choose to push for that, at the expense of the relationship or making someone angry. If the relationship is important and the result is not, we may choose to compromise. If both the relationship and result is important we may opt to collaborate.

What’s the cost of not addressing conflict?

If you were to make one adjustment around conflict, what would that be?

For more on the topic of teamwork and conflict, check out these past Teams365 posts.

Enjoy your Wednesday,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized | Effective Virtual Conversations | Coaching Team Leaders
We provide team and leadership development support through coaching, consulting and training services
Author of several books including the 2018 Coaching Business Builder Workbook and Planner & Effective Virtual Conversations (2017)
Email: info@potentialsrealized.com
(416)996-8326

#TEAMS365 #1736 - Teamwork skills in focus – 9 Essential Skills

10/2/2018

It’s the start of a new month, and time for a new focus here at the Teams365 blog. This month we are going to focus on teamwork skills. Whether you work as an intact team, a project team or a remote team, teamwork skills are cross-cutting and help professionals at all stages of their careers do better work.
The context of teamwork has changed. In the past, teams were together for longer windows, with much more stability. Today most teams experience ongoing change and team composition. Researcher Amy Edmonston terms this “Teaming” and writes, “actively building and developing teams even as a project is in process, while realizing that a team's composition may change at any given moment.” (Teaming, Edmonston 2013)
She flags four behaviors as essential in the teaming context:

Speaking Up
Collaboration
Experimentation
Reflection

What are you doing to foster these areas?
The teamwork skills we are going to explore this month are:

Trust
Collaboration
Communication
Working Across Differences
Relationship Management
Conflict Management
Emotional Intelligence
Change Management
Influence

For each of the areas we’ll explore what the skill is about, why it’s important. What some of the differences are in the different types of teams today. I’ll also point you back to some of the many posts I’ve already written on these topics.
Looking forward to starting this journey with you this month.

Best,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized | Effective Virtual Conversations | Coaching Team Leaders
We provide team and leadership development support through coaching, consulting and training services
Author of several books including the 2018 Coaching Business Builder Workbook and Planner & Effective Virtual Conversations (2017)
Email: info@potentialsrealized.com
(416)996-8326