  Focus Question: What have you achieved so far this year? Description What a year! This week you are encouraged to take stock of what you have been working on and achieving this year. I’m going to borrow from last year’s mid-point check in which I shared as part of the 52 Weeks PDT series: This week you are encouraged to block off time to take stock of your achievements. First, review your annual plan. You may want to include some information around these questions:
Creating intentional pause points is an important part of any coaching and learning process. Being able to stop and reflect is also critical for business success. While we can keep on doing, are we doing the right things which have impact? What is working and what is not? This is the premise of the Virtual Retreats I host throughout the year in the PlanDoTrack series, as well as the month end reflection and monthly planning hacks.   Activity Use this as a time to focus in on what you have achieved in the first half of the year. Questions you might want to reflect on are: 1. What's important about achieving or completing this goal? (Coaching Note: As we know as coaches, it can be useful to reconnect with the 30,000-foot view and WHY the issues are important. As you step back - or step up - to look at this, what new energy and ideas are generated?) 2. What is the quickest way to achieve it? What's another way? And another way? (Coaching note: as we often see, generating alternative solutions can be invaluable and spur us on to more complete solutions.) 3. What shiny, red objects have shown up? Which are causing a distraction? 4. What's most important to you in your business right now? 5. Who can provide the support and resources you need to be successful? 6. What do you need to say NO to in order to focus on your goal? 7. When did you last pause to take stock (and TRACK) where things were at? 8. What's going to create some momentum for you? 9. What are you doing to note, and celebrate, milestones (and learning) along the way? Best, Jennifer These were questions I included in September 2018: https://www.coachingbusinessbuilder.com/blog/less-than-100-days-to-go-in-2018-what-do-you-want-to-focus-on Jennifer Britton
Co-host of the Remote Pathways Podcast Potentials Realized – Coaching, Training and Consulting Services for remote teams, leaders and professionals Check out the most recent Remote Pathways Podcast Episode, where we explore the people, places and processes of exceptional remote work. You can listen to the latest episode here, or on your favorite podcast player.
0 Comments
  Focus Question: What do you notice about the messy middle? Description We’re officially getting to the middle of the series. A term I love to embrace is that of the Messy Middle. As you step into the mid-point of the year, what do you notice? Are things picking up or are you losing some momentum? In my studies in cognitive psychology years ago at McGill, one of the things I still remember, which has informed my entire career since first hearing 30 years ago is that of the LATENCY and RECENCY effects. Our brains remember the start and end of things. Everything in the middle is “messy”. We may not remember or even know what it is. According to Scott Belsky, author of The Messy Middle, the first part of any journey is called the First Mile. It can be useful to return to this regularly. This will include a focus on:
It’s likely that at this time of year you may find yourself moving through the messy middle. It may be characterized by less traction, lack of focus or a different energy.   Activity What do you notice about the energy and focus of the mid-point of this year? Consider what’s going to help you get traction from the Messy Middle? What’s important to you at this phase? For more on this topic check out: The Monthly Daily Trackers are a great visual tool to view what’s happening in your work and business. What do you notice about the data and trends? There are twelve sets of Monthly Daily Trackers and twelve sets of Monthly Content Trackers in the planner section. Best, Jennifer Jennifer Britton
Co-host of the Remote Pathways Podcast Potentials Realized – Coaching, Training and Consulting Services for remote teams, leaders and professionals Check out the most recent Remote Pathways Podcast Episode, where we explore the people, places and processes of exceptional remote work. You can listen to the latest episode here, or on your favorite podcast player.   Focus Question: What are the roles which are going to help this team excel? Description Clarity around roles in a team is critical for team success, especially when team members are working remotely and/or don’t see each other on a regular basis. Clear Roles is another important component of the Six Factors of High Performing Teams. It’s often not an area people tend to explore. Across the team, there may be different roles which each team member is well suited for. Perhaps there are members of the team who are great at:
  Activity Take some time as a team to discuss the different roles which are important for you as a team in getting things done. What are the roles which are going to help the team? Who plays what role? How do the roles match with the talents and skills in the team? Are there any roles that are missing? What are the roles which are going to create new things? Get things done? You will also want to explore WHAT key roles are needed by the team? Best wishes, Jennifer Jennifer Britton
