by Judy Rathwell | Jun 29, 2023 | Adaptability, Continuous Learning, Engagement, Flexible Schedule, Working from Home
7 ideas for continuous virtual team building
We all have become more familiar with the virtual world over the years, whether we have wanted to or not. Team building can be difficult when you are not face to face so here are seven ideas to promote team building through a screen.
-
- Leverage technology
If your company has embraced remote work, your teams likely have already been videoconferencing. This is essential for enabling colleagues to see each other face to face.Videoconferencing certainly isn’t the only technology you can harness to reduce the perception of distance between people. Also consider using:
- Technology platforms (e.g. Slack, Microsoft Teams) through which people can post messages, chat and share pictures, for example
- Social media (e.g., private Facebook chat groups or similar)
- IM
These additional options promote more frequent, direct communication between individuals, and can help to recreate some of the spontaneous or more relaxed conversations that people would have in the office.
- Schedule regular virtual meetings
It’s one thing to videoconference at all, and it’s another thing to commit to doing it regularly. If you want your teams to feel a real sense of camaraderie and familiarity, scheduling meetings at least once per week is optimal. This includes both:
- Team meetings
- One-on-one meetings with direct reports
Allow time in each meeting for small talk and personal discussion, during which employees can talk about what’s going on with them either at work – including how they may need support – or outside work.
- Take personal quizzes and share the results
An essential component of teamwork training is understanding where other people are coming from, and how that impacts their working and communication styles.
Why not have your team take a personality quiz, such as the popular DISC assessment, and share their results with each other over a video call? This has the benefit of:
- Increasing self-awareness
- Educating colleagues about each other
- Enhancing empathy and emotional intelligence (EQ)
- Decreasing the potential for conflict
- Host virtual events
Who says you can’t throw events in a virtual environment? If you videoconference for work, you can also videoconference to socialize and strengthen relationships among colleagues.
Invite your team to gather virtually for lunch or happy hour – whatever is appropriate for their time zone.
During these events, you could ask employees to share a few photos of their favorite memories or major life events over the past year to discuss with the group. Or, you can play some fun games (more details coming up next). Have a bigger budget to play with? Try coffee or chocolate tasting sessions.
- Play games
The possibilities here are endless, but the goal is the same: To have fun and share a laugh and friendly competition with colleagues while learning about each other.
Game ideas:
- Online bingo
- Online escape rooms
- Getting to know each other games, for example:
- “This or That,” during which employees answer a series of questions about their personal preferences and can talk a bit more about themselves, such as:
- Beach or lake?
- Coffee or tea?
- Movie/TV shows or books?
- Kahoot, which is an app in which game administrators can pick a few categories (ex., favorite vacation destination or pets’ names), employees create their own questions and answers, and their colleagues have to guess the correct answers
- Establish virtual mentor-mentee pairings or virtual work buddies
Mentorship programs can exist in virtual spaces, too. Similarly to how entire teams and managers and direct reports meet regularly, mentors and mentees should also videoconference on a regular basis to check in and give mentees an opportunity to ask questions or obtain coaching.
If a remote employee is new to the organization or has recently changed roles or teams, it can also be helpful for their manager to assign them to a workplace buddy. This person can help to facilitate their transition, answer questions and just serve as a familiar face.
- Move employee resource, or affinity, groups online
Employee resource groups and employee affinity groups can be a great opportunity for remote employees to get involved with an organization and establish connections with people who share their life circumstances, interests or hobbies.
For example, employees who are former veterans or who are interested in supporting veterans in the workplace could videoconference regularly to discuss those issues and share ideas.
Or, employees who enjoy reading or movies could form virtual book and movie clubs. Similarly, employees who are interested in fitness and personal wellbeing could create virtual groups focused on those topics – and even create virtual challenges.
“Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence win championships.”
– Michael Jordan
Did you know this about disc?
