This week’s Journaling prompt gets you to reflect and write on the statement of “I am most looking forward to…”

Building in time each week to reflect ad write in an unstructured way helps to focus, clarify and sometimes even ease the mind.
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The Huffington Post published an article last year by Thai Nguyen entitled “Ten surprising benefits you’ll get from keeping a journal” highlighting some of the benefits of journaling ranging from support to goals, mindfulness, emotional intelligence and others such as. Read the article here.

What do you see as the benefits from writing a journal?

For more than a decade as I lived and worked throughout Central and South America, working for the UN and several grassroots development organizations, I kept a regular daily journal. Journaling has always been an amazing tool for me to:

• Capture ideas and events
• Clarify thoughts and explore options
• Identify themes in my work and life I may not have connected before
• Help to identify and focus on priorities

If you have missed any of the past Saturday journaling prompts, view them here. 
 
Enjoy your weekend,
Jennifer

We are at Weekend Journaling Prompt 18 and this week’s question gets you to reflect on “The opposite of our most important goals are….”. Note that it is plural, and not singular.

This week as you go to journal, use the power of contrast I write about earlier this week in my post for this week’s Team Building Tip, and using the IS/IS NOT Framework.

To do this, as a starting point, you may want to divide your page in two, labeling it IS on the left and Is NOT on the right.

Then, one by one, list out your most important goals, highlighting the opposite of this goal one at a time.

What do you notice about your goals and actions you are taking?

Is there anything in the IS NOT side which is actually what you are doing? If so, what changes do you want to make?

Enjoy the conversation…and the writing.

Best wishes,
Jennifer

It’s hard to believe that another month has gone by. Here we are at the end of September and it’s time to do our monthly stock taking and reflection.
If you do track your monthly goals and metrics, today is the day to do this!
Take note of these questions:

• As you reflect on September, what have been your successes and accomplishments?
• As you reflect on the last quarter, what have been your successes and accomplishments?
• What are you most proud of?
• What successes this month do you want to duplicate?
• What top 3 learning have you head that you want to carry forward?
• What key relationships have helped you so far this year? Which ones need more attention?
• What has helped your successes?
• What has hindered or gotten in the way?
• What does your team need to be acknowledged for?
  
  As you look to October, consider these questions:
• What are your key priorities for October?
• What are the key goals?
• What are the major priorities?
• What will you need to place attention on?
• What changes do you want to make in October or this quarter?
• What habits do you want to leverage?
• When will you check in to explore your progress, and make changes?
• What resources do you want to tap into?
• Who can help you be successful this month?

This month also is the start to a new quarter. Grab a few more minutes to think about, and NOTE (yes – write it down).

1. What are your top 5 priorities for this quarter?
2. What will “wild success” look like at the end of the quarter in each of these priority areas?
3. What, and who, do you need to complete these priority areas?
4. What do you need to say NO to, in order to focus on the priorities?
5. What else is important to note about this quarter?

If you have a copy of the Coaching Biz Builder Workbook and Planner it’s time to complete a new quarterly planning section. Join me for a quarterly planning hack!

Enjoy your reflection!

Coming up – October and a focus on Teamwork Skills.

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

This week’s weekly journaling prompt gets you to consider the question “What’s your secret sauce?”. What’s the one thing that sets your apart – as a leader? A team?

If you are just joining us for these weekly journaling prompts, check out the others here.

My intention in sharing these weekly journaling prompts is to provide you with a space to pause and reflect on what’s going on.

In my decade plus of work as a global professional as a leader with the United Nations and other international aid organizations I kept a journal religiously. While they are tucked away in a safe place, I look forward to going back and re-reading these as a later date. They not only will serve as an important memoir for me, but at the time, writing was a wonderful way to capture what was going on, connect the dots of my work and life, make sense of the experiences I was having (commonly referred to as “sense-making today”, clarify priorities and also have an outlet.

If journaling is not something you have considered before, here are two articles which point to why journaling can be important:

Nancy J. Adler’s Harvard Business Review Article – Want to Be an Outstanding Leader: Keep a Journal.
LifeHack’s article “Journal Writing: Five Smart Reasons Why You Should Start Doing it Today”.

Have a great weekend!
Jennifer

When I started the journey with blog post #1 of the Teams365 blog back on January 1st 2014, I didn’t really know where it would take me. Two more books later, and more than 1700 blog posts, I think about the hundreds, if not thousands, of hours of conversations with teams and leaders these posts have also infused.

