05

May

Stop Rewarding Arsonists for Putting Out Fires

jeff

accountability, fire fighting, performance management, planning, Recognition, rewards

Bad Leaders, Be a better team leader, Be a better team member, Contribute, Horror Stories, How to fix teams

It’s all too common that we reward the heroes who save the day on our teams without stopping to think that they might only be rescuing us from problems they created. Stop rewarding arsonists for putting out the fires.

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28

Apr

How to Avoid an Argument

jeff

argue, argument, conflict, fight, how to, instructions, invalidated, problem solving, team building, Team Dysfunction, validation, youtube

Announcements, Be a better team member, conflict, How to fix teams, Right Words to Say

Simple and effective techniques you can use to head off the next potential argument on your team.

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21

Apr

An Exercise to Expose Team Dysfunction in One Meeting

jeff

accountability, coaching, dysfunction, exercise, OD, offsite, story, team building, The Good Fight

About teams, Be a better team leader, Be a better team member, Communicate, Exercises, How to fix teams

What role are you playing in your own story of team dysfunction? Use this quick exercise to create personal accountability and get your team on the right track.

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10

Mar

The First Steps to Create a Productive Conflict Habit

jeff

alignment, conflict, decision making, disagreement, diversity, The Good Fight

About teams, Announcements, Be a better team leader, Be a better team member, conflict, Exercises, Right Words to Say

Building a productive conflict habit is critical to having a high performing team. But don’t go from 0 to 60 overnight. Use these 9 techniques to introduce low impact conflict on your team.

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17

Feb

What teams can learn from Valentine’s Day

jeff

alignment, communication, disappointment, expectations, mistrust, teamwork, Valentine's Day

About teams, Be a better team leader, Be a better team member, Communicate, How to fix teams

People are often disappointed on Valentine’s Day because they have grand visions of what would make them feel loved but the fail to share them. The same thing happens on teams: we know what we want, but we don’t communicate it and, instead, set colleagues up to disappoint us. Here’s an alternative to falling victim to the Valentine’s Day Effect.

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27

Jan

Are you too busy to be curious?

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jeff

busy, creativity, curiosity, execution, Innovation, overworked, planning, strategy, team dynamics

About teams, Be a better team leader, Be a better team member, Contribute, Strategy & Planning

If you want to be strategic, you need to be curious, but execution mode reduces creativity. Here’s how to get into the right mode to be strategic and innovative.

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13

Jan

How to Manage Conflict in Virtual Teams

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jeff

argument, conflict, disagreement, feedback, remote teams, video conferencing, Virtual teams

About teams, Be a better team member, Communicate, conflict, How to fix teams, Right Words to Say, Virtual Teams

Virtual teams are hard on relationships and they’re particularly challenging for productive conflict. But avoiding conflict on a remote team is just as harmful to both your business and your relationship as it is on a normal team. These tips will help you work through conflict with a remote colleague so you can get back to business.

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16

Dec

How to Deal with a Person Who is Easily Offended

jeff

defensive, echo chamber, holiday party, meeting, offensive, polarized, reactionary, taking offence

Be a better team member, Communicate, Right Words to Say

People get offended so easily these days. The trick is not to own their offence. Instead, use these techniques to engage them in a meaningful conversation where you both might learn something.

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25

Nov

When Your Teammate Needs to Vent

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jeff

drama, gossip, stress, stress management, venting

Be a better team member, Communicate, Horror Stories, Right Words to Say

Work is hard. Sometimes your teammates just need a safe place to vent. As long as it’s just venting, it’s not a problem. Learn the difference between venting, gossiping, commiserating, and wallowing and how to redirect a colleague if their venting turns into something more insidious.

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18

Nov

Facing Rejection

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jeff

change agent, change leader, change management, PMO, rejection, resistance, transformation

Be a better team member, Change, Communicate, How to fix teams, Personal Development, Right Words to Say

It’s incredibly frustrating to join a company as an agent of change only to be rejected by the people who need your help. Here are 8 strategies to use when resistance to change is directed at you.

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