David Dye's Blog, page 25

How to Encourage More Courage on Your Team (Team-Building Activity)

Remembering micro-moments of courage makes it easier to do the right thing next time.

If you want your team to feel more courageous, remind them of times they’ve been courageous before. This team-building activity gives your team a chance to reflect on their micro-moments of courage. And, to share these moments with one another as they build trust and connection.

This conversation is incredibly powerful for two reasons. First, we know from Dr. Amy Edmondson’s research on psychological safety, that how we think about the past matters. People are more likely to hold onto a negative experience with speaking up or taking a risk, than a positive one. This activity reminds your team of the times they WERE BRAVE and how it made them feel. And second, by sharing strategic stories, your team will build trust and connection.

A Powerful (and Easy Team Building Activity to Encourage Courage)

If you’ve read our book, Courageous Cultures, you know it comes with a downloadable Executive Strategy Guide.

You can download the FREE Executive Strategy Guide, which includes all the Courageous Cultures “First Tracks” activities here. 

A Step By Step Guide To Facilitate The Courage Mapping Activity and Discussion

This team-building activity is an adaptation of the Courage Map activity associated with the first step of building a Courageous Culture: Navigating the Narrative.

Objectives for the Courage Mapping Team-Building ActivityEncourage individual reflection on personal acts of courage.Foster open communication and mutual respect within the team.Identify and reinforce shared values and lessons that contribute to a Courageous Culture.Materials NeededWhiteboard or large paper for collective notes.Markers or pens.Printed worksheets for Courage Mapping (found in the Executive Strategy Guide).Part 1: Individual Courage Mapping

This team-building activity starts with self-reflection.

Duration: 30 minutes

Instruction: Ask each team member to create a timeline of their career. Have them highlight at least three moments where they acted courageously. Then, invite them to reflect on the following questions:

What motivated me to be courageous in this circumstance?What did I expect to happen?And, what happened as a result?How do I feel about this incident?What values did it reveal as important to me?As a leader today, where would it be helpful to show up more like this or with these values?Part 2: Group Reflection and Sharing

The real magic of the team-building activity is in the sharing. Give your team a chance to share their moments of courage. Cull out common experiences. Look for themes.

Duration: About an hour (depending on the size of your team)

Setting the Stage: Create a safe and respectful environment for sharing personal stories.Sharing: Each member shares one significant act of courage from their timeline.Discussion: Facilitate a group discussion on each story, focusing on motivations, outcomes, and values (e.g. what… do you notice about yourself? Makes you proud? Did you learn?)Part 3: Identifying Collective Themes

You can collect themes as you go along. Another best practice, summarize the themes of this team-building activity at the end.

Duration: 30 minutes

Collaborative Analysis: Guide the team in identifying common themes and values emerging from the shared stories.Whiteboard Summary: Use the whiteboard to note down these themes and values.Facilitator TipsEncourage honesty and openness but also respect boundaries.Ensure every team member has an equal opportunity to share and contribute.Be attentive and responsive to the emotional dynamics in the room.Use active listening and summarizing skills to clarify and validate shared experiences.Be prepared to handle sensitive topics with care and confidentiality.More Courageous Cultures Team-Building Activities and Tools

In the following article we share links to more Courageous Cultures activities and tools and a link to watch our “How to Read Courageous Cultures With Your Team” recorded online event:

Leadership Book Club: How to Read Courageous Cultures With Your Team

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Navigating Workplace Conflict: A Deep Dive with Ralph Kilmann

When Navigating Workplace Conflict, Start with the System

“At least 80% of the behavior in organizations is driven by the systems, not personal preferences. So if you eventually switch out the people and bring in new people into the same situations, within 3 months they’re having the same conflicts and the same conversations.”
– Ralph Kilmann

We’re kicking off the new year with a very special series on navigating workplace conflict and collaboration with the world-renowned researcher on conflict Ralph Kilmann. Ralph is co-founder of the TKI Assessment and author of several game-changing books, including Mastering the Thomas Kilmann Conflict Instrument and Creating a Quantum Organization.

A Deep Dive into Navigating Workplace Conflict and Change

The Genesis of Conflict Expertise (00:03)

Introduction to Ralph Kilmann, renowned for his five-decade-long work in understanding and navigating workplace conflict. His journey, influenced by his parents’ escape from Nazi Germany, taught him the value of respecting differences, laying the groundwork for his future contributions.

