As many of us step into some holiday time, today’s post gets you to think about simplification. Simpler does not always mean simple. In business, simplification can help with focus, clarity and standing out.
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In marketing, simplification may mean smaller chunks, more focused messaging. Consistently on a channel.

In service offerings, simplification may mean one thing instead of three.
In systems, simplification might mean streamlining.

In content creation, simplification may mean repurposing and repackaging what you already have, rather than focusing on creating something new.

Around habits and work style, simplification may mean letting something go, or doing something less frequently.

What does simplification mean for you? What would be beneficial about simplifying right now in your work?
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Best wishes,
Jennifer

It’s time for another weekly journaling prompt. These are geared to get you to build in a pause point every week and think about what is important to you.

This week the question is “at my best I am….”

In past posts I've shared the benefits of journaling. You can read that post here.

One of the activities I take a lot of teams through is this reflectin of who they are when they are at their best. Reconnecting with what's worked, and who we are when we are leveraging our skills and strengths can create a strong pivot.

Today I hope you will find some time to create a few minutes to capture reflections of times when you were at your best.

Enjoy your writing!
​Jennifer

In our last Teamwork in Uncertainty post of the month we’re going to explore a favorite topic here at the Teams365 blog – Strengths. As I have shared in many other posts, strengths have a variety of benefits, from strengthening productivity to creating more engagement in the workplace.

In times of uncertainty the only thing we may be able to rely on are our strengths – our own and others. When we are tasked with new activities and tasks it can be useful to explore who on the team might have brought a similar experience. What are the strengths that can support you as a team?

As I share in PlanDoTrack, there are several key questions you will want to explore on the individual level. Check out the sections on strengths in Sections 1 and 4 of PlanDoTrack.

Some of the more common frameworks include:

• Utilizing Gallup’s StrengthsFinder 2.0 - Purchase a copy of the book for each team member and have them bring their reports to an upcoming team meeting.
• Incorporating the VIA Character Survey – This comes from the Positive Psychology realm and provides another doorway into exploring strengths. The nice thing about this assessment is that it is free.

As with any assessment, it’s important to reinforce a few things:

• This may provide a snapshot in time and can be dependent on a variety of factors.
• Take what is valuable from the information. Assessments are intended to provide insights, not a box.
• Exploring strengths and styles helps us understand ourselves better. Under times of stress and pressure, some of these styles and strengths become magnified. When magnified, some of our strengths become a liability. For example., if one of my strengths is getting results, this is good. However, in times of pressure I may become dogmatic in getting results, pushing harder than needed and burning myself, and others, out. Success in today’s workplace requires a focus on both RESULTS and RELATIONSHIPS.
• Look at both the individual view of things and the collective view. The power of bringing most assessments (not all, but many) into the team context is to provide a snapshot across the team, helping them see the collective. It also provides an opportunity for everyone to have a collective framework for exploration and dialogue.

Questions to consider:

• What are the discussions you want to have around strengths?
• What’s important about exploring this topic individually and collectively?
• What do you notice about the collective strengths of the team?
• Where are there gaps? What might you do about this?
• What will be valuable for you as a team to explore around strengths?

Are you looking to do more work with your team around strengths? Contact me to discuss our team day sessions for teams around strengths. 

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.

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.

For those that work on creating and delivering on-demand courses which people consume at a later time, this week’s Effective Virtual Conversations tip gets you to think about the question “To drip or not to drip?”. What’s dripping you ask? Dripping content that is.

When you create a course that may be several hours in length, it can be useful to consider if you are going to release all the information at once or if you are going to release it “drip by drip”. It could be released on a fixed schedule (ie. weekly, daily or monthly).

There are pros and cons to both approaches. When dripping content, it can provide a continuous stream in bite sized pieces. When releasing it all at once it allows the person consuming the content to do it at a pace that works for them. This may be really beneficial if someone has a limited window of time to work within, but it may not be as advantageous if the content needs to be put into practice before they move on. Withholding the content in that instance may be more advantageous so they need to “put it into practice” rather than move on.

Consider your design work right now – is it best to drip or not to drip? What’s going to work best? What do your colleagues do?

What do your clients want?

Take a look around and see what other courses do. Discuss with others what could work best.

Best wishes,
​Jennifer

​This week’s Team Building Tip gets you to consider the question: “_____ is strengthening our relationships”.
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Teams which excel are great at getting results AS WELL AS having strong relationships. On the relationship front we want to hone areas such as:

• Knowing each other
• Understanding each other’s strengths and styles
• Being able to understand what supports vs. what triggers others
• Providing feedback and communication
• Being able to work across differences, and difficult issues
• Team Spirit (having a sense of team identity – see yesterday’s post on this)

As a team this week consider the things you are doing to strengthen your relationships. This might include practices such as:

• taking a coffee break together each week,
• ensuring that team meetings happen on a regular basis for virtual teams,
• spotlighting the work and background of one of the team members each month in an internal email and/or newsletter,
• connecting peers in peer pairings to get to know each other, and their work.

