Teams365 Blog - Potentials Realized

#TEAMS365 #2124 – Team Building Tip 259: Creating Safety

10/24/2019

Safety is an essential element for teams to thrive. Since the publication of her 2012 book, Teaming, I’ve been pointing people to the research of Amy Edmondson, as it relates to the trust, safety and connection teams require in order to operate. Her writing includes Teaming (2012), Extreme Teams and the Fearless Organization (2018).

You can view what she has to say on this topic in her TED talk on “How to Turn a Bunch of Strangers into a Team” here.

Having a discussion with the team about “What would create more safety?” for the team can be seen as a risky conversation by some. At the same time, it’s useful to surface questions like these in creating the open dialogue which is needed in high trust organizations. The feedback received, AND ideas created by the various members of the team, helps to create shared ownership for the team experience.

Enjoy your conversation this week, and if you are looking for more on the topic of building trust, connection and safety be sure to also check out the series of posts I’ve included here at the Teams365 blog post around TRUST.

Enjoy the conversation!
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.
For those looking for tips, tools and ideas about remote work and support for your remote teams, be sure to check out these tags and resources.

#TEAMS365 #2117 - Team Building Tip 258

10/17/2019

Each Thursday I provide a question for you as a team to explore and have a short conversation around. Typically, these are questions which may provoke new discussions you are not having or prompt a sharing of information that is not naturally available.

This week’s team building question might fall into the category of “provocative” for some teams.

The question is “What is not being spoken about?”.

We know from research that teams which excel are teams which are able to surface difficult issues for exploration, without fear of retribution. This is not easy and requires high levels of TRUST and connection with other group members.

When we don’t surface issues, or address issues which need to be raised, it’s likely that they will grow in magnitude and possibly FESTER, creating more toxicity for the team. Rather than being an issue which could be addressed quickly it may become an issue that gets charged with emotional and resentment.

When we are surrounded by an elephant in the room it can be refreshing to finally name it, even if we can’t address it right away.

As a team this week, how might it be useful to surface the issues which are not being spoken about? What do you want to do to capture these and address them in the medium- to long-term? When we open what might be perceived as a Pandora’s Box it can be useful to have shared clarity around what will happen with these issues. Are you looking to spark conversation and problem solving or provide a “release valve” on issues which need to be surfaced but may not change? Consider how you want to set this question up as a team.

Enjoy your conversations!
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.
For those looking for tips, tools and ideas about remote work and support for your remote teams, be sure to check out these tags and resources.

#TEAMS365 #2110 – Team Building Tip 257: The Devil's Advocate

10/10/2019

This week’s Team Building Tip gets you to think about the question “What would the devil’s advocate say?”.

The Devil's Advocate view on a team may be in complete opposition to everyone else. It may also be the unpopular voice in the room.

At the same time, the devil’s advocate voice can point to an area which needs to be addressed or changed. This perspective can be very important when change is ongoing.

Rather than vilifying the voice of the devil’s advocate, it could be useful to invite their perspective around issues of importance. This may tease out alternative viewpoints, unforeseen risks, assumptions the team is making, or unpopular views.

How can the voice of the "Devil's Advocate" be useful to you as a team right now?

Many teams feel that they may remote the voice to the dissenter if he or she leaves the team, but note that it's likely that that voice will re-emerge if changes are not made at the deeper level of the team's system (it's culture, roles, how they do things, norms etc).

What is important to note on your team right now about key issues and the Devil’s Advocate view?

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.
For those looking for tips, tools and ideas about remote work and support for your remote teams, be sure to check out these tags and resources.

#TEAMS365 #2034 - Flashback Friday - New Leader Assumptions to Reframe

7/26/2019

July and August is a popular month for new leaders to assume their posts. With this in mind, I thought it would be useful to take a look back to a great post geared for new team leaders entitled “Five Leadership Assumptions for New Leaders to Reframe”.

Here’s what I wrote back in this 2016 post:

As a new leader there are a number of assumptions you can make which can lead to a lot of problems and/or headaches for you and your team. Here they are in random order.

Assumption #1 - Everyone needs and wants the same type of support.
In fact, every team member will have their own strengths, styles and personalities. Take time at the start to learn who each person is and how they want to be supported. Areas such as how they want to be communicated with can vary tremendously from team member to team member.