Kilmann’s Academic Path to Conflict Resolution (00:49)

Exploration of Kilmann’s academic journey at Carnegie Mellon and UCLA, where he met Ken Thomas. This partnership led to the creation of the TKI assessment, a revolutionary tool for measuring people’s behavior in conflict situations, beyond their personal biases.

Evolution of the TKI Assessment (02:02)

Insight into how the TKI assessment evolved to address social desirability in responses, paving a new path in understanding conflict. This instrument challenged existing notions by providing a more accurate reflection of how individuals engage in conflict.

Navigating Workplace Conflict in a Changing World (03:51)

Kilmann discusses the rising relevance of conflict management against the backdrop of global changes like diversity, deregulation, and political polarization. This changing landscape has highlighted the importance of effectively navigating conflict.

The Interplay of Conflict and Organizational Change (05:03)

“Conflict and change comprise two sides of the same coin. Change creates conflict and resolving conflict creates change” -Ralph Kilmann,

Kilmann emphasizes that at least 80% of organizational behavior is system-driven, not based on personal preferences. This underscores the critical role of systems in navigating workplace conflict. He advocates for changing organizational conditions to enable healthy conflict resolution.

Leadership’s Role in Conflict Management (07:22)

Discussion on how leaders can facilitate conflict resolution by understanding that conflict and change are inseparable. Kilmann stresses the need for leaders to focus on organizational systems to effectively navigate workplace conflict.

Conflict as an Inevitable Aspect of Leadership (10:24)

Kilmann’s perspective on conflict as an inevitable, natural process. He argues that effective leadership involves embracing and navigating workplace conflict constructively to foster organizational and personal growth.

Inner Conflicts: A Mirror to External Conflicts (11:55)

Ralph Kilmann explores how internal conflicts, like the struggle between ego and soul, influence external conflict resolution. Understanding and resolving these inner conflicts is key to effectively navigating workplace conflict.

A Deeper Dive into TKI’s Conflict Model (18:52)

An elaborate explanation of the TKI model illustrates how different conflict-handling modes like competing, accommodating, and collaborating are essential tools in navigating workplace conflict.

Cultural and Systemic Influences on Conflict Handling (25:49)

Kilmann highlights the impact of organizational culture and hierarchical structures on conflict resolution. He suggests that understanding these systemic factors is crucial in navigating workplace conflict and unlocking the full potential of teams and individuals.

Grateful for Ralph Kilmann’s Endorsement of Our New Book on Navigating Workplace Conflict

“Hurt and Dye’s new book beautifully provides what is missing in virtually all books on conflict and conflict management: They provide a plethora of very specific examples of how choosing and then using particular words and phrases can make a huge difference in being able to resolve any conflict situation with others at work—by providing readers with the most effective verbal and nonverbal tools for keeping their challenging conversations going and thus creating an engaging and sustained setting in which all persons are more likely to ask the key questions, actively listen to one another’s different perspectives, and then propose creative solutions so everyone can get their most important needs met in the conflict situation.”

Ralph H. Kilmann, Ph.D., author of the 2023 book: Mastering the Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument (TKI), and co-author of the TKI assessment tool

Related Articles:

Workplace Conflict: Why it’s So Tricky Now and What To Do About It

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Assumption Busters: 7 Questions to Propel Your Team’s Strategic Thinking

How to help your team challenge assumptions for better creativity and problem-solving

In our Courageous Cultures research, 67% said their manager operates around the notion of “this is the way we’ve always done it.”  That’s not just a lack of imagination. It’s hard to solve a problem differently when you’re holding on to outdated assumptions. If you want your team to get better at strategic thinking, start by helping them challenge assumptions.

Here are seven of our favorite questions to help your team reframe problems and consider alternative perspectives

7 Questions For More Strategic Thinking1. How would our competitors approach this problem?

This assumption buster nudges your team to consider overlooked opportunities. Understanding a competitor’s angle can be incredibly insightful, sparking creativity and perhaps, a bit of that winning spirit.

This is one of our favorite questions to ignite strategic thinking because it’s not only an “I wonder” question. Because guess what? Your competitors probably ARE faced with a similar problem. And these days, it’s not that hard to poke around and see what they’re doing.

This question also promotes strategic thinking, as you consider why your competitors might approach problems differently.

In Courageous Cultures terminology, this is a great question to ask as part of the Y- in Own the U.G.L.Y. Where are we missing the Yes?

2. How would we handle this issue if our budget was cut in half?

This provocative question is a call for efficiency and prioritization. This question encourages your team to think lean and imagine scrappy, cost-effective solutions. Sometimes, a little budgetary pressure can hatch the most brilliant ideas.