​What are the things you are doing as a team to strengthen relationships?
 
Hope that you are enjoying your mid-week,
Jennifer

​As I’ve been leading different types of conversations in the last few weeks through small group coaching, leadership training and keynotes, I have noticed that the conversation and focus is changing for many team members and leaders right now. In addition to thinking about what needs to get done, I’m also hearing a lot of leaders (and their teams) starting to look at opportunities for the new year.
 
Given that every week I am talking across a range of leadership and teamwork topics, I hear a wide variety of different areas, and key themes.
If I had to identify five that I have been hearing a lot of opportunities  around for the new year it would be:
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Getting better at hosting meetings. Think about how much time you have spent in meetings this week? This month? How many were face to face? How many were virtual? How effective were they? What would have made them more effective? Spending time getting better at meetings?
Building in more time for strategic thinking and action. With technology has helped us get better at so many things, and does make it easier, distraction and focus are key elements for business success in an ever-changing environment.
Scheduling in time for what’s important – Making sure we have the important items in our calendar and can get them done when we have energy. Daniel Pink’s book WHEN takes us into the realm of WHEN it is important to get things done. Circadian rhythms have been researched for many decades now, and many of us may be aware of what time of day is really best to get certain tasks done in. With the shift to mobile and remote work, many of us now have more flexibility in terms of how we operate and when we schedule our tasks.
Getting better at knowing our strengths and styles – Some of my favorite days are spent with teams who are learning more about their strengths and styles, interfacing this with helping them understand more about team effectiveness. I am pleased to continue to be able to offer support for teams, groups and individuals around strengths and styles. Whether we are exploring the DiSC together or StrengthsFinder, these are powerful frameworks which help to support individuals “lean into” what they naturally do well during times of change and uncertainty.  Change and uncertainty is the new norm for so many workplaces today.
 
Where do you want to put attention around for 2019? I hope that you will grab 15 minutes right now to make some notes for yourself and/or to schedule it in for focus. As Drucker wrote “What doesn’t get scheduled, doesn’t get done”.
 
With 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 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 FlashbackFriday post takes us to the territory of two past posts which explored the teamwork skills of Listening and Working Across Differences. If I had to categorize the different areas teams prioritize as wanting to get better in, or develop, it’s often in these two areas.
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Let us take a look back at two posts I’ve written – one on Listening, and one on Working Across Differences.
 
First, here’s what I wrote in Teams365 #1103  on Listening. Read it here or below.

“Exceptional teams don't usually emerge as exceptional. They develop over time skills in different areas.

​The first area we are going to look at is Listening. In a team context listening is of utmost importance - it's listening on multiple levels. Listening to what the other team member is saying, and also listening for how it connects with your work. Listening is also hearing the emotional and requests behind the words. When teams are in conflict, there is usually a request behind each complaint that exists.

​In listening we want to listen on multiple levels:

​1. To the words that are being shared. This in fact only comprises about 8% of the message.
​2. To the tone, pace and pitch of the statement - what do you notice about the energy and impact of how the words are being spoken? This comprises more than 30% of the message.
​3. To the body language. What do you notice about the person's gestures? How they are standing? What does their body language say about how open or closed they are? Body language comprises about 55% of the message when we are in face to face settings.

​One of the challenges with team communication today is that so much is done by instant messaging or text in which we have no tone or body language to help make sense of what the words really mean. The impact of this means that words and the way they are interpreted are heavily influenced by the levels of trust and connection that exist within the team. You may be interested in checking out these two posts for boosting trust and connection in your virtual teams:

​Teams365 #258: Create Connection within Your Virtual Team. Read it here.

​Teams365 #610: Four Ways to Build trust in your team.

​There are some past posts I've written on listening, which is also a paramount skill in coaching. Take a look at these past posts related to listening:

​Teams365 #914: The Foundations of TeamWork - Listening - Read it here

​Teams365 #192: Listening And Coaching as A Leader. Read it here”
 
Working across differences is another challenging area for many teams today. The differences which exist on a team are often the greatest strength. However, how do we become more effective at working across differences? Consider what I wrote in this post – Teams365 #1110 – Working Across Differences.
 
“Today's teamwork skill in focus is the ability to work across differences. In today's world of ongoing collaboration and teamwork, this skill set is essential.

​Some tips for working across differences include:
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​* Knowing each member's unique strengths and what they bring to the table. StrengthsFinder 2.0 is a wonderful tool to help people understand more about their unique strengths. Click here to read what I have written in the past about the benefits of leading from strengths, and supporting the team in understanding their strengths.

