10 “GOLDEN RULES” OF COMMUNICATION FOR TEAMS

10 “GOLDEN RULES” OF COMMUNICATION FOR TEAMS

The older I get, the more I realize that almost all progress in life is not accomplished by individuals but by teams. We hear about the achievements of business superstars such as Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and Mark Zuckerberg on an ongoing basis. What we don’t hear about is that the achievement of these individuals is due primarily to their respective teams. These are the groups of individuals who work in concert with each other to see visions, ideas, and projects through to completion for miraculous results. Of course, someone had to dream and communicate the vision of what in their own mind was possible. This is where much credit can be given to Musk, Bezos, and Zuckerberg. The ability to lead teams and draw out the best in teams is a tremendous talent to have. Additionally, the ability to effectively facilitate communication within a team can quickly identify someone as a superstar leader. This team could be as diverse as a church group, a volunteer community organization, or a committee/task force within a corporate setting. Regardless of what type of team we may be a part of, we know that effective communication is essential. Without it, the team’s goals could be misunderstood, its efforts uncoordinated, and eventually ineffective communication could lead to extreme frustration with little to no hope of achieving the desired cohesive final result. We all know that communication is a good thing. However, when we are working with a group of people—rather than in a one-on-one setting—there are unique challenges and strategies to consider. Continue reading
NO PRESSURE, NO DIAMONDS!

NO PRESSURE, NO DIAMONDS!

Diamonds are formed when carbon is placed under an immense amount of pressure which equals 725,000 pounds per square inch. This is incredible! How can something so amazingly beautiful and treasured result from a process, that on the surface, appears to be very destructive. When you think about it, this is a fantastic example of how we as humans can turn our daily pressures into something positive. Most of us experience pressure throughout our daily lives. If someone were to say that they were not under any pressure at all, they could very well be untruthful. Let’s be honest that a majority of us deal with pressures related to family, job, finances, health, career expectations, etc. The list here could be very lengthy for some individuals. Continue reading
THE VALUE OF VALUES

THE VALUE OF VALUES

There is a famous French story, “The Little Prince,” that tells the story about a fox that becomes the best friend of a young prince. When the fox must leave the prince forever, he offers to tell the prince the world’s most wonderful secret if the prince meets certain conditions. The little prince agrees, does what is expected and then asks to be told the most wonderful secret. The fox responded by saying, “Only that which is invisible is essential.” The most valuable things in life cannot be seen with the naked eye. Some of these are love, friendship, honor, integrity, trust, respect, hope, compassion, and values. Today, let’s talk about values and why values are so important to who we are and what we do (the decisions we make and actions we take). The best place to start is with the definition of values. In my mind, values are those critical beliefs and principles that guide us as we take action. They are non-negotiable principles that guide our everyday lives. Sometimes our personal set of values is called our “moral compass”. Additionally, values certainly give meaning to our lives. Individuals have values whether they be good or bad. Hopefully, your own personal values are decent and good. Some people have values that lead to evil and disaster. Nations, businesses, and organizations of all types have values. Continue reading
WAYS TO MAKE A BAD DAY BETTER

WAYS TO MAKE A BAD DAY BETTER

How many of us always have great days? I suppose that how we define a “great” day is subjective depending on what a great day means to each of us individually. More often I find myself hearing people say in response to their day, “Well today, at least I’m vertical” or “I’m on the right side of the grass.” I usually find these kinds of responses really humorous, but a little sad. One thing that I am beginning to value more often is time. I am realizing that time is the one gift we receive that is so incredibly valuable. Our days consist of 24 hours of time which must be used wisely. How horrible it would be to live each day in a state of sadness or despair. However, we all have “bad” days from time to time. It’s all a part of life, and each of us face irritations throughout the day. Traffic congestion, poor customer service, car problems, a difficult person that we’re dealing with, etc. can cause us to think that this is turning out to be a really bad day. Continue reading
LEAVE IT ALL ON THE FIELD

LEAVE IT ALL ON THE FIELD

I have great memories of a friend back in my high school days who was a tremendous all round athlete. This was a guy who was generally understated and over shadowed by other athletes until he was tapped to substitute for a key injured player during a critical varsity football game. The following minutes were incredible! This was a guy who actually ran the ball in for a touchdown the first time he touched a football during a game! What a shock! The stadium went wild for this guy who was a second string player. Continue reading