3. If we had unlimited resources, how would we solve this problem?

This strategic thinking question is the flip side of the one above. When constraints are lifted, the sky’s the limit for creativity. It allows the team to think without barriers and then work backward, scaling grand visions to match our resource constraints.

4.  What would happen if we did the opposite of our initial plan?”

This question invites the team to view the problem from an entirely different angle, potentially revealing unexpected solutions. It’s about challenging the norm and the beauty of 180-degree thinking.

Encourage your team to think past the sunk costs and consider a do-over. This kind of strategic thinking is remarkably liberating. A related question is “What if we DIDN’T do it this way?

5. What would future generations criticize about our current approach?

This assumption buster instills a sense of legacy and responsibility. It encourages your team to think beyond the immediate and into the long-term impact of their decisions. It’s about making decisions that our successors will thank us for.

This is a great way to expand your team’s thinking to more sustainable, inclusive solutions.

6. If we could only choose one aspect of our project to succeed, what should it be and why?”

This is a great way to get your team thinking about the MITs (most important things). Identifying the core element that defines the success of the entire project can help the team focus on what truly matters. It’s like finding the keystone in an arch; without it, everything else crumbles.

A related question, “Which elements of this project should we say “no” to? Note: We have a whole chapter in our upcoming book, Powerful Phrases for Dealing With Workplace Conflict about how to say no, for a more strategic yes.

7. What would we do differently if we were to start over with the knowledge we have now?

This is a look down the mountain question. Help your team reflect on the journey thus far. This strategic thinking question is a recognition that wisdom today is the result of yesterday’s lessons.

When you’re working hard and moving fast, it’s not always easy to take a step back and challenge assumptions. When you’re feeling stuck in a rut, or results are suffering, invite your team to show up more curious and with these strategic questions.

What would you add as #8? What’s your favorite question to foster strategic thinking?

See Also: Year in Review: 7 Questions to Help Your Team Reflect on Success and Key Learnings

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Navigating Change: How the Holidays Can Help You Be a Better Leader

The holiday season gives you a human-centered leadership map for navigating change

Is your holiday season a time of celebration? Of bustling end-of-year stress to meet business goals? A time of nostalgia and reflecting on what you appreciate most? Of remembering the traditions, stories, and people you have come before you? A time to connect with friends and family? Or, as it is for some, perhaps a time of feeling low and lost? The holidays are all these and more—and within these varied experiences, the holidays are also a guide to navigating change.

7 Lessons from the Holidays to Help with Navigating Change1. Harness the Power of Tradition

Lighting candles, sharing meals, giving gifts, hanging stockings, spinning dreidels, fireworks, lanterns, prayers, markets, pageants, poppers, deep cleaning, ritual bathing, putting out shoes, and prayer. These are just a few ways people use rituals and traditions during the holidays.

Tradition and ritual play a powerful role in human experience. These moments call us back to our values and what matters most. When you’re navigating change, traditions can help your team maintain their connection with one another and their values.

These don’t have to be big or expensive. My (David’s) team would celebrate the start of a new year with a small gift of a nice pen that was a symbol of what we would create together. People would cherish those pens, not for the resale value, but for what they represented.

When I (Karin) was at Verizon, I would bring my team to my home for a fancy dinner that I cooked and then sometimes we would do something fun after (like go to a show). A few times I enough leadership books for everyone, wrapped them, and then each person could pick a new one or “steal” one from someone else and they explained why that book was interesting to them. Then people swapped them around throughout the year and we chatted about them in our meetings. More than a decade later people still talk about those times at my home.

What traditions can you establish with your team to build connection and reinforce what matters most?

2. Evolve Your Traditions

As important and meaningful as traditions can be, you can also get stuck and stressed out trying to maintain a practice that no longer makes sense. (There’s no point serving a traditional holiday roast to a family of vegetarians and pescatarians.)

An important part of navigating change is periodically looking at your routine practices and asking if they still serve their purpose.

(Our Own the U.G.L.Y. questions are a great way to engage your team in this conversation and learn what you can set aside as you move into the future.)

3. Welcome Everyone’s Ideas

Holidays are special (and sometimes stressful) because everyone has different ways to celebrate. When you’re a team leader, listening to everyone’s ideas makes your team stronger. Just as holidays worldwide celebrate a tapestry of traditions, diverse perspectives, experiences, and voices make your team more resilient as you navigate change.