Co-host of the Remote Pathways Podcast Potentials Realized – Coaching, Training and Consulting Services for remote teams, leaders and professionals Check out the most recent Remote Pathways Podcast Episode, where we explore the people, places and processes of exceptional remote work. You can listen to the latest episode here, or on your favorite podcast player.   Focus Question: What’s important to note about your work right now? Description Every quarter, I’ll be including a pause point to undertake a quarterly checkpoint. In addition to weekly and monthly planning, it can be valuable to spend time doing some quarterly planning. Looking across your goals and achievements over a three-month period, can provide a different perspective.   Activity Earmark 30 – 60 minutes to undertake your Q1 checkpoint. If you prefer to do this in the company of others, consider joining me for a quarterly planning session. Grab a pen and your planner or journal. You may wish to set a timer, giving yourself 3-5 minutes to reflect on and capture your thoughts around each of these questions. Note the following:
Over the last three months ask yourself:
Note your programming and/or services deliver. Ask yourself:
For more on this topic check out: PlanDoTrack – Quarterly Planning Section Remote Pathways New Guide – Quarterly Checkpoint (Day 30) Best, Jennifer Jennifer Britton
Co-host of the Remote Pathways Podcast Potentials Realized – Coaching, Training and Consulting Services for remote teams, leaders and professionals Check out the most recent Remote Pathways Podcast Episode, where we explore the people, places and processes of exceptional remote work. You can listen to the latest episode here, or on your favorite podcast player.   Focus Question: What needs to be clearer for the team? Description Regardless, of whether we are face-to-face or working remote, teams are teams are teams. Over the last few decades team effectiveness research continues to validate core elements which teams need in order to thrive. The ingredients come from the research of professionals including: Katzenbach and Smith (The Wisdom of Teams), Hackman and Wageman (A Theory of Team Coaching) and others. Part of great leadership in complexity is about distilling things down to their core. When it comes to teamwork it can be beneficial to get back to the basics. When I work with teams, I like to share with them the following six elements which I call the Six Factors of High Performing Teams. These are six things that teams need in order to excel.   As you step into this week, as a team, take the pulse of where you are on a scale of 1 - 10 the second 3 areas needed for team effectiveness: 4. Shared performance goals What are key goals for the team this year? What are key individual goals? How do your goals align? Overlap? What does success look like for each member? For the entire team? Does everyone have an understanding of the key goals of others on the team and how they feed into them? 5. Shared team practices Teams that work together effectively share common practices such as a Monday morning huddle, a Thursday night out or some other regular event. What practices support your relationships? 6. Clear Roles How do our roles overlap, align and connect? What changes, if any, are needed this year around your roles giving your priorities?  Activity Where are we in each of the Six Factors? What requires attention? For more on this topic check out: Teams365 Team Leader Breakfast Café Call on the Six Factors. Best, Jennifer Jennifer Britton
Co-host of the Remote Pathways Podcast Potentials Realized – Coaching, Training and Consulting Services for remote teams, leaders and professionals Check out the most recent Remote Pathways Podcast Episode, where we explore the people, places and processes of exceptional remote work. You can listen to the latest episode here, or on your favorite podcast player.   Focus Question: What else is required to help the team excel? Description Regardless, of whether we are face-to-face or working remote, teams are teams are teams. Over the last few decades team effectiveness research continues to validate core elements which teams need in order to thrive. The ingredients come from the research of professionals including: Katzenbach and Smith (The Wisdom of Teams), Hackman and Wageman (A Theory of Team Coaching) and others. Part of great leadership in complexity is about distilling things down to their core. When it comes to teamwork it can be beneficial to get back to the basics. When I work with teams, I like to share with them the following six elements which I call the Six Factors of High Performing Teams. These are six things that teams need in order to excel.   As you step into this week, as a team, take the pulse of where you are on a scale of 1 - 10 the first 3 areas needed for team effectiveness: 1. Shared purpose or mission (Your WHY) What is your purpose? Your mission? Why do you exist? Does everyone hold the same understanding? What does this mean practically for your work? What priorities does your purpose or mission naturally create? 2. Shared behavioral norms How do you do things? What is acceptable and unacceptable on the team? What behaviors and habits exist? Which ones are supportive of exceptional performance? Which ones aren't? 3. Shared commitment What are team members committed to? What will you get done, no matter what? Is there anything that needs to be dropped off the list?  Activity Where are we in each of the Six Factors? What requires attention? For more on this topic check out: Teams365 #1145 – Team Leader Breakfast Series – Six Factors (Audio) Teams365 #1920- Team Development – Revisiting the Six Factors Enjoy your reflections! Jennifer Jennifer Britton
