It is Saturday and time for another quote. Today I have chosen the theme of simplicity and am sharing a quote and question from myself:

​This past week I savored a few days of holidays and time with family away from our every day routine. While our vacation was not a restful one (we walked more than 12 miles each day), there was real value in disconnecting from technology and "being on", while simplifying. From paring down what we had with us, to simplifying our decisions, the restorative power of simplicity was profound!

​What can you and your team do this week to "pare things down", create more of a break, or be present with each other? 

​How can simplification create more focus and results?

Enjoy your weekend,
​Jennifer

Our Wednesday post brings us to the 16th in the series of the 20 different activities for remote and virtual teams. Today's posts brings us to work-life issues, a topic near and dear to many remote worker's heart. With timezones stretching across teams, and the potential for working very long hours, having dialogue around what is the balance between work and life is critical. Focusing on creating systems to track and support team members with enhanced boundaries is key. A starting point is to figure out what, and how, each person is working on the team.

Work-life issues for virtual teams can be very important, especially when your team is global and the potential to be working round the clock is real. We are increasingly hearing more about the business case for rest and renewal, and sadly over the course of the last decade since the annual vacation deprivation study began.

Here’s what I wrote back in 2006 based on the new annual Workplace Vacation Study: (link to http://biztoolkit.blogspot.ca/search?q=vacation+deprivation) :
Every year Expedia undertakes an International Vacation Deprivation (TM) Survey, looking at vacation habits of employed workers in the US, Canada, Great Britain, Germany, France and Australia.

This year's (2006) results included:

• 33% of employed adults in the US usually don't take all their vacation, with the average worker surveyed giving back an average of 4 days to their employer. This translates to 574 Million Vacation days/year worth, $75.72 Billion.
• 24% of employed adults in Canada usually don't take all their vacation, with the average employed person giving back an average of 2 vacation days to their employer. This translates to $5.1 Billion dollars per year.

The results of the whole 2006 Expedia survey can be found at www.vacationdeprivation.com.
I was interviewed last week by Kavita Gosyne of the Metro News here in Toronto. She was looking at the importance of vacation for all Canadian workers, and particularly for young professionals. As I mention in her article, vacations are important for workers of all ages. As I stated, "Not only is vacation time good for the employee, but it is good for the company. "A lot of it comes down to the difference between working and working productively. Are they(the employees) working at optimal productivity? Work-life balance impacts company productivity and profitability. It makes (good) business sense.".
What is the state of work-life balance for you? For your company? Are you fully recharged and working at optimal productivity levels? If you would like more information and resources I would invite you to visit my sister blog, Your Balanced Life!

Here’s a quick activity you can undertake as a virtual team – Time Tracker
Time needed 1 week plus 10 -15 minutes:
Materials needed: Pen and paper

Have team members track where their time is going over the course of a week. They may choose to do this by noting their day in 15-minute blocks. It might include: Start of day, projects (take a look at my own mapping from a few days).
Once the team has completed this, come back together and share your insights around key components like:
Meetings
Collaboration with others
Project Focus
Administrative tasks – report
Reading
Personal Development – Training/Coaching/Mentoring
 
It may also be interesting to share your individual and group start and end times.
What does work-life look like for each of you? What does it mean? Depending on your own team this may be a very eye-opening conversation as it may also point to some significant differences in the team – i.e. who embraces a work-to-life mindset (i.e. I work so that I can have money to meet my needs and do what I want) or a live-to-work mindset (I work because of the joy, and benefits of work).
As you have these discussions and undertake this work, what do you notice? What changes if any are needed?

Enjoy your Wednesday,
Jennifer

This weekend's Teams365 video is all about Creating Healthy Back to Work Routines. It's likely been a busy, and possibly, challenging week for many readers as many of us have returned to our regular back to work routines. Take a look at the short video which brings to light some of the tips I included a few years ago on Creating Healthy Routines in your back to work schedule. You can read the original post at Teams365 #613. The video runs for approximately two minutes.

For many, this is the first week back to work, post-summer holidays. Here's a quick checklist to take the pulse on the types of habits you want to cultivate post-summer holiday. I hope that you'll take 5-10 minutes today to think about what habits you want to create in each of these areas until the end of the year, or into 2018. As we've said for decades in the area of project management - 10 minutes of planning a day, saves 1 hour of unfocused effort. Here are 10 areas to think about in terms of your back to work routines:

1. Meetings - There's an opportunity this fall to get more strategic with our meetings. Saying yes to more productive meetings, and being selective with ones that may not be as efficient. In my new book, Effective Virtual Conversations, I cover 8 Essential Questions to Ask Before Your next Virtual Meeting. I put them into a bookmark which you can download here, just so they are always top of mind. Want a hard copy? Email me with your mailing address and I will pop one in the mail to you! (First 100 who do!)

2. Staying on top of email - While it may take a little more time that just one day, this week survey the types of emails you receive. Are you on a number of mailing lists that you can unsubscribe from? How many times are you touching email? More than once? Consider what's going to help you stay on top of email and not let it leak all over. I heard a recent statistic that most workers are receiving 150 emails a day - I have to fact check this but I'm sure if you are like me you will see the value in potentially corralling your inbox.