Embrace the varied cultural practices that enrich the season; similarly, leverage the diverse viewpoints within your organization. By fostering open dialogue and valuing different perspectives, you’re not just encouraging innovation, but you’re also actively adapting to change.

4. Tap into the Power of Stories

What’s your favorite holiday story? Is it a story of redemption and overcoming our worst nature? Generosity, love, and true wealth? The return of light after darkness? Divine intervention? Perhaps a picked-upon reindeer finding his way?

Holidays inevitably include the telling of stories because these tales pass on important lessons and history. As a leader, you can use stories to inspire your team, connect activities to purpose, reinforce values, and help your team make sense of the change they are experiencing.

5. Reflect and Look Ahead

The end-of-year holidays often prompt reflection on the past and setting intentions for the future. This reflective practice is invaluable for you as you lead your team through change.

Take time together to reflect on what has worked, learn from your experiences, and set clear goals. Engaging your team in this reflection process helps get everyone aligned—both for lessons learned and future goals.

6. Celebrate and Appreciate

Ideally, the holidays give us a moment to pause and appreciate one another, whether through shared celebration or giving gifts.

That spirit of celebration and appreciation is vital as you’re navigating change. What is going well? What milestones have you achieved? What effort can you celebrate—even if you haven’t reached the finish line?

Pausing to acknowledge what people have accomplished and the work they’ve put in will help energize your team to keep going.

When was the last time you truly stopped, looked at your team and offered them a deep, sincere, thank you for their work?

7. Cultivate Hope

Particularly in the northern hemisphere, the end-of-year holidays are about hope. Hope for peace, hope for a new year, hope for renewal, the promise that despite the current darkness, light will return.

As a leader, you are in the hope business. Hope is at the core of your work.

Leadership is the belief that if we work together, we can have a better tomorrow. Together we can do more, be more, and add more value to the world.

That’s a big deal. It might be the biggest deal of all.

And some of the time, your team will be stressed and discouraged. Your job is to help them find the hope.

Without hope, you’re done. When your team has hope, they have a chance.

Happy Holidays

Holidays are such a vital part of what it means to be human. On your journey to be a more human-centered leader who excels at navigating change, these principles of tradition, evolution, inclusion, storytelling, reflection, planning, celebration, and hope are as human as you can get. We hope you find inspiration in them for the year ahead.

Happy Holidays and all the best from the entire Let’s Grow Leaders team!

Coming This Spring (Available for Pre-Order Now)

Our new book, Powerful Phrases for Dealing with Workplace Conflict: What to Say Next to Destress the Workday, Build Collaboration, and Calm Difficult Customers is available for pre-order now, And, we’re working on building our speaking tour for Spring 2024 (you can take a quick peek at some of our new conflict and collaboration programs here).

 

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Be Human Lead Human with Dr. Jennifer Nash

Episode 241: In this podcast episode, Dr. Jennifer Nash discusses the challenge to lead human and prioritize people, while also driving performance. She emphasizes the importance of leaders having the skillset to lead people effectively, as many leaders are trained in functional areas but lack the necessary tools to lead individuals. Nash also highlights the need for leaders to see employees as whole human beings with multiple identities and values, rather than just as assets or resources. She suggests that leaders start by leading themselves first and aligning their own values with the organization’s values. Nash also addresses the challenges of compassion fatigue and burnout among leaders and offers strategies for managing these issues, such as setting boundaries and finding activities that recharge and renew energy.

Human-Centered Leadership: Be Human Lead Human

00:00:00 – The Challenge of Leading Humans: A discussion about the difficulties leaders face when they have to lead humans without the necessary people skills.

00:44:00 – Meet Dr. Jennifer Nash, Advocate for Leading Humans: Introduction to Dr. Nash and her journey in advocating for human-centered leadership, particularly focusing on how to lead humans with empathy and understanding.

02:20:00 – Dr. Nash’s Earliest Memory of Leading Humans: Dr. Nash shares her first experience of leading humans as a young ballet dancer, setting the stage for her future leadership style.

Leading Human is the Essence of Human Leadership

04:45:00 – The Essence of Human Leadership: Dr. Nash defines human leadership as the art of prioritizing people, essential for leading humans effectively.

07:43:00 – Lead Human: Overcoming Obstacles: The conversation shifts to the challenges that impede effective human-centered leadership, crucial in the context of leading humans.

17:11:00 – Lead Human: While Respecting Humanity: Dr. Nash talks about the importance of acknowledging the holistic identity of individuals in the workplace, a key aspect of leading humans with respect.