Co-host of the Remote Pathways Podcast Potentials Realized – Coaching, Training and Consulting Services for remote teams, leaders and professionals Check out the most recent Remote Pathways Podcast Episode, where we explore the people, places and processes of exceptional remote work. You can listen to the latest episode here, or on your favorite podcast player.   Focus Question: Where are you needing to collaborate so that you can enhance the impact of your work? Description Collaboration in today’ business context can take a number of forms – from Joint Ventures, to Co-Facilitation, Collaboration and Co-Leading. What are the different partnerships you engage with? Great partnerships don’t just happen. They are usually created with some intention. They are often planned. It can be valuable to spend some time to plan your collaboration by asking:
  Activity Identify the collaborations you are a part of right now? What conversations need to be had? With your major tasks and projects for the next few months, what new partnerships and collaboration opportunities are needed? What requires attention? Also refer to the Collaboration Download as part of Episode 7 as part of the Remote Pathways Podcast. Listen in on your favorite podcast player or at RemotePathways.com For more on this topic check out: Teams365 #1152 - 5 Ingredients for Successful Team Leader Collaboration Best, Jennifer Jennifer Britton
Co-host of the Remote Pathways Podcast Potentials Realized – Coaching, Training and Consulting Services for remote teams, leaders and professionals Check out the most recent Remote Pathways Podcast Episode, where we explore the people, places and processes of exceptional remote work. You can listen to the latest episode here, or on your favorite podcast player.   Description Our team culture (as I have written in other Teams365 posts) is WHO we are and HOW we do things. It consists of our norms, our Team Charter or Agreements on how we do things, what’s acceptable and what’s not. A large part of our work at Potentials Realized is in support of team development. We work with teams who are creating their team norms, and intentionally shaping their team culture. Each team is unique in its team culture, and this may vary from organizational culture. Creating a strong remote team culture is critical, especially when people are part of multiple team cultures. Our team culture is also shaped by our values. If we value quality, we will always make a point to review key pieces of communication before they go out the door. If we value experimentation, we may be very open as a team to things that don’t work as planned (note that I’m not even using the term failure). Team culture also includes the visual and other elements which make us, us. This might be HOW we hold meetings, or the fact that we provide both positive and constructive feedback around new projects and initiatives. Visual elements might include a mascot or metaphors which help them team identify themselves. For example, a team may associate itself with a firecracker (being bold and making an impact) or a fire pit (bringing people together for collaboration and problem solving). What are the elements of your team culture which you want to make more pronounced or visible? In a virtual or remote team, it can be key to focus in on being more explicit in taking time to articulate and share our team culture given that we may not be able to see it every day. It may be captured in our slides or stickers that are put on computers or notebooks. What structures do you want to use to make it visible?   Activity What are the elements of your team culture? Think about the things that make your team unique. This might include HOW you meet. WHAT you prioritize. Any sayings or taglines you embrace. Team culture also speaks to HOW you do things. What is acceptable on this team? What is not? What team agreements and norms do you have in place? Consider the question this week "What are three adjectives to describe your team culture?". What do these adjectives say about you? What you value? How is it reflected in your work?" For more on this topic check out: Teams365 #1526 at Potentials Realized.com - Team Culture Teams365 #2156 – Keeping Your Remote Team All On One Page at PotentialsRealized.com All the best, Jennifer Jennifer Britton
