Top 7 Tips for Maintaining a Team ConnectionLearn Management Articles on management-info.biz. Top 7 Tips for Maintaining a Team Connection article will help answer your questions on Management Articles.We at management-info.biz specialize in Management Articles. Management Articles at management-info.biz provides the most up to date news and articles. If you have questions please do not hesitate to contact us.
1. Think Big: Help your team remember why they are together. As you face the day-to-day task of getting work done, the reason for all the effort often gets lost. In order to keep a team motivated, it is crucial that you have a higher purpose behind what you are doing. A leader must remind team members that together, they are moving toward this grand vision. If the captain of the ship does not seem concerned about where they are headed, why will the crew? 2. Think Small: Every interaction is either a deposit or a withdrawal. As important as the Big Picture is, it will mean little if the team shows little value to one another on a regular basis. As the leader, you must model the importance of valuing each other in daily interactions. Last-minute deadlines often interrupt common courtesies - however, those times provide even more reason to acknowledge each other when you have an opportunity. Bob will not be inspired by your vision if you don't even say hello when you see him in the halls. 3. Drive the Fun Bus: It is easy to stay connected when you are having fun! Not to say that you need to sharpen your stand-up comedy act, but be prepared to inject some fun into the team. High performing teams can burn out by focusing too much on producing. When you throw some fun into the mix, the team is able to recharge their batteries and keep going. A great way to add some fun is to do a relevant team building activity and discussion during your next meeting. 4. Be a Stage Mother: Educate the team on group stages. It is widely accepted that groups go through stages as they grow. There is the 'forming' stage where everyone plays nice, not wanting to rock the boat. Next comes the 'storming' stage when team members attempt to define what roles they will play in the group. Then, comes the 'norming' stage which sees the group settle into a standard of working together. After norming, strong groups move into the 'performing' stage. This is the stage we want from the beginning. Finally, the 'adjourning' stage is when the group disbands, sometimes by choice, sometimes not by choice. Educating your team about the natural growth stages for all teams will allow them to adjust to the growing pains. 5. Promote Fights: Fighting sure beats resentment. Setting up a culture where resolving conflict is strongly encouraged will save the team from building long-term resentments. It is not necessary to have a Don King haircut and announce, 'The Beating in the Meeting' - but you will benefit from promoting an atmosphere that does not avoid conflict. Although 'fighting' is not fun and can be painful, resentment can destroy a cohesive team without anyone realizing it. If you notice tensions building, step in and encourage a healthy resolution to the situation. Deal with it now, or it may spread like a cancer on your entire team. 6. Create Connections: It only feels like they happen naturally. If you wait for them to happen, they might not. Schedule opportunities for team members to connect. This can be done as part of a regular meeting. It can be done by switching pairings for different assignments. There is a reason the armed services put soldiers through basic training - they develop individual soldiers and build connections between soldiers. Have you ever witnessed two old army buddies reunite? It's enough to bring a tear to your eye! A strong connection is powerful. 7. Role Play: Make sure everyone knows the role each person plays. Role ambiguity has ruined more teams than you can imagine. Not knowing what you are supposed to be doing is frustrating. Not knowing what other members should or should not be doing can be down right annoying. As the leader, make sure people know the part they play as individuals and group members. Clear roles will help you avoid hearing 'how come Bob doesn't have to do this...?' History is filled with many examples of great leaders keeping their team together during difficult situations. Ernest Shackleton's expedition into the Antarctic ended with his team successfully working together to survive. Their boat was crushed by ice and somehow the team worked together to brave the fiercest conditions imaginable. Shackleton's team remained connected because they followed the above seven steps. Surely you can use them to help your team face the challenges of your workplace.
|
More Articles:1. How to Reduce the Potential for Employee Discrimination Employment discrimination laws seek to prevent discrimination based on race, sex, religion, national origin, physical disability, and age by employers. Discriminatory practices include exhibiting a bias in hiring, promotion, job assignment, termination, compensation, and various forms of harassment. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission reported 72,302 individual discrimination charge filings in 1992. By 2004, the number had grown to 79,432. As a Human Resource Manager or business own… 2. Performance Expectations - 5 Tips and 5 Questions* People want to understand their role - they want to do well! So by being clear, really clear about what it expected of them, makes a big, big difference! And that improves performance as well as saving you time chasing others around to deliver what you want.5 Tips1. Be Clear - your people need to know what they are doing, both in terms of actions and the standards that you will be expecting. By being really clear, checking understanding and having it written down makes a big difference.2. Have … 3. Reward Your Employees with Travel Incentives By Sheryl Strasser Reward your Employees with Travel IncentivesMotivating employees, especially highly competitive employees like inside and outside salespersons and telemarketers, can be a challenge. Sure, everyone likes cash, but what if you could offer a incentive that was worth more than cash? That's what travel incentives are all about.What do you think would generate more excitement among your employees; offering $50 to the person who sets the most appointments in one day, or offering a 3 day and 2 nights … 4. It's Not Always What You Say By Linda Henman A major source of communication breakdowns is incongruence between the words that people say and the nonverbal signals that they send, largely because we lose sight of the fundamental truth: You cannot not communicate. Every second that we are in the presence of another, we are constantly sending and receiving messages, often silent, nonverbal messages that can either augment our communication effectiveness or detract from it. These non-word symbols are the first things we notice about othe… |
||||