27:14:00 – Lead Human: The Evolution: The evolving roles of leaders and managers in the context of leading humans in today’s dynamic work environments.

33:04:00 – Personal Values and Leading Humans: Insights on how aligning personal values with organizational culture can enhance the effectiveness of leading humans.

41:31:00 – Wrapping Up: Leading Humans with Heart: Concluding remarks focusing on the importance of human-centered leadership and the impact it has when leading humans.

Thank you to our Guest

Jennifer Nash, PhD, MBA, PCC, is an executive advisor, MG100 member, author, and leadership development consultant partnering with Fortune 50 executives to drive positive business outcomes. Notable clients include Boeing, Exxon Mobil, Ford Motor Company, Google, IBM, J.P. Morgan, and Verizon. With expertise in leadership, coaching, and behavioral 360 assessment, she founded Jennifer Nash Coaching & Consulting after a 25-year career in industry and professional services. Jennifer earned her MBA from the University of Michigan and her PhD from Case Western Reserve University. She serves as an Executive, Leadership, and Career Coach at the University of Michigan and is a fellow at the Harvard/McLean Institute of Coaching. Dr. Nash’s work is published in Harvard Business Review, LinkedIn, and select academic journals. She serves as adjunct faculty at the University of Michigan and has presented her groundbreaking leadership and coaching research at Harvard University and Columbia University. Jennifer’s bestselling book entitled Be Human, Lead Human: How to Connect People and Performance is now available.

Connect with Dr. Jennifer Nash: Website, LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Youtube

If you’d like more specific, practical phrases and approaches for common sources of workplace conflict, check out our newest book (May 2024—available for pre-order now): Powerful Phrases for Dealing with Workplace Conflict—What to say next to de-stress the workplace, build collaboration, and calm difficult customers.

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How Did Leadership and Culture Improve on the North Pole?

A Retrospective: Santa’s Big Leadership and Culture Change

Is there anyone more beloved than Santa Claus? Today, the North Pole is a paragon of human-centered leadership and culture. But it wasn’t always that way.

In fact, Santa has a lot to teach us about leadership. You might have a fantastic personal brand and a world-renown altruistic mission, but that doesn’t mean you can ignore your leadership and culture. The North Pole used to be a very different place…

Nearly sixty years ago, the Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer television show documented the poor leadership and culture at the North Pole. Santa, Donner, and the head elf had created and took part in a toxic culture of ridicule that led to poor performance.

Donner rejected his son because of his nose. Santa ignored Rudolph’s obvious talent and leaping ability because of the red glow. And the head elf ridicules Hermey’s aspiration to be a dentist.

The North Pole’s leadership and culture at the time was a great example of what we call “trickle-down intimidation.” The leaders take their cues from what happens at the top. Santa’s leadership led to dysfunction at every level. The toxic courage-crushers got so bad that the North Pole lost some of its top next-generation talent as the victims of the abusive leadership looked for opportunities elsewhere.

There’s a lesson for leaders in what happened all those years ago. When people have to use all their courage just to survive harassment, ridicule, or being overlooked for bringing their authentic selves to work, they can’t possibly bring creativity or innovative solutions to their work. They’re too busy surviving.

The North Pole Today: Can Leadership and Culture Change?

In this human-centered leader TV exclusive exposé, Karin Hurt asks hard questions to find out what has changed – and how.

We were so happy to find out Santa’s a fan of Courageous Cultures. In our world of rapid change, a courageous culture is your competitive advantage.

Start by eliminating toxic courage crushers. Then, invest in leadership and culture where leaders consistently show up with curiosity, ask people for their ideas, and build an infrastructure for courage. You’ll be on your way to high performance, high engagement, and teams who consistently share ideas, and solve problems, with leaders who reward contributions from all levels.

By the end of that frosty Christmas Eve, Santa had seen the worth in every member of his team and encouraged Rudolph’s true strength, competence, and talent. Performance soared.

The North Pole leadership team built a culture where Hermey could bring his best self to work and everyone would eventually benefit from the dental care. And if you have a team member whose ultimate passion lies outside of your work, support them. How can you help them learn all they can while contributing now? The message it sends to your team about your loyalty and commitment to them will come back many times over. (Not sure about your people’s goals? Use this Developmental Discussion tool to find out!)

Your Turn

Santa’s leadership is a cautionary tale for every leader. Do you build on your team’s talents, strengths, and competence or do you waste time, energy, and capacity focused on irrelevant “weaknesses”? Have you allowed a caustic culture of shame, blame, or intimidation to take root?

