On team building… By Kelly Fleming
What comes to your mind when you hear the word team. Sometimes, it’s a collective term used too often to describe things that it’s not really meant to describe. There are many off shoots of the word as well…team work, team training, team building. Webster does not have a definition for team building, however defines team work as: “marked by devotion rather than an individual achievement.” Wikipedia states team training as “designed to improve efficiency, rather than interpersonal relations” and that team building “enhances social relations and defines roles within teams, often involving collaborative tasks.” The simple definition of team according to Webster, “a group of people who work together.” Sounds not too difficult to understand, right? No stress involved, right? Um…sure. Teams are complex. Teams need attention. Teams need development. If you stop and think about it, how many teams are you a part of? At work, at home, at Church, in your neighborhood, in your community, in MASFAP. Are all of your teams successful? Why or why not? Are teams successful because they have good leaders? Are teams successful because they have dedicated members or participants and everyone pulls their weight? Are teams successful because they have cohesion and unity and everyone gets along? Are teams successful because they are organized? Successful teams take much effort. How many times have you participated in a team building exercise and at the on-set groaned. Come on be honest. Team building exercises are built to expose problems within the group. Is that why you groan? Who likes to be exposed? How many times though have you come away from a team building exercise with an “ah-ha” moment and grown from that moment? Know however, that a team builder is not a quick fix to mend a team that appears broken. It won’t magically help poor leadership or broken communication, teams that appear unproductive or without vision. The team builder will identify where the challenges are and then smaller teams will need to be formed to dig deeper into the underlying causes. Often times team building is not given the attention it deserves. The activity is fun, but the follow up is lacking. Studies have shown that if done right, participants become more united, more committed, morale becomes higher and performance increases. And why? Because all participants should have been a part of the decision making along the way and ultimately of the outcome. Some take aways…team members are individuals with different needs, ultimately individual differences. Teams should be created and utilized with each individual in mind so as to be built with their strengths in mind, not their weaknesses.
When’s the last time you’ve participated in or planned a team building activity? Are you overdue? What are you waiting for?”
Today Sparky was spotted eating a salad and trying to lose the 5 pounds he gained over Thanksgiving! Speaking of food…. We are going to have great food at the conference – including salad! Still time to register – at www.masfap.org!
Look! Spark
Don’t forget Monday of the conference to wear your UGLY SWEATER! You will get your picture taken for submission into the contest. Everyone will vote – and the ugliest/tackiest sweater wins a prize!
Sparky was today found making some calls out to MASFAP Associate Members. He wants all of our fantastic Associate Members to attend the conference to give information about products to us at a booth! Here are the exhibitors who have registered so far:
Sparky was just found today making some decorations for the MASFAP conference. He REALLY hopes you are planning on attending the conference! Sparky is feeling a little lonely today since no one has commented to his blogs. He would like you to respond with a comment to this blog to let him know what you are most looking forward to at the conference December 12-14!
Veterans Day, tomorrow November 11, is when we pay our homage and respect to the veterans serve and have served the country. Thank you to all of the veterans reading this blog – you are heroes!
After standing in line for over an hour to vote last night and staying up into the wee hours of the morning watching the election coverage, Sparky, MASFAP’s Elf on the Shelf, is so tired, shocked and kind of confused about everything. He’s waiting to get out of bed until his Starbuck’s kicks in…
