Our Roles with the Team….

There is no greater joy than working as part of well-grounded team, one where everyone fits into a certain role. However the reality is that the role we often start out with is not the one we actual ending up doing.  I think this something that Meredith Belbin was aware of when he created his team roles back in the 1960, as he thought most people would display elements from two or three roles, and could or would adapt to cover others if needed.

Our team started out well, with three out of the four of us being able to meet in person, at first just for coffees, a getting to know you situation. And later on to discuss the upcoming team report and the work that would needed to be done and various team roles. We were a group of strong independent personalities with an unknown source in our fourth team member. 

Gabrielle went first, in labelling herself a Shaper, Implementer, Completer Finisher and Team worker. In looking at her contribution to the team, and while she may have started as Shaper this style of leadership did not work well in our diverse group of people, some of us being more bound to give everyone an equal chance to participate. Another more appropriate role for her too was that of Specialist, as she did provide insight and technical expertise in her portion of the report.  And she certainly has been a great Completer & Finisher, with picking up typos and spelling mistakes during our various draft reports before finalisation.

Christina was our unknown resource, as due to other commitments she was unable to meet up with us, she was also the youngest in the group.  Well she didn’t get to show any leadership style, she was a great asset to the team, being a Specialist, Team Worker and Completer Finisher.  Her ability as a specialist to research and break down information was of a great help, she went about her assigned tasks promptly and efficiently, and kept this up when even on the other side of the world.  Without her dedication and help, during the finishing phases I think we would have struggled more than we did. 

And then there was Jindina, an excellent Co-ordinator, Plant, Team work and a Completer Finisher, with just a little touch of perfectionism. She worked tirelessly organising brain storm ideas, and structures for the team to develop as a whole, a true plant.  She listened and worked well with all of the team, and was certainly diplomatic when required, but she really came into her own as a Completer Finisher, where her eye for detail and style created a smooth flowing document.  However in true fashion of a Completer Finisher, right up until the end, when I as leader put my foot down, was still worried about details that she thought we all might have missed.     

And then there is me, someone who really doesn’t like labels.  If I am honest I am Team Worker, Resource Investigator and Co-ordinator.  I took over the leadership mantel of the team, and tried to encourage everyone to communicate with each other, and had call to on my diplomatic skills more than once, when errors in communication and understanding threatened to become arguments.   As a Resource Investigator, I use my connections and contacts to secure our interviews at what is a difficult time of year due to holidays.  But above all I worked as part of the team to support and assist where ever possible and when needed.  

That leaves one role which I think the three of us who were able to meet up, all filled at various times, that is Monitor Evaluator.  As we bounced ideas around, keeping some and discarding other we each had our own input to this role, all be it for only a small period of time.

It’s always hard to label people, and some will think “but I am more than that”.  I can’t say that this has been my favourite exercise of the entire course, but it is a necessary one when coming to understand the dynamics behind the team structure and how it works.   

The good, the bad and the ugly of public speaking…..

I am lucky, I love to present and public speaking does not phase me the way it does others.  I have had my share of presentations that have simply not worked, and other that have exceed all expectations.

My Love with public speaking started at high school, when I was chosen to represent my school in a speech completion hosted by the local Rotary club. My topic was one I felt very strongly about and had been highlighted in the media, and by several high profile rock stars.  Back then there was no internet to help with research; it was all done through newspapers, journals and TV news programmes.  So with help from my Mother (she was a teacher at the time) I was launched into my first every public speaking event, and I loved it.  The thrill of standing up and having people focused on you, and only you.  After winning the local competition, I was ready to go up against the big guns in Whangarei; I was excited and been practising like mad.  Then the ugly hit, I had been told the wrong day, deliberately by one of the local Rotary members. Why?  As it turned out they were upset that a girl from the wrong high school (me) had been identified as the one person who could win the overall competition, and they had never had anyone get that close from the their local high school.

After high school I went to Teachers Training College, it was then a separate entity from Auckland University, where I joined the debating team.  So not quite as bad as public speaking on your own (part of three member team) there was still the thrill of speaking and politely arguing in public. But it never quite given me the thrill that public speak did.