3. Managing Interruptions - there are dozens of interruptions we face every day - from the ding of an email to someone dropping by. What's going to help keep you focused? Some work time spent out of the office (whether at home or a library?). One study found that it takes 23 minutes to recover from an interruption.

4. One-on-ones - If you are a leader, one on one time with each staff pays off in spades. What is the routine you want to adopt in this area this fall? How will you track it? What type of one-on-ones do people prefer (face to face, phone time, length, structure?). Take a few minutes to take the pulse on your one-on-ones. You may also want to check out some of the past posts I have written on this topic as well.

5. Getting away from your desk at lunch - a recent CBC poll here in Canada found that 39% of employees surveyed eat their lunch at their desk. You can read it here. 
Stepping away from our desks at regular intervals is good to let our brains relax as well as enabling our body to move. While some might advocate that it gets you out the door earlier at night, what's going to be realistic around taking lunch away from your desk each week?

6. Clearing the clutter - Whether it's clutter on the desk, in the car, briefcase of home, clutter can weigh us down over time. What's the regular routine you want to get into this fall around clearing the clutter. Perhaps it is dedicating 10 minutes a day or several times a week to clearing clutter in a different place. Set your timer and see how much of an impact it makes!

7. Leaving time for exercise - Exercise provides us with a recharge to our body as well as our mind. What routine do you want to adopt for exercise this fall. Is there a class you have always wanted to take? Exercise is one of those things we may not do unless we schedule it in. Take a few minutes today to schedule in your exercise routine.

8. Taking time to cultivate important relationships - Another area that often gets short changed is spending time fostering peer relationships. Whether it's connecting with your boss, your peers, or other stakeholders, what needs attention this fall? Take a few minutes today to note this, and schedule it in. As Peter Drucker said, "What doesn't get scheduled, doesn't get done!"


9. Tackling that one project that's been hanging over your head, or finally saying no to it. Most of us have one project that's been on the back burner, or side burner or front burner and just isn't going anywhere. What can you do to finally finish this or say no to it. Take a few minutes this week to get this one moving to completion, or deletion.

10. Spending time on your development - In today's VUCA world (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambigous), our continued development is paramount. Business changes in an instance. What professional, and personal, development will keep you growing and learning? Take a few minutes to note and schedule what you want to do for yourself this fall.

And of course, spending time with loved ones. At the end of the day, does anyone remember how much time at work or do they remember us for the time we have spent with them.

I hope that you'll take a few minutes today, or this week, to reflect on these areas as you get back to work.

Today is back to work and school for many adults and students and September can almost be like a "new year" for many of us. As you get back to the "back to work routine" it's an opportunity to continue on with some of the positive and healthy summer routines which might have found you exercising differently, getting outside more, spending time travelling or more time with loved ones. As you think back to the summer, what were one or two things you did differently this summer that brought you more happiness and satisfaction? Are these things you usually fit in during the rest of the year?

As many of us get back to work this week, it's an opportunity to explore these areas for ourselves and with our team, in service to having the most productive time possible.

1. Is it time to revisit goals or clarify what the key goals are up to the end of the year? Is everyone clear about what these are?

2. What is resourcing like for team development? Is there some extra budget available to dedicate to some development opportunities for the team - whether it's an away day or some work around the Five Behaviors of a Cohesive team?

3. Now that many are back to work, what are you doing about regular team meetings? We know that teams which have effective "Team Practices" which support information sharing, and connection, usually have higher productivity and satisfaction. What is working well with your meetings? Is there an opportunity to reintroduce a short weekly or bi-weekly team meeting, focusing on information sharing and connection? What would the most effective meeting look like for you and your team?

4. What do you need to say no to? As you consider your goals and priorities, what needs to be put aside for now? Is this to be deferred? Delegated? Deleted?

5 What's the right balance for work and life for you right now? What routine is going to help you be most productive?

6. What's going to help you be at your best  this fall- more sleep?  More exercise? Better eating? Take note of what you want to commit to doing differently in your routine this fall. Who can support you in holding you accountable for getting to the gym, or getting out of the office earlier, or....?

Enjoy your day back to work!

Best wishes,
Jennifer

We are almost complete with all twenty-six different team activities as we arrive at W. Today I wanted to share a couple of different ways to facilitate dialogue with teams around core skills and/or their thoughts on balance. Listen in as I share with you a little more about using the metaphor of a wheel in sparking conversation with your team.

How night you use the concept of a wheel to facilitate some dialogue in your team?

Some leaders and organizations mistakenly feel that coaching may not be a good fit because it takes too much time. In fact, I like to assert in my work with leaders around coaching skills is that we need to find those micro-moments where we can stop and have a meaningful dialogue.

​Micro-moments aren't 30 or 60 minute blocks, they are those 5 to 10 minute windows we all can find in our day if we CHOOSE to. AND, those micro-moments usually create the space for many more possibilities.

​Positive psychology has now found how micro-moments of connection can have significant impact in relationships. Anecdotally I've seen how this translates into the leadership and team realm. Consider with your team - what are the micro-moments this week when you can:
​PAUSE
Renew
COACH
​Provide positive and constructive feedback
OTHER?