DiSC is an assessment that aids with effective communication
by Judy Rathwell | Jun 27, 2023 | Decision-making, Stress Management, Trust
5 Benefits of doing nOthing
In the spirit of walking our talk we are taking a 5 day company holiday! July 3 -7
In 1370 AD, the first public clock tower was erected in Cologne, Germany, and from that day forward, the clock has been running our lives.
And I know that when I read stats like these, they make me crazy:
- According to Arwen Curry, before Edison invented the light bulb, the average person slept eleven hours a night.
- A Senate subcommittee in 1967 was told that by 1985, the average American would work only twenty-two hours a week for twenty-seven weeks a year. (Technology and Social Trends, Kerby Anderson)
- By 2007, the average American worked nearly four more weeks per year than in 1979. (“Vast Majority of Wage Earners are Working Harder,” Lawrence Mishel)
There’s no a complete solution to our overly time-conscious lives, but scheduling a day to DO NOTHING productive is a great starting point.
Yes, you read that right. Schedule a day to DO NOTHING productive. No work. No grocery shopping. No checking “have-to’s” off your list.
Many societies throughout history have baked this practice into a weekly rhythm called the Sabbath. Many of you remember a time when stores were closed on Sundays.
After all, DOING NOTHING has several benefits:
-
- Relaxation: Doing nothing allows you to recharge your batteries.
- Creativity: Doing nothing allows your mind to wander and can lead to increased problem-solving skills.
- Increased productivity: Doing nothing can increase your productivity in the long run. It allows you to return to tasks with renewed energy and focus.
- Improved decision-making: Doing nothing allows you to reflect on your choices and consider different options.
- Improved relationships: Doing nothing can also allow you to connect with others and strengthen your connections, which research shows is THE key to long-term success.
Source: Brian Rutherford, leadercast
“Your mind will answer most questions if you learn to relax and wait for the answer”.
– William S. Burroughs
Did you know this about disc?
DiSC is an assessment that aids with effective communication
by Judy Rathwell | Jan 28, 2022 | Continuous Learning, Decision-making, Executive Leadership, Respectful Workplace
What if you’re unintentionally hurting the people you lead?
Here are some ways that may be harmful, even if they seem helpful:
1. Not giving employees a chance to show what they’re capable of. Allow people to show you why they were hired and how much they can do. One of your most important abilities as a leader is to let people shine.
2. Telling people what to do instead of letting them show you what they can do. Telling people what to do isn’t leadership, it’s direction. Leadership means creating a space for others to accomplish their best.
3. Constantly speaking and not allowing others to express their opinion. Listening only to your own voice harms your credibility and disempowers your leadership. Power doesn’t come to those who speak the most but to those who listen best.
4. Providing solutions to problems other people should be solving. You should not be the fixer of all problems.. Allow your people to develop solutions—their abilities will grow and they’ll come up with things you might not have thought of.
5. Complicating simple business processes. Keep things as simple and uncomplicated as possible. People have enough to do without the bother of unnecessary bureaucracy and complicated processes.
6. Saying things like “I know best.” Even if you know you’re right, it’s far more effective to guide people into the answer through dialogue and communication. People want to know they’re contributing, not just following orders.
7. Giving rewards where there hasn’t been effort. In many companies where I coach, it’s common practice to give bonuses regardless of the effort people put in. This approach only creates a culture of mediocrity.
8. Playing favorites with your team. For any leader, fairness builds trust and trust is everything. Treat everyone with the same respect and be equitable in providing opportunities.
9. Saying you’re going to do something but you don’t. Any time you don’t keep your word, your leadership loses respect and credibility.
10. Shaming, criticizing or blaming others publicly in meetings. As the saying goes, appreciate in public and criticize in private.
Lead from within: Most leaders have good intentions, but those intentions sometimes lead to bad results. Try to keep your eye on the consequences of everything you do as a leader and ask yourself whether it’s helping or hurting.
Source: Lolly Daskal
by Judy Rathwell | Jan 8, 2022 | Active Listening, Executive Leadership, Working from Home
With the intensity of working online, it is particularly important to find ways of consciously managing your attention. Here are some things to try (whether on Zoom or in person) so that you stay energized as well as engage your co-workers.