On I went into the work force, and while at the BNZ I was introduced to Toast Masters, which ironical covered the good, the bad and sometimes the ugly of public speaking.  It was here that I learnt to control my Mm’s, Uh and Aar’s, was made to ensure that I knew my speaking topics and subjects.  I also learnt what it was like to be given a topic on the night and have to speak for two minutes, without the support of planned speech, or the chance to research.  It really taught me how to think on feet.  Like most environments however there was the bad and ugly side, where those giving the feedback made it on occasion, personal and not constructive, but this was only on rare occasions.

Last year I was asked at the last minute to do a presentation to number of staff from around the country at company meeting   (bad) .  I had little or no time to prepare slides, so went without.  That was a brave and stupid call as few got disinterested during the presentation and started talking among themselves (ugly).  So I stopped what I was talking about and reminded the few that where intent on personal conversations, that I had given my time and that I would appreciate their attention.  They stopped and actual started following what I was talking about, and soon realised that my subject matter was important (good).  After I finished my presentation, many came up said they were surprised by handling of the few (everyone who had presented had let them carry on), and where excited and interested in what I had to say.

So there it goes the good, the bad and the ugly all in one presentation that was a last minute request, but it was my love of speaking that made it possible.

The Tea in Team & Endless Emails

I have tried to start this particular blog about team work at least twice and each time I have ended up with writers block so to speak. 

Tonight however as we read the final draft of our report over endless cups of tea and a few more emails. it made me realise what made our team work so well.  It was a little thing called balance, communication and appreciation.

The report we had just written was truly a team effort, where everyone contributed what they could, when they could.  Yes, we had disagreements about how certain sentences should look.  Yes we got tired and snappy with each other, but at the end of the day we had one common goal which had drawn us together.   Writing this report!

This is what had drawn us together, four people who didn’t know each apart from what we had put as an intro on a university streaming session.  A brief description of what we hoped was our strength and not our weakness.   And our main desire was that we hoped to meet in person, to create a bond that would survive completing a group assignment.  

After the first round of emails confirming details, we arranged to meet to break the ice and put faces to names, first snag only three of us could actual meet up, so an endless chain of emails started to include all the team.  Over coffee and cakes we talk about our study plans, what we were looking for in team mates, and what we thought would be a good arrangement to get the team working going forward. 

Communication was always the point, if one person couldn’t make meeting we send out emails, minutes, reminders of things that need to be done.  We worked to our strengths, which became apparently quite early on.  One was an organiser, who planned and brain stormed.  A further member was a great researcher, who had an eye for detail.  Another motivator, who talks and encouraged and kept us all to deadlines, yes even when I was dragging my feet, and me.   I was the person with connections, the interview arranger.  

What one may have lacked was balanced by someone else, and we brought differing points of view.  Sometime complimentary to each and other times having to remind each other that we were entitled to differences of opinion.  We have also taught each other about environmental issues, and raised awareness about recycling (something we actual bonded over).  We played to each other strengths, and help were we thought there may be weakness.

So over many cups of tea our report was written and reviewed, then reviewed some more with more tea and the occasional sweet treat.  In the end it was true team effort, and one in which everyone (I hope) appreciated all the feedback, and seemingly endless reviews, and cups of tea & emails . I know I certainly appreciated everyone’s efforts.

This quote seems more than appropriate “No man is an island, entire of itself” (John Donne) as there is no team, if one person considers themselves an island, which none of us did.

 

 From: A Selection from the prose by John Donne

Over Enthusiastic Me…..

Like most people I do not think I am a natural born leader; in fact it’s not even a role that I actively seek out but somehow end up doing when in group situations.  Many people tend not to want to take control; they fear offending others and sometime lack the confidence to confront difficult situations and people. So if I am not a leader what would type of role would I prefer?

