A week later as I reflect on the topics, activities, participation and feedback from the day, I felt compelled to share with you. My key reason is to motivate and inspire you to consider a team day at least annually. A day where you can come together offsite, without phones, with a well planned agenda of activities to really support, nurture and grow your team.

Some questions to ask yourself right now….

1. When was the last time we came together to work on ourselves and our team?
2. Do you have a team workplan that guides energy, effort and activity?
3. Could your team benefit from learning about the predictable stages of group development?
4. Are you willing to create a safe place for your team to engage, support and challenge each other?

Soooo, are you feeling inspired / motivated to facilitate a team session / day / retreat? 

If so, here are the top 5 things I suggest are ‘must haves’ for a successful time for you and your team.

1. Environment Matters. Choose a spot at the beach or in the mountains where you can experience that ‘away from it all’ type feeling. That place where you see people exhale when they open the door at the venue for the first time.

2. Activate Early.  Share what you are doing and why way in advance.  Ask the team to prepare so they know the expectations and are ready to go with pre/ during and post event activities.

3. Quality Food. Plan this well. Healthy all the way. A cook your own meal is a great way to go – from a BBQ to a roast – everyone can help out and the conversations when preparing food can be relaxing allowing for some great personal and professional sharings.

4. Plan, Plan, Plan. Ensure everything you plan relates easily to your team members and their work. Select activities, speakers and experiences that are going to add value by building confidence, knowledge and commitment.

5. Try Out. Develop some new working together better team ideas that you can then take back and put in place as the year progresses. Eg a Team Charter

Over to You

Take some time to reflect on these. Are any helpful to you right now? Do you feel inspired to get your team together soon?

The post Is Your Team Ready for the Year Ahead? appeared first on Ruralscope.

During the dinner, the leaders of the business spoke. They shared the key events and what they had been through and done to now have a successful business. It was hard to find a dry eye in the house as stories were shared, people were thanked and those that offered key support were recognised for their contribution. I found it really refreshing that both physical and emotional support were shouted out.

Imagine how we could each enhance the wellbeing of ourselves, those around us and our team or business etc if we celebrated achievements loud and proud. The end of the year is a great time to do this.

Here’s a few suggestions about how you could celebrate this year’s achievements loudly and proudly.

1. Start with recognising your achievements. You can only celebrate them if you take the time to recognise them in the first place.  This starts by turning on your identifying achievements mindset.

2. Keep an Achievements Record. This could be a list in your diary (as simple as a date entry dot point or two), a list you develop at a team meeting or a jar on the Smoko table where people write achievements and place them into the jar to be read out and celebrated later. There’s a real skill in being able to identify your own and others achievements. The more you practise it the more natural it becomes. Before long you’ll be seeing achievements everywhere.

3. Recognising your own and others achievements increases positive wellbeing. This is worth going for. A simple sentence like “Your contribution to x was amazing”, “I loved the way the team responded to your requests about x and y”, “Your actions reduced our weekly incidents total” etc bring the achievement into focus and offer hear and now recognition. People always feel good as a result.

4. Reflect on the achievements of the Month / Year / Season. I promote this with the leaders and businesses we work with. And it’s always a win. Snippets often end up on the whiteboard, in a newsletter or Xmas message to staff etc. It’s not what gets said but how people feel that gets remembered. And this is always a feel good activity.

5. Give a gift. Tap into what the receiver likes. From my experience the best gifts are a gesture of care. A small bunch of flowers, a mug and tea bag, an inspirational poster for the wall, a drink bottle, home made cookies, a hamper of goodies to eat etc.

Over to You

Take some time to think about how you will recognise your own achievements for the year and that of those around you too – one achievement at a time. Make them loud and proud!

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I’m a huge fan of the value of gratitude. This includes being kind to myself as well as offering gratitude to others. But, let’s be honest, it can be seen as an added extra and something to do when there’s time or by offering up some kind words as we have our end of year get togethers to signal the close of the year.

