Teams365 Blog - Potentials Realized

#TEAMS365 #1680: Wrapping up the Review of A-Z on Leadership and Teamwork

8/7/2018

Over the past month I’ve been taking a look back at some of the A-Z of Leadership and Teamwork series I’ve done here at the Teams365 blog. Today we are at our last 3 letter – X, Y and Z. Let’s take a look back:

X stands for X-cel, read more here.

Six Leadership Questions around X: Read here.

As we look to Y, what do you want to say yes to?

Y – Six Leadership Questions a Day: Read here.

Leadership Myth - You Always have to say Yes! - Read here.

Finally, as we get to z:

Z is for Zoom: Read here.

Leadership Myth – What’s the Value of Zooming in: Read more here.

Tomorrow I’ll be shifting the focus to renewal and getting ready for the post-Labor Day back to work. Enjoy!

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

#TEAMS365 #1676: # FlashbackFriday - #1611: Focus and Renewal

8/3/2018

It’s time to take a look back at a past post, and in the spirit of summer I am reaching back to a post I wrote a few months ago – Teams365 #1611:
What have you done, or have planned, around renewal recently? We know that for professionals, leaders and teams to keep moving they need periods of rest.
Looking to Teams365 #1611 and renewal as it relates to working in time of complexity:

“This month we’ve been looking at teamwork and complexity and what happens during times of stress, ongoing change and complexity. The toll on time in this context is multi-fold. Things can feel more stressful, which impacts our ability to focus and get things done, and at the same time, our older systems for time management may no longer work.
Today’s post gets you as a team to consider what is going to help you FOCUS, as well as RENEW. Yesterday’s Teams365 post – Teams365 #1610 – explored different tools for prioritization. Today’s post gets you to think about the systems and processes that help you keep moving. This might include things like:

Creating focused sprint times which are dedicated to focusing on one task only. In “Sprint” fashion, time windows may be used to pick up the pace for intensive bursts. I’ve been experimenting with this in my work with program designers and leaders in the last couple of years and it’s had a really positive impact for participants in terms of generating immediate impact, content and also moving through some of the typical roadblocks which can be experienced.
Setting times of the day for meetings, communication and response. While this may not be feasible for all teams, email and correspondence can leak everywhere. When do you as a team want to dedicate time to meet and communicate with your team members, leaving you periods to also get the work done?
Consider what renewal looks like and means for each team member. Even high performing teams need break and rest cycles for renewal. When are you building these into your work. How are you focusing on giving some periods throughout the year where team members aren’t running at full speed but have pauses of slower pace and/or creative inspiration. For some team members renewal may mean working a condensed work week, and for others, it may mean working remote several times a month.

What can you do as a team to support focus and renewal during times of complexity?”

If you haven’t got some white space in your calendar this month for some down time, what do you want to do to create some?

Enjoy your weekend,
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

#TEAMS365 #1674 – Welcome to August!

8/1/2018

Welcome to August! We’ll be wrapping up the end of the A-Z of review of past teamwork posts, and also starting our focus on renewing in August and planning for the back to work of September.

As we continue the A-Z of teamwork, we are now at U, V and W

U is for unique, . Check out this past leadership post on some of the U’s which make teams and leadership excel here.

For those leading virtual and remote teams check out this post.

V stands for values and vision, two core areas for teams and leaders of all kinds to explore. Check out these six leadership questions related to V here.

Check out a team development activity related to V and vision here.

W stands for Wow, Wisdom and Wonder. Check out this past post.

Check out six leadership questions around W here.

I’ll be doing one more look back at past a-z posts early next week, and then we’ll be turning our attention towards some new posts on renewal, and gearing up for fall.

Has your summer been whizzing by as quickly as mine has?

For those who follow me and are coaches, you may be aware that today is the release of my newest publication – the Coaching Business Builder Planner and Workbook. It’s an analog (i.e. paper based) workbook and planner. If you are looking for a planner for your business tasks this may be just what you are looking for in terms of monthly, quarterly and annual planning. It’s a great supplement to daily planners. Pick up your own copy at Amazon.

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

#TEAMS365 #1671 - Videos in Review

7/29/2018

This month I’ve been doing a review of some of the most popular posts here at the Teams365 blog. For many Sunday’s this year I’ve shared a new video which you are invited to also pass on to your team.

Here are a few you may want to check out:

Project Check Points – Teams365 #553

Delegation – Teams365 #335

Summer Planning and Quarterly Reflection – Teams365 #1629

Teamwork in Complexity – Teams365 #1611

These are several of the topics we are exploring here at the Teams365 blog. Please feel free to share these with your colleagues and your team.

Enjoy and have a great weekend,
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

#TEAMS365 #1639 -Wednesday June 27: Bridging to our July focus on Teamwork and Team Development

6/27/2018

As we shift into summer, my focus for the next month is turning towards teamwork, and team development. Over the next month in our mid-week posts (Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday) I’ll be covering different activities, questions and approaches to support you and your team in their development, whether it’s remote or in-person.

As I have written in multiple Teams365 posts over the years, teams which excel have both strong relationships and are clear on what their results are. In many team interventions there may be a bias towards one or the other – more focus on the relationship angle or the results angle. Think of your traditional team building session where the focus is primarily on having fun, blowing off steam, and also getting to know each other. In contrast, think of a strategic planning session which is all about the results, but not focused at all on the relationship angle of things.

Teams which excel need both a focus on relationships and results on a regular basis.