Being social and fairly outgoing (I do have moments of total introversion where everyone and the world are locked out); the first role that comes to mind is that of the Resource Investigator (Belbin 2013), an idea’s person.  As the role suggests I like to explore the opportunities that come my way, whether they be personal or professional.  I do this by talking to people and getting them to talk about their points of view, listening to what they say, taking an interest in them.  Sometimes thought this isn’t easy, and it like talking to a post, as no matter what you try they just clam up and withdraw.  This normally happens in competition type situations where the other party has just realised that I am trying to work out their strategies for whatever is happening competition wise. 

When I find a project that I am really excited about my enthusiasm can carry me away, and I have to realise that not everyone maybe as excited as I am about the project.  I always hope that my enthusiasm will spill over to others, so I will have someone that feels just like I do, and are prepared to put their heart and soul into the project along with me.  And also that when my first flush of enthusiasm wanes, theirs will then lift me up, and excite me once again.  It always to helps to find that person especially if other are just more oh-hum about what is happening, and I try not to let them drain my enthusiasm and excitement. 

In the past I suggested a work social team, as it had been noted that office was somewhat lacking in a happy jovial atmosphere.  My idea was that each person would organise a different social event or activity for the office as a whole, and I had suggestions coming out of my ears so to speak.  So I was duly appointed by our General Manager to organise the first event, which had to be based in the office (it was just prior to Easter).  I decided that an Easter egg hunt would just be the ticket.  I organised clues, teams and nice chocolatey surprise at the end.  While most of the company caught the buzz (only one was not really invested and he was excused on age), and raced around the office looking and trying decipher clues to find the end hiding spot (there where a few red herring along the way).  In the end everyone got at least one Easter egg to take home, and a lot to eat during the rest of the day.  After this initial rush of enthusiasm and I handed it over to others to take the lead and organise more events, while I sat back and basked in a happy sugar laden glow.

References:
Belbin Associates. (2015). Belbin Team Roles. Retrieved from:
 http://www.belbin.com/about/belbin-team-roles/ 

Building a Team…

Most people will tell that they love working in teams, that they get support from each other and encouragement to carry on, press forward so to speak.  Someone to help smooth the way when all they want to do is crawl into the big black hole of study.  This is exactly what happened last time when I worked as part of a group.

The paper was Integrative Accounting, a wonderful paper that talked not about measuring growth in monetary numbers, but the green issues that companies now face.  The offset for carbon credits, the development and support of communities and other charitable organisations.  During the course of this paper we were assigned to groups or teams of five to develop a report and presentation, much like we are doing now.  So here were five people who had never meet before and had to find common ground to work through the issues that we had been presented with. 

I was lucky as one of the ladies that had been assigned to my group I actual knew, not well, but I had done a few contact courses with her.  So I had some idea of her personality and her working style.  She in turn knew one of the others in the group quite well as it turned out, and knew that we would work well as team, but we really weren’t prepared for the other two team members, and thought that our core three would be able arrange most of the stuff that needed doing.  Boy, were we wrong! It was a large assignment with a very complex presentation. 

The first meeting was an eye opener, as one of the group disagreed with everything anyone said, it had to be her way or the highway.  Another just sat there not really joining in in any of the discussions.  She then admitted she had to leave 30 minutes after the meeting had started due family commitments and felt like she could not add any input as she was behind in her study, which she hoped to catch up with in the next week.  So our first meeting was a bit of wash out and did exactly accomplish anything in regards to the team structure or roles.  The only thing we all agreed on was the topic, and that was only because we had to submit it for approval.

The second meeting was a little better as the team member, who had disagreed with everyone, on the first occasion, was more agreeable this time around, and actually helped with really good suggestions as to team roles.  It turned out that she had just come from a difficult personal situation in which she had been made to feel undervalued and taken advantage of.  AS she said it had affected more than she appreciated, and that she hadn’t meant to let it affect her in her studies.  However the one with family comments was a no show and no one had heard from her.  The advice of our tutor was to continue to develop the team and the presentation, assign her a role and try to keep communicating with her via email.