What do you notice when you take those micro-moments? What impact do they have?

​Thanks for joining us for another weekly team building tip and question for you and your team to be in dialogue around.

With best wishes,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized | Coaching Team Leaders
Check out our newest on-demand course: Teams365 Teamwork Foundations
Follow us on Twitter @Teams365
Join us this fall for a 15 hour Virtual Train-the-trainer in the Virtual Facilitation Skills Intensive program. We'll be covering the best practices of designing and leading virtual calls. The program will be held on Fridays from 3 - 4:30 pm ET starting September 23. Click here to learn more and reserve your spot.

​
\

In keeping aligned with this week's back to work rountines, my weekly  lLinked In post was entitled "Getting Ready for Back to Work Routines: Four Focus Areas" . You can read it here.

​This week's focus at the blog has also included these posts on gearing up for the fall back to work and school routines:

​Teams365 #980 - Six Back to Work Routine Areas You'll Want to Keep an Eye on. Read it here.

​Teams365 #981: Four Ways to Focus Your Back to Work and School Goals. Read it here.

​Teams365 #979; Gearing up for back to work. Read it here.

​Have a great weekend, getting back to the late summer routine of things!

Best
Jennifer

​Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized | Coaching Team Leaders
Check out our newest on-demand course: Teams365 Teamwork Foundations
Follow us on Twitter @Teams365
Join us this fall for a 15 hour Virtual Train-the-trainer in the Virtual Facilitation Skills Intensive program. We'll be covering the best practices of designing and leading virtual calls. The program will be held on Fridays from 3 - 4:30 pm ET starting September 23. Click here to learn more and reserve your spot

Today marks a back to regular working routine for many of us and our teams today, with Labor Day behind us, it is full throttle until the end of the year. Today may be the first time your entire team is together after a summer hiatus. As you get back into the swing of things here are six routine areas you may want to look at, or re-establish:

​1. Team meetings
​2. Lunchbreaks
​3. Start and end times of the day
​4. Workout routines
5. Regular learning opportunities
​6. Time with loved ones

​As with anything, you'll want to also keep in mind current priorities and goals you have for the rest of the year. These may influence the weighting and importance of each of the six routine areas. ​Let's look at each one of these in turn:

​1. Team meetings - If team meetings fell by the wayside over the holidays, now's the time to get them back on track! Have you as a team committed to meeting weekly, bi-weekly, monthly? Schedule these in everyone's calendar before the week gets away from you. It's likely that there will always be competing priorities and it's harder to be made to shift if it's in everyone's calendar.

​2. Lunchbreaks - Some organizations are great at having a fixed culture where lunch breaks are encouraged, whereas at others, people work through them, eating at their desks. Lunch breaks can be a great time to clear your head, connect with others and renew. Whether you spend lunch getting to the gym or pool (something I do on a regular basis), out for a lunchtime walk, or connecting with colleagues in a lunch room, consider the benefit of grabbing some mid-day brain breathing!

​3. Start and End times of the day - Also common in many organizations is the creep of start and end times. What is expected in your organization? What's going to support a healthy work-life balance, while ensuring things are getting done efficiently and effectively. Remember that hours logged in does not always mean they are productive hours. This week consider what you would like to establish around your working hours, and how productive you really are throughout the day, and the week.

​4 Exercise/Workout routines - What is your commitment to exercise and workouts? We know that the sedentary lifestyle of many office workers today has the potential for health risks. What commitment have you made to yourself, and your loved ones, around exercise? This week, what's the groove you want to get into around working out? Who and what will help you support this?

5. Regular learning opportunities - from mentoring relationships to on-demand courses, to certificate programs, and job shadowing, learning opportunities abound in many organizations. What are the skills and experiences which will help you and your team do their best work today? Over the next year? Consider what learning opportunities you have scheduled in, or want to schedule in, for the rest of the year.

​And finally, making sure you have prioritized quality time with your loved ones. It's easy for work and commuting to become the dominant times of our day. What is your commitment with your loved ones around spending quality time this fall? What support do they need from you as they get back to work and school?

​Have a great back to work day!

Best wishes,
Jennifer
Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized | Coaching Team Leaders
Check out our newest on-demand course: Teams365 Teamwork Foundations
Follow us on Twitter @Teams365
Join us this fall for a 15 hour Virtual Train-the-trainer in the Virtual Facilitation Skills Intensive program. We'll be covering the best practices of designing and leading virtual calls. The program will be held on Fridays from 3 - 4:30 pm ET starting September 23. Click here to learn more and reserve your spot.

This week's Sunday audio is dedicated to finding some time to refresh and renew. Many are celebrating a long weekend on both sides of the border in Canada and the US. July and August see me with my workplace moving the office to the beautiful northland of Mukoska. Although I'm back and forth to the city on almost a weekly basis for program deliveries, knowing that my base is up in Muskoka for these months with a natural playground at my doorstep makes a world of difference.
Listen into this week's audio on renewing and recharging - enjoy!

Have a great weekend!

With best wishes,
Jennifer

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 coaching or performance support you or your team