If we don’t bust this assumption chances are many of your team members will not connect with you. Trying to support everyone in the same fashion can also lead to lower levels of engagement and trust.

Assumption #2 - I need to do everything myself.
As a leader delegation is key. It’s important that we empower the team to do their work. Micro-monitoring is more important than micro-managing. While delegation is often considered an art form, mastering this skill early on can mean the difference between flow and overwhelm. For more tips on delegation, view this recent Linked In Pulse post I shared a few weeks ago on Delegation.

Assumption #3 - I always need to say yes .
From boundaries with your time, to learning to say NO (diplomatically to your boss and team) creating boundaries is a key skill for team leaders. As someone who leads from the middle - supporting those above and below you - being able to say no tactfully is an important skill to master as are the skills of negotiation. If it's impossible to say NO you may need to say "I can do this, but it will mean I can't do that. What do recommend as the primary focus?".

Assumption #4 - This is going to be easy.
As a leader we need to often make the hard calls and difficult decisions. Some naively step into leadership thinking that it will be a bigger pay cheque and similar work. Not quite. While things won't always be easy, the learning curve does slow down. Your first leadership role may present you wit the steepest learning curve. For those that enjoy challenge, successive leadership roles will usually provide additional challenge in different ways.

Rather than feeling like leadership is going to be hard, what's another perspective you can step into around that?

Assumption #5 - You are going to be just like the other person who filled the role.
Leaders can benefit from busting this assumption early on. As a new leader you'll be bringing referent skills, experiences and a different personality to the table. Make your work life easier by not putting on additional pressure trying to be just like the "other leader". Reminding your team and your boss and stakeholders about your unique strengths can create a win-win for all involved.

What other assumptions do you notice you are holding around leadership? What needs to be reframed?

You can read the original post here.

Enjoy your weekend,
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 #1989 – Feedback and Performance Check

6/11/2019

A few days ago, I shared a post on preparing for the performance conversation. Feedback and performance conversations are often an area team members of all kinds struggle with, regardless of level of experience. When is the last time you held a two-way performance conversation – receiving and providing feedback to those you work with?

Things to keep in mind:

Feedback and performance conversations should be ongoing.
Signal when you are having a performance conversation. Sometimes it’s so informal that people don’t even recognize that they are receiving feedback. This is particularly important if performance is not going well.
Be specific about what performance is expected for each role. Provide examples of what good performance would look like.
Be sure to indicate what follow up is needed – and follow up. Lack of follow up may signals that you are not interested, or that things are better, when in fact they may not be.
Are you making the performance conversation two way? Any performance conversation is an opportunity to get feedback for yourself.
Experiment with leading with what the other person sees and observes about their own behavior. What do they notice?

What else is important to note in your feedback conversations?

Enjoy your conversations!
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 #1985 - #FLASHBACKFRIDAY: Preparing For the Feedback Conversation

6/7/2019

This week’s flashback Friday takes us to preparing for the feedback conversation. When feedback is unplanned or unscheduled things can go awry. Even taking a few minutes on a regular basis to review your team members performance, can be a useful habit to get into. Providing feedback on a regular basis is a best practice of leadership today.

Check out Teams365 1252 Preparing for the Feedback Conversation. This is useful for both the person giving and the person receiving the feedback.

Here’s what I wrote in Teams365 #1252:
Today's post takes us to the realm of feedback, an area I often find myself working with teams around. The performance conversation should not be a one-off conversation. In fact, it should be an on-going dialogue (two-way) between staff and their leader.

Taking time to prepare for the feedback conversation is an essential step in the process, and it is often one that is overlooked. It's important to take some time to think about the performance conversation, rather than just winging it.

Some things to do when you are starting to prepare for any feedback conversation is:

Make sure that you have solid items to talk about. What are the facts? What is hearsay? What have you seen yourself? If you realize that you don't have a lot to share, this is a flag to make some changes so that next time you do.

What are the key goals which are important to discuss? Another challenge in the feedback conversation is that the team leader may be focusing on different things than the employee. What are the key goals which are important to discuss? Are these aligned?

How have you set the employee up for success in scheduling this meeting? Performance conversations should be a two-way process. What have you done to set the employee up for success? Have you asked them to consider any questions prior to meeting? Have you invited them to do a self-assessment? When was the last time the two of you sat down to explore performance issues? Nothing raised in an annual review should be a surprize.