If so, Santa also shows us a positive path forward. Leadership and culture can change – and it begins with you.

Do you have the culture you want? If not, how can you avoid Santa’s leadership problems? How can you focus on the talents your people bring to work? And not obsess about the characteristics they don’t have (that don’t matter)?

How to Read Courageous Cultures With Your Team

If you missed our Courageous Cultures Leadership Book Club event, you can catch the recording here.  And, in the article below, we’ve compiled a long list of supplemental FREE resources to help you encourage courage and get more remarkable ideas from your team.

Leadership Book Club: How to Read Courageous Cultures With Your Team

 

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Great Teams: 12 Practical Collaboration Habits to Create Clarity

 

 

Clarity is key to better collaboration and more productive workplace conflict.

Great teams know where they’re going, and need each other to be successful. Easy to say. Harder to do. Today in our “Great Teamwork Series”, we share 12 collaboration habits to help get (and keep) everyone on the same page. You can use these habits to assess how you’re showing up to influence your team. Or share it with your team to identify opportunities to make your good team even better.

12 Habits Great Teams Consistently Do to Create Better Clarity and Collaboration1. Define Success: Visualize and articulate your vision for a desired future

Habit: I establish clear outcomes and expectations.

Engage others on your team by asking, “What does winning truly look like?” Great teams don’t assume everyone’s on the same page. They take time to describe the desired future with specific goals, expectations, and measurements of success.

Related Article: How to Build a Great Team Culture

2. Know What Matters Most: Understand how your work connects to the bigger picture

Habit: I seek out the bigger why behind any task.

Before you can make meaning (see Habit 3 below), understand the bigger why.

3. Make Meaning: Establish a bridge between daily tasks and overarching objectives

Habit: I help connect the work we do to the bigger picture

Great teams don’t just perform tasks; they delve into the “why” behind their work. They seek a deeper understanding and purpose. Be sure you and your teammates can finish this sentence. “This (work, project, process, procedure) is so important because…”

4. Set Clear Expectations: Articulate a clear definition of success

Habit: I communicate clear and specific expectations.

One good conversation about expectations prevents fourteen “why didn’t you” conversations. One secret to better collaboration is clear expectations.

Related Article: Creating Clarity: Strategic Activities for Human-Centered Leaders

5. Communicate Consistently: Vary communication to break through distractions

Habit: I build a proactive communication plan to get everyone on the same page. 

People make memories based on recency, recall, repetition, and emotion. If you want an important message to cut through distractions, communicate multiple times through different channels. Great teams prioritize communication.

Related Article:  Remote Team Communication: How to Send Memorable Messages

6. Check For Understanding: Ensure the message you intend to send is the message received

Habit: I ensure the message sent is the message received.

You always make sense to you, but how do you know your team understood what you meant? How do you know you’ve understood what someone says to you? Good communication involves a feedback loop: a send and a receive.

Related Article: Check for Understanding: A Leadership Communication Best Practice

7. Schedule the Finish: Close the loop with a clear commitment

Habit: I confirm specific deliverables and timeframes for when we will follow up on commitments.

You’ve got more to do than time to do it. Your plan is going to get interrupted. Your interruptions are going to get interrupted. If you don’t have an intentional, focused way to finish what you start, it won’t happen. Great teams don’t leave accountability to chance or a heroic act of willpower. They set clear expectations about deliverables and timeframes.

Related Article: High ROI Leadership: Schedule the Finish 

8. Prioritize What Matters Most: Spend time on activities that will have the biggest impact

Learn more about our Let’s Grow Leaders Synergy Stack Experience info@letsgrowleaders.com

Habit: I spend my time working on our most important things. 

Great teams understand that there’s always an infinite need and finite me, so mind the MIT (most important thing). Want a great team? Prioritize activities and habits on what will have the biggest impact.

Related Article: Productivity at Work—How to Lead Highly Productive Teams

9. Clarify Others’ Interests: Understand what a successful outcome looks like for others

Habit: I seek to understand what matters most to others.

One easy way to foster collaboration is to ask, “What would a successful outcome look like for you?”

10. Look for Common Ground: Seek opportunities for alignment

Habit: I help people realize our shared objectives. 

Great teams have a knack for finding common ground and using that as a starting point for collaboration.

11. Share Information and Best Practices: Proactively communicate helpful insights

Habit: I freely contribute what I know to make work easier for others.