Imagine how we could enhance the wellbeing of ourselves and those around us if we included gratitude as an everyday leadership tool. It’s like a magic pill. It can foster positive emotions, reduce stress, improve relationships, promote resilience and give an increased sense of achievement and fulfilment.

I’m going to share a few observations about gratitude with you here now.

1. Enhance your emotional intelligence. Name and get to know gratitude. Include it as a daily practise for you and for those around you. Offer yourself and at least one other person in your network gratitude everyday.

2. Gratitude for good. Gratitude is a feel good thing. In a world where there can be a focus on what’s wrong and the negativity around this, offering gratitude will help you and those around you find the positive, improve relationships and increase resilience. Gratitude is an action.

3. Gratitude and reducing stress are linked. Speaking kindly to yourself and really recognising the value of your thoughts and actions will help you to reduce stress. Without this, we can become pretty full of negativity and this in turn brings on stress.

4. Offering gratitude comes in all shapes and sizes. Let’s keep it simple. A sentence in an email “I’m grateful for your efforts today”, a sticky note that says “love your work” left on a team member’s lunch box, a shout out at a team meeting like “thanks Jim for all your work on the new quality system this week” or a sentence for each team member in a routine email will cause people to stop and feel the gratitude you are offering.

5. Gratitude starts in your mind and takes little time. I know from experience that I have to have in my mind that I want to offer gratitude and then I’ll find the time and the reason to. Yes it’s a tool (like part of a checklist) or your leadership tool kit that you use regularly. It doesn’t take much time, it does need focus and it really can change the world.

Over to You

Take some time to think about adding gratitude to your string of leadership capabilities – one sentence at a time.

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What’s a team player?

A team player contributes to a group in order to complete tasks, coordinate projects and meet goals and deadlines. Team players are good listeners. They actively listen to their co-workers. They respect where the team is at when they join and work collaboratively with other team members. Effective team players understand that their team’s success is their own success. Great team players accept responsibility for their own work and that of the team as a whole.

How can you be an effective team player?

I think and research tells us that it’s all in the non – technical skills. Have you heard of the difference between technical and non-technical skills? Good team members are those that are technically proficient and also know how non-technical skills are required to do the job and collaborate with the team well. It’s this that can help you achieve something greater than you ever could on your own. Spend time and energy learning about and developing your non-technical skills. To get started, here are 6 qualities you can focus on to be a better team player:

1. Get to know your role (quickly). Do everything you can to find out what your job and role is. This way you’ll understand your role within the team and focus on the work that matters. We suggest you ask your team leader, talk about and write down the key parts of your role. We know you will have a job description, but I encourage you to go further. This will help you identify the boundaries of your role and get to work with confidence.

2. Bring on collaboration. Working in a team means you can’t work alone! You are expected to work with your team members right from the get go and this isn’t always easy. There will be a mix of different opinions and ideas. You’ll want to get on with your new role, but please hold up and even if you think you’ve got the answer or think you know the best way forward, please take time to listen to all ideas before putting yours forward. Listen to the difference and gather and include the thoughts of others. It will enrich your work and also ensure you are accepted into the team quickly.

3. Back yourself and be accountable. Take the pressure off. You’re not expected to know everything right from the get go. Get comfortable with making a mistake or two. Yes for real this is likely to happen. The trick is to know this and then take responsibility for any hiccups or mistakes. As soon as the hiccup / mistake occurs, take time to work with others in your team to come up with some solutions. 

4. Develop your flexibility muscle. Be open to change. Accept tasks given to you, even the ones you aren’t keen on. Being flexible means you’ll learn more and be able to help your team more. Look at every opportunity as a chance to learn and develop your skills.

5. Be positive and build your positive attitude. This can be more difficult than it sounds. Be responsible for your own energy and bring this energy into your team. This helps every day and especially when things get stressful.