Just recently, perhaps due to blog size, or other, the search function on the site has changed. It means that you can’t go back and search posts earlier than this year. While you can still find them through tags and dates, it may mean that it’s harder to find older content. That makes these Friday posts even more important where I reach back, and share, an older blog post.
 
Today I am reaching back to one from September 2014, entitled “What’s the WIIFM” . It was Teams365 blog post 265 and here’s what I wrote:

#Teams365 #265: What's the WIIFM?
9/22/2014
0 Comments
 
The WIIFM, or the What's In It For Me, is an essential leadership concept to keep in  mind.

WIIFM has connections with employee engagement, developing and delivering stellar presentations, recognition and motivation.

Let's first look at motivation. Psychology posits that we get motivated through our internal drive, or externally. As leaders, helping our team members connect around What's in it for me when faced with a new project or task, helps increase the internal motivation. It also may provide us with some cues as to what we can do to provide external support for those individuals, given what they find motivating.

In developing presentations or public speaking, helping your audience connect with their WIIFM (What's in it for me) creates a richer learning experience. We should always be trying to design presentations (content, approaches, flow) from their perspective as well.

Employee engagement and recognition continue to be hot button topics. WIIFM is central to engagement and puts our team members in the heart of being part of the driving force of what creates an engaged workforce. Create a habit of asking people to consider their WIIFM and contribution with new initiatives, and as change processes happen.

Finally, in recognition (something we don't often get enough of), lead from individuals WIIFM. 

Where else could you get people you work with to consider the WIIFM?


Enjoy your weekend!
Jennifer

For this week’s Flashback Friday I am reaching back to a guest article I wrote for the Coaching Tools Company a few years ago entitled “ Dive Back Into Work and School with these Five Goal Setting Elements” . You can find the original article here.
 
Here’s what I wrote:
“As the summer draws to a close for those of us in the northern hemisphere, people are gearing up for back to school and work. It's a great time to be working with our clients on goals - and whether you are an individual, team or group coach, goal-setting is a foundational piece of our work with coaching clients. This article explores five key elements of goal-setting.

1. Which Goal-Setting Framework?
Many of us work with our clients around setting SMART Goals, goals which are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant or Resonant and Time-bound. SMART goals allow clients to articulate goals which are more detailed, and therefore easier to track progress on.
There are several other goal-setting frameworks out there including what John Whitmore describes in his seminal book, Coaching for Performance, as PURE goals which are Positively stated, Understood, Relevant  and Ethical. For some, goals may be enshrined in a one page action plan, or in organizations as part of a development plan that is shared with the client's consent.
Consider with your clients which goal-setting frameworks will support them best. Their own style will have an influence on the type of goal framework they may wish to adopt.
Motivation is essential: Regardless of goal-setting framework it is important to explore with clients the issue of motivation. We can be motivated by things that are internal, or external. What's the "driver" for achieving this goal? Supporting our clients to connect with the motivational factor of the goal, or what I call SMART-E - the excitement, supports clients as they move through the peaks and valleys and when they hit the slump. When goal-setting, work with clients to connect their goals with their values and the importance of achieving them in the bigger picture.

2. Goal Timelines
What's the timeline on this? Goals can change dramatically based on the timeframe provided. Is this a short term goal, medium or long-term? When goal-setting, it can be seductive to always work on short term goals that create quick wins, but many times these become a rote check-box activity. Supporting clients to link their goals to their values and the WHY behind it, is important. For medium and long term goals, what will be motivational for the client over time? It is also important to work with clients on updating their goals as their context changes and key goals are achieved. You may want to build in goal checkpoints throughout the coaching process.

3. Goal Visibility
Make goals visible. Keeping goals visible can help to remind our clients of what they have identified as important. What is the structure which will keep their goals visible in a way that works best? Is it a post-it note on their computer screen, is it a photo on their phone or tablet, or is it something else? When you're goal-setting, inquire with your client about what structure will keep this visible and top of mind for them.