Dedicate time and space for the performance conversation and preparation. Even though many of us feel we need to run from task to task, feedback and performance conversations should not be left as a low item priority. Make sure you are dedicating time and space for not only holding the performance conversation, but also preparing for it.

What other tips do you have for preparing for the performance conversation?

Enjoy the conversations!
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 #1984 - Team Building Tip #239:What's Taboo?

6/6/2019

This week’s Team Building Tip gets your team to consider the question – “What is taboo?”.

Once teams feel safe to put issues on the table, and that they will not face any retribution for speaking their mind, getting the team to identify what is TABOO or off-limits can be key to moving a team forward. It is important to look into the dusty corners, and shine the light on the things that don’t want to be seen or discussed. This is particularly important when the pace of business speeds up, and things become more urgent. It’s the things that are taboo that can grow in size or come out of nowhere, taking a team down.

What are the things that are TABOO for you and your team to:

Discuss
Do
Put into Practice

Is it time for a change?

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 #1971 – #FlashbackFriday: Mistakes Made By New & Experienced Virtual & Remote Team Leaders & Skills Needed In The Virtual Space

5/24/2019

This month’s theme is about teamwork in complexity. One of the more complex areas can be the virtual and remote space. Let’s look at mistakes made by new and experienced virtual and remote team leaders.

I also thought it would be interesting to reach back to a skill-based post as well. Here’s what I wrote about virtual and remote leadership skills:

Today we reach the W in the A-Z of Virtual and Remote Team Leadership. As virtual and remote team leaders, having a wealth of skills and experiences to draw on can be invaluable. Given the need to lead across distance and ever-changing contexts it can be useful to have a broad base of skills to draw up on. Many of us are Jacks or Jills of all trades. The ability to lead confidently in uncertainty and across issues we are often unfamiliar with is key. Our ability to empower our team members to take the lead and advise on issues is also critical.

Questions to Consider:

When you think of your skill base as a team leader, what broad skills do you bring really help you lead effectively?
What new skills would you like to add to the table?
What experiences add to your mix?
What new leadership experiences would help you round out your style?

https://www.potentialsrealized.com/teams-365-blog/teams365-850-virtual-and-remote-team-leadership-w-is-for

I also wanted to remind you of some of the more common mistakes new and experienced virtual and remote team leaders make:

Today’s post explores common mistakes virtual and remote team leaders can make. In this post we are going to look at five different ones.

Not enough 1-1's – As I have said many times, being out of sight is not the same as being out of mind. Not spending enough time in one-on-ones can be detrimental to the levels of trust team members feel, the connection they feel with others, which will have an impact on levels of engagement. What is an appropriate frequency of meeting time with team members? What does it look like – phone calls, video streaming, onsite visits, or bringing staff into the office regularly?
Not learning on your feet – Part of being an effective virtual and remote team leader is your ability to be shifting, learning and adapting. Given that there is much less levels of control and greater span, the ability to learn on your feet and expecting this rather than feeling you will have all the answers, can make a big difference with team members.
Not being clear with goals – Goals can be a little different with virtual and remote teams. Whether people are matrixed and reporting into different areas, or whether goals can become competitive, providing opportunities to be clear with goals is important.
Not helping people connect with the bigger picture – Because virtual and remote team members are working with different levels of autonomy and independently, helping team members connect with the bigger picture is essential. This could include helping them understand more about corporate and departmental goals, giving them more access to strategic or corporate plans, and making goals and achievements more visible. Making goals more visible might include making the reporting structures more shared and visually appealing, or mapping out team goals on a weekly basis or other.
Not providing team members with the necessary responsibility and authority – A final mistake virtual and remote team leaders can make is not providing the necessary responsibility and authority to their team members so they can make the decisions they need to autonomously.

https://www.potentialsrealized.com/teams-365-blog/teams365-1177-common-mistakes-made-by-virtual-and-remote-team-leaders

What can you do to avoid these common mistakes?

Pick up a copy of the entire A-Z series at the Potentials Realized Store here. It’s a downloadable ebook format for $19 US.