In addition to a focus on relationships and results, teams can benefit from focusing on additional factors. Recent research has focused on the importance of things such as psychological safety and other ideas.

Another part of the equation is the variety of teamwork skills which help teams excel. Stay tuned for next month’s focus on Teamwork and Team Development, along with a little bit around renewal!

Looking forward to the conversation,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized | Coaching Team Leaders
Looking to spark more conversation with your team? Consider the Conversation Sparker(TM) Cards
Set up a conversation about how we can support you and your team best
(416)996-8326

#Teams365 #1636: Video – Teamwork in Complexity – Focus and Renewal

6/24/2018

This week’s Teams365 Video brings to live a recent post I did on teamwork in complexity. Teams today are buffeted constantly by the winds of change. This can provoke a range of emotions – from exhilaration to fear and paralysis. Key to thriving in this context is focus and renewal. Today’s post brings to life Teams365 #1161 – Teamwork in Complexity – Focus and Renewal.

Consider which of these items will support your team. Click here to view it on YouTube.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized | Coaching Team Leaders
Looking to spark more conversation with your team? Consider the Conversation Sparker(TM) Cards
Set up a conversation about how we can support you and your team best
(416)996-8326

#Teams365 #1610: Teamwork Skills in Complexity - prioritization

5/29/2018

Prioritization is a skill set we draw upon regularly in times of complexity. Prioritization allows all team members to regularly scan and manage their workload.

Key to prioritization is:

Having the tools to prioritize
Feeling empowered to make decisions and take responsibility for managing workload
Understanding what is most important – to the different players of the team, as well as the different time frames you are working on (short term, medium term)

In past Teams365 posts I’ve explored a range of prioritization skills including the Urgent/Important Matrix (we often attribute to Covey), as well as a Decision Matrix where we weight what’s important in making our decisions

For more on the topic of prioritization, check out these additional resources:
This excellent article from MindTools.com - which has an incredible amount of other resources team members and leaders will also want to check out.

LiquidPlanner.com's article on How to Prioritize Work When Everything Is #1 - Read it here.

For those that are looking at prioritization through the lens of product design, you'll want to take a look at this excellent article 20 Product Prioritization Techniques.

Enjoy!
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized | Coaching Team Leaders
Team and Leadership Development | Coaching | Retreats.
Follow us on Twitter @Teams365
Phone: (416)996-8326

You can grab a copy of my new book, Effective Virtual Conversations, at Amazon. You can also purchase a copy direct from our site, signed by me!

Looking to schedule some team development this fall? Contact me to discuss whether the Everything DiSC or the Five Behaviors of a Cohesive Team may be a great starting point.

#TEams365 #1597: Teamwork Skills in Complex TImes: Experimentation

5/16/2018

This month we are exploring the skills required in teamwork, including listening and curiosity. Today I wanted to take a dive into a third skill area, that being the area of experimentation.

Experimentation is key for business leaders and teams today. Many times, the context is changing so quickly that we don’t have time to complete an entire roll-out before having to make a final decision. That can lead to a mindset of experimentation, where it is encouraged to try things out, see what works and what doesn’t.

In supporting experimentation in our team we want to:

Encourage and reward trial and error
Create safety around not getting “things right”
Provide team members with time and resources to experiment, beyond their every day team responsibilities
Facilitate an evaluation of projects or “Experiments” that are completed or are even at the midpoint

Questions we may ask at project reviews include:

What’s working?
What’s not?
What are the things that need to be abandoned or tweaked?
What additional resources do we need?
What unknown obstacles have become visible?
What is the big learning we are taking?
What is the one thing/ or the many things we are going to do differently going forward?
Who else can we learn from (including our own past projects?

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

#Teams365 1594: Video: Project Check Points

5/14/2018

Sunday was so busy with Mother's Day, that I didn't get a chance to post this week's Teams365 video. Here it is to make this week complete.

This week's topic is project check points. With project based work being more part of everyone's work load, it can be useful to think about how you want to maximize your project check points.

Check out this week's Teams365 video (approximately 2 minutes):

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

#Teams365 #1590: Team Skills in Complex Times: Listening

5/9/2018

Some of our related blog posts this month will take a deeper dive into each of these, starting with Listening.

Communication is a two-way street, and many professionals forget that communication often gets lost, or misunderstood as it is received. Whether it’s due to distractions (for example, a noisy environment or something else on your mind) or whether it’s due to

A couple of key notes when you are cultivating listening with your team:
What are people listening for? Are they listening for what the person really is saying or are they thinking about how they are going to respond?
Are they just noticing the words or are they also noticing body language? We know from research that body language and how things are being said contribute to a significant part of the message. Getting team members to notice what body language says, and does not say, in the context of communication can be extremely powerful.

While this may be common-sense for some on the team, many team members may not have thought through the impact of:

Tapping your foot while listening to someone else
Crossing your arms
Looking up or away from a speaker who is talking to you
Looking over your glasses as someone speaks to you.

How clear is the request being made in communication. Brevity and consistency is important in today’s world. So is “the call to action”. What are you asking people to do. Take action? Read something? Make a decision? Do something differently? Reply back to you. These are all different requests and if a request is not being made explicitly, it may be difficult to interpret what is being asked for.

In my next couple of Tuesday and Wednesday posts I’ll be exploring some of these other skills – Experimentation, Open-mindedness, Problem Solving, prioritization.

What’s the key learning/insight you want to take from today’s blog post?

Enjoy your Wednesday,
Jennifer