1. Before a meeting
Take a few moments to become present. Find a quiet space where you can close your eyes and notice what you’re feeling. Put away your phone (unless you need it to be logged onto a meeting or for a call.) Keep it out of sight so that you’re less likely to swivel your attention in its direction. The people you’re with will feel more valued if they’re not competing for your attention.
2. During a meeting
Notice yourself breathing in and out. Maintain eye contact when another person is speaking. If you’re not able to give other people your full attention, say so. It is better to say, “I know you need to talk with me and I’m interested, but I want to give you my undivided attention” than to be in a semi-distracted state. Take care of what you need to and then return to
the conversation.
3. After a meeting
Carve out whatever space you can between meetings rather than rushing from one to the next. Even a short break of a few minutes helps to clear your mind and reduce “attention residue” (continuing to think about one issue when you need to pivot to the next). If it’s possible to stand outside or open a window, even for a few seconds, the fresh air will help to keep your attention focused in the here-and-now.
At the end of a meeting, jot down any actions or decisions that were taken so that these don’t remain as ‘open loops’ in your mind. Close your ‘loops’ from one meeting before you head to or log into the next.
In closing
Our presence is what creates the most impact when someone walks into the room, whether in person or on Zoom. Great leaders have it and you can too. Presence is available to us each moment. Cultivating presence will greatly enhance the quality of your leadership and life.
Source: Allan Watkinson, Rohit Kar and Jennifer Robinson via Gallup
by Judy Rathwell | Oct 19, 2021 | Continuous Learning, Performance Development, Trust
Gene Kranz, NASA Flight Director for the ill-fated Apollo 13 mission, famously said, “Failure is not an option!” And indeed, in that case, with the lives of three astronauts on the line, he was right. But for the rest of us, failure is not only an option; it is inevitable if we are pushing the boundaries of our performance and driving hard for results.
The Difference Between Average and Achieving
In life, the question is not if you will have problems, but how you will deal with your problems. If the possibility of failure were erased, what would you attempt to achieve? When you consider the people on your team, is the fear of failure or a fear of your response to failure holding them back?
Which Way are You Failing?
Obstacles and challenges are a part of high-performance leadership. They are going to happen, and you will have times when you won’t get it right. The question you need to consider is, are you failing forward or backward? When the people on your team have setbacks, which way do they lean?
When someone fails backward, they will blame others or portray themselves as the victim. When someone fails forward, they will take responsibility for what happened and look for ways to ensure it doesn’t happen again. When my kids were teenagers, a motto we lived by was, “make all new mistakes today.” People who fail forward learn from each mistake, so it doesn’t happen again.
I failed, but I Am Not a Failure
Another characteristic of someone who fails backward is the relationship they have with the failed effort. Instead of viewing the setback as an event, they consider it as defining who they are. Failure is an event; it does not define who you are. People who fail forward view failure as feedback. The failure does not define them; they just learned something that doesn’t work. It was reported that when Thomas Edison was asked how he persisted through so many failures of the light bulb that he said, “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” People who fail forward persist.
What are You Communicating to Your Team?
How you view your failures, mistakes, and setbacks communicates a lot to those around you. If you want people (at work or home) to grow and develop and become the best they can be, they must have the freedom to fail. Then they must take the learning from those setbacks and put them to work as feedback on how to do it better next time. Thomas Watson, the founder of IBM, once called an executive leader to his office after the failure of a new product that had cost the company millions. The executive was sure he was to be fired and had prepared himself for that certainty. When the executive arrived in Mr. Watson’s office, he commented, ” I guess you are going to fire me.” Watson’s response is priceless and a great reminder for us all. Mr. Watson responded, “Fire you!! I just spent millions educating you, now don’t let it happen again!”
All failure is feedback and education about what does not work. Encourage those you serve to stretch and try new things, and when they come up short, encourage them to fail forward, take the learning and try again. Don’t waste the investment you are making in their personal development.
Source: Perry Holley via John Maxwell’s blog