Co-host of the Remote Pathways Podcast Potentials Realized – Coaching, Training and Consulting Services for remote teams, leaders and professionals Check out the most recent Remote Pathways Podcast Episode, where we explore the people, places and processes of exceptional remote work. You can listen to the latest episode here, or on your favorite podcast player.   Description In the remote space, creating trust, safety and connection across the team is critical to surfacing the issues which need to be addressed and allowing the team to bring their best work every day. When teams are remote, it’s very easy for issues to be left, and fester, becoming even greater issues quickly.   Here’s what I shared recently at the Teams365 blog about fostering an environment where people feel safe to speak up. Check out what I wrote in Teams365 2221: “As we wind up with our last team essential of the month, I wanted to take us into an area which is critical for team success – the ability to speak up. When a team feels connected and safe, they are more likely to speak up. The foundation of teamwork is that the fusion of many perspectives, insights and talents is better than one person thinking alone. With this philosophy in mind, it’s very likely that there will be divergent perspectives and insights that emerge from across the team. How do you create a context in which people feel that they can share what might be perceived as oppositional insights, without being shut down? The ability to speak up was identified as a core component for helping teams excel by Amy Edmonson from Harvard. I regularly recommend her 2011 book on Teaming to Organizations, and she has recently followed up with a new book called The Fearless Organization. Take a look at this article. From large to small invitations there can be many different ways we foster conversation across a team. This might include:
What other barriers are being created around inviting everyone’s voice to the table?” Activity Have a discussion this week around what Speaking Up can look like in your team or organization, and what the value of it is. For more on this topic check out: Speak Up, Show Up and Stand Out – Loretta Malandro Teaming – Amy Edmondson Best wishes, Jennifer Jennifer Britton
Co-host of the Remote Pathways Podcast Potentials Realized – Coaching, Training and Consulting Services for remote teams, leaders and professionals Check out the most recent Remote Pathways Podcast Episode, where we explore the people, places and processes of exceptional remote work. You can listen to the latest episode here, or on your favorite podcast player.   Focus Question: What’s going to amplify your productivity? Description Time is one thing we cannot manufacture more of. It’s a non-renewable resource. Once we spend it, we can’t get it back. Personal productivity and time management is a key issue for most remote workers, regardless if we run a business or work for someone else. In fact, it’s a primary reason why I published PlanDoTrack, which is specifically geared at supporting remote and virtual workers around productivity. The first part of the book is a workbook, helping you get focused in on you (your strengths, styles, approaches, networks) as a remote worker. The last half is dedicated to providing you with a planner – with a focus on annual, quarterly and weekly planning. My findings have been over the years that most remote workers are well covered with daily planning tools, but don’t always focus on weekly, quarterly or annual tools.   Activity Use the following questions to reflect on what’s important for you around productivity and time management right now: 1. What's helping me/us get results? (Get specific around this - what key activities or practices are helping?) 2. What's not helping me/us to get results? 3. Where is the bulk of your time being spent? If you are not yet tracking some of your key metrics and schedule, now is a great time to do so. It can be as simple as noting it in your calendar, or picking up a resource like my upcoming Plan.Do.Track workbook and planner. 4. What are noticing about key periods that are unproductive? 5. Where might you be spending too much time in meetings? What influence can you have on tightening up meeting results and focus OR exploring who needs to be at meetings? 6. What are you doing to renew? 7. From a scheduling perspective, are you building in enough blocks to get tasks completed right away before you have to switch your focus? 8. What other changes would you like to make to your schedule, to do more of what's working, and to do less of what's not? For more on this topic check out: Section 4 of the PlanDoTrack Workbook and Planner for more on time management and tools. Enjoy! Jennifer Jennifer Britton
Co-host of the Remote Pathways Podcast Potentials Realized – Coaching, Training and Consulting Services for remote teams, leaders and professionals Check out the most recent Remote Pathways Podcast Episode, where we explore the people, places and processes of exceptional remote work. You can listen to the latest episode here, or on your favorite podcast player. |
AuthorThe Remote Pathways blog follows many of the themes we explore in the Remote Pathways Podcast. This year (2020) we're proud to bring you a 52 week-series for you to follow along throughout the year. Posts are penned by co-host Jennifer Britton, an avid award-winning blogger for many years. Jennifer is the author of five books. Visit her author page on Amazon. Archives
September 2020
Categories
All
|
RSS Feed