4. Accountability and Support
In the book, The Oz Factor, authors write, "Accountability is the guiding principle that defines how we make commitments to one another, how we measure and report our progress how we interact when things go wrong, and how much ownership we take to get things done. It is, in essence, the nerve center that runs throughout every part of the organization and through every working relationship to every member of every team."  The Oz Principle
Who will the person be accountable to - you? Others? In achieving this goal what do people need to say yes to? No to? How does the person want to be supported? Do they want their feet held to the fire, or do they want a high five? Building accountability into goal-setting is a key part of the coaching process.

5. Celebration and Recognition
Celebration and recognition of goal achievement is important, especially for large goals. In today's busy work world, we may not stop and pause and recognize our accomplishments. It is very common for teams and leaders to check off the box, and move onto the next goal without really taking the time to capture new learning, and what can be applied to future projects. In addition to supporting learning, recognizing and celebrating achievements helps us to connect with the WHY of each goal and its' importance.
Your Pondering Question: How can these five elements - Goal-Setting Frameworks, Goal Timelines, Goal Visibility, Accountability and Support, and Celebration and Recognition amp up your next coaching conversation - and results for your clients?”
 
Enjoy your last week of summer scheduling!
​
Best wishes,
Jennifer
 

Several months ago, in lead up to my newest publication, The Coaching Business Builder Workbook and Planner I introduced a new Saturday column, entitled the Weekly Journaling Prompt.

Journaling provides a variety of benefits including:

• A space to pause and slow down your thoughts.
• A place to capture your thoughts, hopes and aspirations.
• Whether you journal for a few minutes or an hour – in bullet form or visuals – journaling can become a wonderful habit and practice.

This week’s journaling prompt gets you to write about the stagement “I (or we – if you are a team) are craving….”

Enjoy your writing!
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 Effective Virtual Conversations (2017) 
Email: info@potentialsrealized.com
(416)996-8326

M is for motivation, malaise, meaning, momentum.
Check out this Teams365 post #337 on Motivation and other M ways to focus on team development here.
 
N is for new hire orientation:
Check out this post suggested areas to include in new hire orientation here. 
 
Check out these six leadership questions on nimble, networking, norms and new here.

Check out What’s Your Nature – where I discuss more about styles and strengths, and the impact of this here.

O is for opportunities, optimism:
​Read more about this here.

Reflect on 6 leadership questions a day around opportunities and options here.

Continue the thought process around Remote and Virtual Team Leadership here. 

P is for performance, process, priorities:
Check out the blog here. 

Leadership Myth – Priorities change all the time:
​Read more here.
 
Enjoy today’s selection of looking back at some of the many varied posts I’ve covered here at the Teams365 blog.
 
Best wishes,
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 Effective Virtual Conversations (2017) 
Email: info@potentialsrealized.com
(416)996-8326

As we step into the month of March 2018 here at the Teams365 blog, our focus is returning back to team development. Whether it's due to a change in season or it's time for a tune-up, the shift in seasons which is happening this month often precipitates a focus on team development.

​Today, I wanted to take us back to an older post from the blog from early 2016 on Motivation and Your Teams -  3 Questions to ask. Here's what I wrote in Team365 #736:
"Motivation is a critical topic for team leaders to consider on multiple levels. Against the backdrop of many organizations struggling with "employee engagement issues" motivation can be a core topic.

There are a number of levels at which we can consider the topic of motivation as team leaders including these three questions:
What  motivates each individual team member? Team members can be motivated by both internal and external factors. For some team members it may be pay that really gets them going, while others may be motivated by doing a good job. Spending time getting to know your team and what makes them perform at their best is a key part of stellar team leadership.

What does each team member find important? Our values shape what we deem as important. Whether our values are security, or adventure, these are the things that become our drivers and what we often seek out. Each team will also have its own set of values. As team leaders it can be important to have dialogue around values at two levels - the individual levels and the team level. See how value alignment works with motivation for each team member.

What are levels of trust and connection like on the team? Team motivation is often tied at a much deeper level to the amount of trust in a team and how connected people feel. We often look to the surface level of question what - What motivates each team member - without asking ourselves about the status of trust on the team. If trust levels are low, or if toxic behaviors are present, it's unlikely that team members are going to be motivated to bring their best to work each and every day.

AS you consider the topic of motivation on your team right now, what's important for you to consider? What issues need to be top of mind?"

​As you consider your team this March, what do you notice about how motivated people are? What's the culture of the team?

​Looking forward to delving into many topics related to teams and culture this month.

With best wishes,
Jennifer