* Creating an environment where differences are celebrated and encouraged

​* Understanding the different styles which exist on a team. I usually use the Everything DiSC with the clients I work with. This helps to provide insights around people's natural working style, to support individuals in learning more about their "go to" approaches, especially when under stress. Understanding this also helps to adapt their style for working with others.

​What other ways do you want to support individuals on the team in working across differences?”

As you step into the weekend, what’s one concrete thing you can do to support your team in enhancing their skills in either listening or working across differences this month?

Best,
​Jennifer

​This summer I was committed to tackling the growing pile of books I had purchased earlier this year, but not cracked the spine on. The growing pile actually felt like a weight on me. While I love to read, the volume was dragging me down.
Supported by no TV, and a slower than normal internet connection, I was able to reshift some of my usual screen time (which today is pretty much streaming based) to turning in earlier and reading regularly. It helped me not only “get through” but enjoy reading a number of books this summer. It was a pretty eclectic range but I wanted to share some of them with you:
The 5 Choices: The Path to Extraordinary Productivity  by Kory Kogon, Adam Merrill and Leena Rinne –  I’ve written quite a bit bout the influence of Stephen Covey’s Training on my time management and productivity almost twenty years ago. I had picked up the Covey team’s latest book before hopping on a red eye flight from Vancouver to Toronto in June. Edits for my new book, the Coaching Business Builder Workbook and Planner, superseded reading it then, but I got to it just this last week.
For those looking for a quick, and integrated approach to time, this is a terrific resource. Their approach is grounded in Covey’s Urgent/Important Matrix, but also incorporates today’s focus on values and roles. A great read!
The Fire Starter Sessions – Danielle LaPorte – Loaded with short stories, quotes, the Fire Starter Sessions is a great book to dip into over time, with topics touching on time, money.
The Four Tendencies by Gretchen Rubin – I continue to enjoy Gretchen Rubin’s weekly Podcast – Happier – and almost heard her voice speaking The Four Tendencies. This book takes us into the dynamic, and important, area of styles, and Gretchen’s framework around Questioners, Upholders Obligers, and Rebels. A must-read for team leaders and team members, this book will support you in thinking deeper about how you approach work, decisions and relationships, and what matters for those you work and live with! Check out what she has to say at her own blog post from 2015 here.
Build an A Team – Whitney Johnson – A terrific read for leaders and coaches and anyone who takes a strengths-based approach to work. With chapters focusing in on supporting new hires, as well as “masters” on  your team, this is a great read to get you thinking about what type of support people will benefit from, and how Johnson writes you can “support them up the learning curve”.
And on a lighter note, I also enjoyed the Agatha Christie-ish mystery – Woman in Cabin Ten. Given that this book was sitting for almost a year on my bedside table it was a relief to dip into this quick read – a solid one for anyone who likes mysteries!

What books did you enjoy reading this summer? What is sticking and transforming the way you work, and/or live?

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 several books including the 2018 Coaching Business Builder Workbook and Planner & Effective Virtual Conversations (2017) 
Email: info@potentialsrealized.com
(416)996-8326

We know that diverse styles on a team creates a strength and supports results, when teams know how to work effectively together. The ability to work across differences is a skill set which may need to be cultivated intentionally by teams today.

For this week's #FlashbackFriday post I wanted to reach back to #Teams365 #1140 when I wrote the post "Listening for Different Styles on the Team". You may want to consider it in light of Wednesday's posts - Team skills in complexity - Listening.

Here's what I wrote in Teams365 #1140:

"Some of the most effective teams bring complimentary styles. There is great strength in diversity and in working collaboratively it is important to provide time and space for all team members to become more aware of the unique contributions they make to the team. Part of this involves helping the team develop a better understanding of their strengths, as well as their skills and their unique styles.
Our styles shape how we communicate (and appreciate communication), how we make decisions, and also how we interpret information. For example, as someone who values the big picture I will listen for that rather than details. In making decisions, I may think of the big picture or strategic issues first, then the minute details of what needs to be done. If I am a leader with that style, I may have a bias for painting the big picture and the “WHY”, AND need to recognize that many team leaders may also need communication, and support, around the more granular details.
Whether you are using an Everything DiSC or an MBTI or other style assessments, an enhanced understanding of our styles can be of benefit to know:
·         What our own preferences are
·         How our preferences and styles can become augmented when we are under stress or pressure
·         How we need to adjust our style for those on the team that have a different preference and style
This week during your team meeting, get people to notice the type of language of different team members. What does that signal about how they interpret information, like to be supported, or how they make decisions?
For more on how to bring the Everything DiSC into your workplace, please contact me."

I continue to see the value of teams who choose to invest some of their team development time by exploring DiSC. Programs can range from a five hour program, to a one-or two day session, combined with additional team building support. I offer sessions to teams in person and virtually. Drop me an email at info@potentialsrealized.com to learn more about how we can support your team.

Best wishes,
Jennifer