All the best,
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 #1957 – #FLASHBACKFRIDAY: A - Z of Team Development Activities

5/10/2019

With our focus this month on teamwork in uncertainty, my guess is that many of you are thinking about the questions “Practically, what are some things that I can do to support my team through uncertainty?” OR “What can we do to address these topics?”

This week’s FlashbackFriday post takes us back to Teams365 #1657 when I hosted a series around the A- Z of Team Development Activities. As leaders (and team members) it is important to have a variety of ideas and tools available to facilitate the conversations needed for teams to excel.
You can read the original post here.

Here’s what I wrote:

“This month’s focus is on team development. The summer months may be one of the only times when people have an opportunity to focus in on what’s needed for their team. Over the next few weeks, I’ll be doing a quick A through Z of possibilities for team development activities, whether you are supporting a virtual team, intact team or project team. Over the last five years I’ve written about a lot of these different areas and I’ll include links to the original posts for you to check out:

A – Assumptions, Acknowledgements, Action and Accountability

Take a step back to one of the first A through Z series I did back in 2014 on Leadership. Read the Leadership A – Z around A for Action and Accountability here.

B – Barriers, Beliefs, Behaviors, Boundaries, Brevity, Bottom lining, Beauty, Better, and Best

Check out Teams365 #427 where I explore 6 Leadership Questions for B here.

Check out Teams365 #309 for additional focus areas around B – Check it out here.

C – Culture, Communication, Conversation, Change, Collaboration

Check out these six leadership questions around C here.

Virtual and Remote Leadership – C is for Communication. Read it here.

Check out the Leadership Myth – Change is Easy here.

D – Delegation, Decisions, Direct, Difficult Conversations

Check out Teams365 #315 on D is for Delegation. Read it here.

Check out Teams365 #431 - Six Leadership Questions a day - read it here.

And finally: Virtual and Remote Team Leadership - read it here.

As you consider the A-D of your team right now, what are focus areas the team could work around? Highlight 4-5 key areas you’d like to have conversation or a focus around in the coming weeks.”

Consider what type of conversations you want to have.

With 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 an 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 #1954 Managing Uncertainty: Building Trust and Connection on Your Team – Virtually!

5/7/2019

We turn our attention to teamwork in uncertainty in today’s post, as well as tomorrow’s. One of the most important foundations for teams moving through change, uncertainty and volatility is TRUST.

Trust is an essential precursor to effective team work. It doesn’t just form. We need to be intentional in creating it.

As I write in my book Effective Virtual Conversations, there are many things we can do to build trust and connection in the virtual space including:

One on One Time: Having regular calls with your team members to check in around how things are going, as well as what their needs are from you, and from the team.
Group or Team Agreements (Ways of Working): Creating shared agreements around HOW you will operate as a team. This helps to create safety, an essential precursor to trust and connection.
Create shared expectations: What does everyone expect from each other? What are your expectations of how you will operate as a team?
Breakouts: Using breakouts regularly in team meetings can help people get to know each other better. Breakouts enable people to connect with one or two others for short periods of time around key discussion areas.
Paired partners: Assigning partners across the team. In my former work we called these peer partners and we rotated it on a regular basis – i.e. every 6 months. The role of the peer partner was to connect on a bi-weekly or monthly basis with another team members to chat and connect, sharing a little more about key projects and tasks they were working on, and focusing in on learning more about their partner. Brainstorming around key opportunities and challenges also ensued, as did some formal and informal mentoring.
Being clear about process and what to expect: Trust is also built on virtual calls by letting people know what to expect about process and key items.
Connect people early on with their WIIFM (What’s In It For Me?): Connecting people around their What’s In It For Me at the start of the call, helps to connect people with the relevance and importance of the topic in their world. Without this, it is unlikely that we will listen.

What will help to build trust and connection for your team members?

Another key element to helping teams thrive in uncertain environments is connection. Knowing other members of your team – who they are, what they do, who they are connected with, and what strengths they bring – is crucial in contexts which are changing regularly.

No person is an island, and our relationships are even more important.

To boost connection on a virtual team we will want to:

Build in moments for teams to learn more about each other – who they are, what they do, what they can be counted on to accomplish.
Help people articulate their role, and how they operate. This might include a one pager with a focus on “Here’s what you should know about me”.

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 an digital format. Print it out and take it with you for some inspiration and writing on the go! Available at the Potentials Realized Store.