Great teams build a habit of sharing what’s working. They look for ways to be helpful and to make one another’s work a bit lighter.

Related Article: How to Share Best Practices That Improve Results

12. Share Concerns: Initiate important conversations

Habit: You can count on me to tell you what’s on my heart and mind.

Collaborative teammates say what needs to be said and have the hard conversations sooner.

Related Article: How to Start the Conversation Everyone Wants to Avoid

13. Your Turn: What habit would you add to create better clarity and get everyone on the same page?

Note: This article is part two of our 4-part Better Teamwork series. Next up: Curiosity.

Part 1: Better Teamwork: 12 Practical Habits to Build Deeper Connection

Coming This Spring (Available for Pre-Order Now)

Our new book, Powerful Phrases for Dealing with Workplace Conflict: What to Say Next to Destress the Workday, Build Collaboration, and Calm Difficult Customers is available for pre-order now, And, we’re working on building our speaking tour for Spring 2024 (you can take a quick peek at some of our new conflict and collaboration programs here).

 

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Take Care of Yourself As A Leader

Episode 240: In this episode, we are replaying the most popular episode from 2020, which focuses on the importance of taking care of yourself as a leader. Host, David Dye, confesses to not practicing what he preaches and shares his struggles with mental health. He emphasizes the need for leaders to prioritize their emotional, mental, and physical well-being to be effective. David encourages listeners to reflect on their own needs and find ways to invest in their health. Also shared, is a listening technique called “reflect to connect” for leaders to use when supporting their team members who may be struggling. David invites everyone on a journey towards becoming the leader one wants their boss to be.

Sound Advice To Take Care of Yourself As A Leader

00:00: Discussing the episode’s popularity and its focus on maintaining humanity and sanity in leadership.

00:39: Describing the breathtaking winter scene in the Rocky Mountains, emphasizing the beauty and tranquility of nature.

02:08: Expressing the personal joy and soul-filling experience of hiking in winter, despite the cold temperatures.

03:01: Admitting to not practicing self-care as advocated, and the impact of pandemic stress on personal health.

04:25: Emphasizing the importance of various aspects of health for leaders, including the often-neglected emotional and mental health.

05:54: Confessing struggles with melancholy and the importance of managing mental health issues, similar to physical health.

06:20: Encouraging listeners to seek help for serious mental health challenges and the value of talking about feelings.

07:44: Introducing the ‘reflect to connect’ listening technique, helping leaders to understand and empathize with their team’s emotions.

08:48: Inviting listeners to take a moment for introspection, assessing their own health needs, and emphasizing the concept of recreation as self-care.

Closing Remarks: Urging listeners to take small, consistent steps towards self-care and joining the journey towards effective leadership.

If you’d like more specific, practical phrases and approaches for common sources of workplace conflict, check out our newest book (May 2024—available for pre-order now): Powerful Phrases for Dealing with Workplace Conflict—What to say next to de-stress the workplace, build collaboration, and calm difficult customers.

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How Do I Accept Help and Support for My Struggling Team (Without Looking Weak)?

Have you ever worried that if you accept help you could jeopardize your credibility or not get the credit when things turn around?

Today’s Asking for a Friend addresses this common concern.

“Hey, Karin, I’ll admit it. My team’s results are not where they need to be. It’s been a rocky couple of months. We are struggling. But my manager now wants to bring in all kinds of help: people from HR, training, and even my peers.

I’m worried because if we turn this thing around, I think everybody’s going to say, “Well, of course, the results got better, but it wasn’t HIM who did it. It was all these other people.” What should I do?” #askingforafriend

Embracing Assistance: How to Accept Help and Lead Successfully

Let’s talk about a situation many leaders face, but few openly discuss. Imagine you’re at the helm of a team that’s hit a rough patch. The results aren’t up to par, and it’s been a challenging few months. Then, your manager decides it’s time to bring in external help. Now, that’s a situation that can stir up a mix of emotions.

The Dilemma: Accept Help

You might find yourself wrestling with thoughts like, “If we turn this around, will they say it wasn’t me but the new help that made the difference?” It’s a valid concern, but let’s flip the script.

The Perils of Not Accepting Help

Refusing to accept help can backfire. Worst case scenario? You say, “No thanks, I’ve got this,” but the results don’t improve. Now, you’re dealing with two issues:

Your results are still lagging.You’re perceived as someone who isn’t a team player, more concerned about credit than actual results.Accept Help, Lead with Confidence

Now, imagine a different scenario. You accept help, and the results improve. What people notice first are the positive outcomes, not who did what. But here’s the kicker: how do you accept help and still shine as a leader?