6. Make a commitment to your team. The sooner you can invest in your team the better. This means making a commitment to settle in as quickly as you can. Bring your positive energy and attitude. This way you’ll contribute positively to the team morale in no time.

10 tips on how to be a better team player
I came across this great article the other day which highlights 10 ways to be a better team player. Here they are:

1. Be a good communicator
2. Be a problem solver
3. Know your role (and your limits)
4. Take initiative
5. Stick to your deadlines
6. Know your strengths
7. Support and be supported
8. Share information
9. Understand your team’s objectives
10. Be open-minded

Click on here. Take a read of the ones that spark your interest.

 Over to You

I hope you’ve gained some tips here to help you settle into your new role and team. Be proactive and positive. Take time to understand and start to action non-technical skills. They really are the glue that will hold your team together and help it to become really effective. Please take one or two or maybe even three things from this article and put them in place today. Good luck. And please feel free to reach out to me here if you think I can help in any way.

Until next time!

The post Ways to Be a Better Team Player Right from the Start appeared first on Ruralscope.

Ineffective and Effective Teams

It’s rare that teams can automatically become high performing. Teams need to understand what makes them effective. By doing this, individuals will then understand and be able to develop the knowledge and skills to be an effective team member. The following table shares what to stop doing and what to start doing to ensure you up your game and contribute to an effective team.

Over to You

I hope you’ve gained some insights about what makes an effective team. Check the Effective Teams side of the table above. Which ones resonate the most? What are you going to do about them? Remember it’s up to you to develop and implement new behaviours as a team member. So, what are you waiting for? Please take one or two or maybe even three things from the Effective Teams side and step up your behaviour today. Good luck. And please feel free to reach out to me here if you think I can help in any way.

Until next time!

The post 8 Ways to Become a Better Team Member appeared first on Ruralscope.

1. What is Tuckman’s Model of Group Stages?

Each great sport’s team needs a coach. This is someone who is able to support the players as individuals and then support them to work well as a team. This can, but usually doesn’t, happen all on its own. The coach’s role is important and is integral to the steady and sustained development of what a team achieves. And the best coaches or team leaders know that groups and teams go through predictable stages of development. I think it’s really useful for everyone in the team to understand these stages, and especially so if you lead a team . So, let’s look at the key stages now.

2. How to use Tuckman’s Stages of Group Development as a Tool

It’s great to know the predictable stages of a group’s development. And what’s even more important is how to use these stages to advantage. Here’s a suggested way to do just that.

1. Identify the stage that your team is at from the descriptions above.
2. Consider what you need to do to support individuals and your team to move on to the next stage.
3. Facilitate regular reviews of where your team is at, and then adjust your leadership behaviour and your leadership approach to support individuals and the team as whole to move through the predictable stages.

Always remember too that the stages aren’t a one way street. The team is likely to go back and forth between the states depending on things like when a person leaves or joins the team or when the team is faced with a major change. I have seen time and time again how team leaders effortlessly support their team once they know the predictable behaviours and stages a team will go through.

3. How do I lead a team through the development stages?

Let’s look at the team stage transitions one at a time. 

Forming to Storming

The key function at Forming stage is to set clear objectives for the team members and for the team. This might include a vision for the team that everyone buys into or group charter. It’s something the group members can refer to to ensure they understand how their personal goals fit with the bigger team picture. The Forming stage is all about people getting to know each other and building solid connections through interests and shared goals.

Storming to Norming

Many people share with me that they are worried by the Storming stage. I’m pretty sure this is because they associate Storming with conflict ad this isn’t the case. In saying that though, I do think Storming can make or break a team! This is the stage where people must feel safe to express themselves and their expertise in the group. It’s where systems and processes are important as regardless of the individuals personalities and relationships with each other, these systems and processes will ensure that everyone works to achieve the same outcome and will keep them focussed.

The team must feel safe in coming together and putting their ideas forward to their team leader and beyond. By doing this, they will feel valued and that their contribution counts. It’s important to keep an eye on tensions and conflict here and to support team members to “get on” by using the systems and processes in place. Be sure to take time to hear everyone’s view, especially those of the introverts or the quieter ones in the group.

