Take the Shape Quiz to learn about yourself and colleagues
This fun quiz is designed to get you thinking about how different we are. It’s important to understand that you approach your work with a style and perspective that varies from your colleagues. Understanding and appreciating the strengths within those differences allows you to become more successful. You can start to work with the differences rather than against them. It’s not meant to be a label – people are far too interesting and multi-dimensional for that. Still,...
Read MoreGood citizenship in teams?
A friend and colleague became a US citizen last week. I’m musing about the conditions for good citizenship and the relevance to work groups. What do people need to do to become functioning societies or functioning teams? Her process of citizenship was so intentional. She had to make a conscious decision she wanted citizenship and work at it. I was born into it. She was struck with her new identity and was going to wear a red, white, and blue dress to her party. I mostly take mine for...
Read MorePotentiation – building on strengths
What is potentiation? It’s a combination of things that together are more powerful. I use the term to define a process of building on your strengths for even greater success. Think caffeine with aspirin making aspirin more potent. According to the dictionary, potentiation is defined as “to make more effective or active, or to augment the activity of (as with a chemical or drug) synergistically.” Start with strengths: Potentiation helps you explore what your strengths are, either as an...
Read MoreCooperation takes failure
What does biology tell us about what it takes for people to be cooperative? Turns out one of the main ingredients of cooperation is a tolerance for failure. We won’t hang in there with one another through challenges and bumps along the way otherwise. Learn more: This assertion comes from research psychologist Michael McCullough who directs the Evolution and Human Behavior Laboratory at the University of Miami. He works with social scientific research as well as emerging...
Read MoreSummer Bytes: 5 Decision Paths
“Shouldn’t I always work toward consensus decisions in my team?” asked several clients recently. Here are five different processes for reaching good decisions: Leader makes the decision independent of the team. Leader consults the team for input but reserves the right to make the final decision Leader delegates the decision to the team (which may or may not include the leader participating). In this case there are two options: Unanimous decision Majority rules Seems obvious? So...
Read MoreSummer Short Bytes – Creativity
Who cares about creativity? You should. Get creative to address the complex problems coming your way, do more with less. exceed customer expectations, respond to changing environmental conditions. But how? Isn’t being smart good enough? Creativity and intelligence aren’t the same brain process, according to.Dr. Rex Jung, a neuroscientist who’s studied intelligence and creativity. He defines creativity as something that is both novel and useful, in a recent podcast from On...
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