Six Steps to Successfully Accept HelpInvite People In: Embrace assistance with confident humility.Align on a Vision: Ensure everyone understands the end goal.Be Involved in the Strategy: Use the resources wisely without losing your leadership role.Make Careful Choices: Prevent overwhelm by delegating effectively.Monitor Results: Keep an eye on what’s working to replicate success.Thank the Helpers: Acknowledge the contribution of others and celebrate the success together.

When you accept help and use it wisely, you’re not just fixing immediate issues; you’re building a stronger, more adaptable team.

Your Turn

So, that’s my take on why it’s important to accept help and how to do it while leading confidently. What are your thoughts? Ever been in a similar situation? How did you handle it?

Want more powerful phrases for dealing with tricky situations?

If you’ve noticed we’ve been talking about workplace conflict and collaboration a lot recently, it’s because we’ve been doing a lot of research, learning from people all over the world about their biggest workplace conflicts and what they would do differently next time. More on that research here.

In the meantime, our new book, Powerful Phrases for Dealing with Workplace Conflict: What to Say Next to Destress the Workday, Build Collaboration, and Calm Difficult Customers is AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER NOW,  and we’re working on building our speaking tour for Spring 2024 (you can take a quick peek at some of our new conflict and collaboration programs here).

 

Related Articles:

How to Help Your Change Resistant Employees Contribute More

Managerial Courage: 7 Practical Ways to be a Bit More Daring

7 Fundamentals For Building Real Trust With Your Team

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Year-in-Review: 7 Questions to Help Your Team Reflect on Success and Key Learnings

Taking a moment for a team year-in-review fosters curiosity and connection

I don’t know about you, but we love a good “year-in-review” list. There’s something about looking back over the entire year and seeing what stands out. More than the list itself, it’s the conversation that it provokes that each of us finds compelling: “Really, that was your favorite…. interesting.” “Oh, I almost forgot about that one. That WAS a big deal.”

What are your year-in-review highlights? How would your highlight reel compare to the year-in-review highlights from your team?

A “what stands out” conversation can be a great team builder for your end-of-year meeting, or to enhance your December one-on-ones.

7 Questions to Help Your Team Reflect on the Year

Here are a few questions to help you facilitate a year-in-review conversation.

1. What are your personal bests?

One fun way to do personal bests is to give your team a list of potential “best ofs” to choose from, and have each team member pick one or two personal bests to share.

Best…

Day (this one can be a lot of fun, and great for storytelling).Accomplishment (it’s always interesting to see which people choose– it’s a great indicator of what matters most to them).Contribution to the Team (also interesting to see what people see as their “best of,” and, of course, this can set the table for additional gratitude).Customer Win (it’s easy for “going the extra mile” for customer stories to go unnoticed. Here’s a chance to share.Idea (Celebrate the I.D.E.A.s (the remarkable ones), and even the great ones you were not able to use.Comeback (Filling the room with great come-back stories is always energizing).Collaboration (This is a chance to talk about when teamwork was at its very best)

Of course, a good follow-up question is… what made these best-ofs so great? And how do we get more of that next year?

2. Which of our projects/efforts/contributions was most impactful to the organization?

This is a great way to help your team consider how their work aligns with your organization’s strategic priorities.

This works well, even for frontline employees who may not be involved in projects with a capital “P.” Invited them to talk about ways they have contributed to improving results.

The natural follow-up conversation is to talk about how your team can continue to contribute in meaningful ways.

3. How have you grown this year personally and professionally?

Probes: In what areas have you developed? What development and training were the most impactful? What new skills did you learn? Which areas of your performance have most improved?

4. Who helped you most this year? How? What difference did it make?

Even if you’ve already thanked someone, you can’t go wrong with including gratitude in your year-in-review. A quick lightning round of this question is a great meeting starter.

5. What’s your biggest lesson learned?

What did you learn and how? How will you apply that learning in the future?

6. What would you do differently if you were to live this same year again?

Closely related to the lesson learned, this question is a good one to set the stage for strategic changes, priorities, and new habits for next year.

7. What important question should we add to our year-in-review discussion?

This question empowers your team to identify specific areas they would like to talk about as part of the end-of-year review.

We would love to hear from you. What questions would you include in an end-of-year review?  What would you include in your best of highlight reel?

Leadership Book Club: How to Read Courageous Cultures With Your Team

 

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