Norming to Performing

Now you are here, it’s time to take your team even further. Bring them together, start doing more as a group than one on one with each individual team member. Support them to check in with the team’s vision and take a measure of how they are travelling towards this. I like using a simple self administered survey for this through Google docs or the like. I recommend doing this each 6 months or so. Keep it anonymous and I find team members are usually happy to share. There’s still plenty of room for one on one conversations with team members too here especially when roles and expectations of each role is different. The real key here is to ensure team members are taking responsibility for their actions.

Performing to Adjourning

Boost team engagement here and free up some time so that you can introduce something new to your team, now it’s working so well, or put your focus on to something else. This is also where you can identify some group development activities / training and or some personal development to support individuals. In fact, the best thing to do here is to ask the team what they need to assist them to move forward. Ensure they know what resources are available to them and if they think others are important to bring into the team.

Adjourning ( or Mourning)

Adjourning and then Mourning is when you know a group is going to change and not be the same again. Take time to identify and celebrate the teams achievements. I find thanking team members for their efforts isn’t enough, what works better is if they can truly acknowledge their positive contributions and achievements. This sets them up to work well again in the future if this eventuates and also ensures that the relationship you have with them will be secure if you enter into another team with them. I find some team members can feel really uncertain here and be worried about an uncertain future as they head off to work in another team or with another team leader. It’s important here to be truthful and to boost their confidence about how they can contribute positively to future teams.

Over to You

OK, take a deep breath. How is this all sitting? For now please remember Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing and Adjourning / Mourning. And then reread the sections about the transitions from one stage to the next. And then take time to reflect on your team contributions and achievements to date. After this, I encourage you to take one or two or maybe even three things from this article to help you work better in your team or to lead a team and put them in place today. Good luck. And please feel free to reach out to me here if you think I can help in any way.

Until next time!

The post Bringing Your Team to Life – One Stage at a Time appeared first on Ruralscope.

People are our greatest asset. So much more can be achieved when we work together than we ever could alone. Whether you work with your team face to face or via distance, across the country or around the world, taking time to come together and celebrate is a must. Sadly, this doesn’t happen often enough and team members can be left feeling disrespected and undervalued. So, here are 5 ways you can celebrate with your team and boost morale at the same time. It’s a win win for everyone!

1. Reflect on Your Team’s Successes – Recognise your team’s achievements – big and small.  Mention them in a newsletter, share about it in your end of year speech of thanks to staff or host a special morning tea and share credit and give recognition to all that have contributed to the success.
2. Send a Personal Note of Thanks – This works just fine either by snail mail or email. I have a colleague who sends an email of thanks to someone in his network every morning when he boots up his computer for the day. It works!
3. Offer an Incentive – A great motivation when the going gets tough. Incentive the team not the individual. This sees them work better together and help each other along the way resulting in a much more effective team out. An incentive could be a team lunch or night out, a half day extra off prior to the Summer break etc.    
4. Have A Shared Lunch – A shared lunch paid for by the business is always going to be a winner. If you all work in the same office, set the date and time well ahead so that everyone can be there. And shared lunches work just as well virtually – again set the date and time, arrange for Uber eats to deliver and then open the ZOOM room! A shared paddock or tractor cab lunch works too!
5. Help People to Accept Praise – Have you ever seen someone offered thanks or given praise only to hear them respond immediately with “no thanks needed” or “it was nothing”? It’s important to help people understand the value they bring to the team / project etc. Ultimately this goes a long way to building morale and resilience, and overtime, reducing burnout.

I’d love you to plan one of these over the next few weeks and offer your team a morale boost at the same time. Plan it well based on the needs and interests of your team. Let me know how it goes for you and if you choose to use a different way to these 5, I’d be grateful if you could let me know.

Please reach out here.

I look forward to hearing from you soon.

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