Somehow in the end we got there (after several other meeting with missing team members), just the four of us as we found out much to our horrification that our missing fifth member had been subject to domestic violence.  None of us had thought to ask her if everything was okay, we just steam trolled ahead focusing on what we had to do, and not the personal development side of the group.  It taught us all a great lesson that not everything is what is seems.  She was able to join us for the presentation on the day, slightly battered and bruised, but very happy that despite her problems, we still included her in the presentation, and helped her through the day.  What it taught me is well we may work in a team; we need to be able to communicate with each other not just on professional/developmental basis, but also a personal level, not in-depth but nice level of personal awareness.

The Positive Spirit of Christmas.

For many Christmas can be a very stressful and expensive time.  There never seems to be enough hours in the day, and money which has normally budgeted down to the last cent just to make ends meet needs to be stretched even further.   For many there is not happy glow just a feeling discontent, uneasy and unhappiness.  That everyone else has something that they don’t, or that they need what everyone else has to be happy.  So what need to happen to change the mood of the season from frown to a smile?

What we need to focus on is what we actual have in our lives. It may be that we have good health, great friends and a place to call to home.  People that keep us centred, help us feel loved.  A lifestyle that is easy to sustain. But then comes a long Christmas and the pressure to do everything, from seeing people we really haven’t communicated with since last Christmas, to buying expensive gifts that we really can’t afford, and then to eating and drinking just a tad too much and not really enjoying any of it.  So how can we use positive psychology to change this around?    We plan and focus on what we need, may be the following steps will help. 

Step one:  Remember that before the silly season started, that we normally planned what we were doing, with whom and how much time, money and effort was involved, this is something that we should be kept up.  And we shouldn’t accept every invite that we receive, especially if the people involved don’t or aren’t support of our life choices.  This will help eliminate some of those feeling of discontent as we won’t be comparing ourselves to them.

Step two: Plan and buy present early, and remember it’s hard to meet everyone expectations of what they hope to receive.  If the gift comes from the heart and is given with love, then hopefully the recipient will love it too. If not maybe they have issues and it not your responsibility to make them happy all the time.  

Step three: The food doesn’t need to be restaurant quality it just need to be prepared with love and a little bit of salt and seasoning.  Plan for the number of people that will be with you on Christmas Day, don’t be afraid to ask people to bring a favourite dish or contribution to the meal.  After all you don’t want to spend the entire day cooking, cleaning and doing a never ending pile of dishes.

Step four: Remember it should be about family and friends, not about the commercial experience that is being sold to us by the marketing companies.

Above all if we focus on what we can do, for ourselves and each other rather than the focus is on the positive, of what we have and not what thing we should have a do.  This is what positive psychology is all about, the focus on what we have that makes us happy. 

So to all, I wish you a Merry Christmas……..

Two Sides to the Aurgument.....

There are always two sides to any discussion or argument, a right and wrong (depending on your point of view), for or against.  In the case of border security and the Queensland Fruit Fly invasion there are strong arguments on both sides. Most articles I found represented a very balance approach, but one or two focused on errors or solutions.  And sometimes they were years apart. I cannot say this is my preferred style of writing, to sit down and analysis articles for how the write felt or what their motivation is, as I am not them, but I will try my best.  

There was an article published in 2012("Fruit fly find sparks call for better biosecurity in NZ,"),which questioned whether or not our current system where working effectively.  The writer was obviously involved in the horticultural industry so therefore may have had a financial stake at risk. This threat of a fruit fly invasion was something that threatened part of his income and possible lifestyle.  His objective was to raise awareness of the situation and what they thought where the issues.  This while it was a shorter article, clearly indicated the horticultural body had a vested interest in getting to the bottom of the issues and felt very strong that there was something wrong with the current system that was in place.  They actual stated that they were advocating for better biosecurity. 

The for in this argument came a few years later (2014) there was article that once again, that contained references to a possible fruit fly invasion, but this time it to focused on eliminating an entry point for the fly. ("Sea-dog helps hunt for pesty stowaways in Northland," 2014).  It talked in general terms of protocols introduced to help with yacht and vessels entering in to New Zealand waters and the checks that had now been updated to include the use of dogs and MPI inspectors.   It focused on what had been identified on what was seen as problem entry point.  The accent of this article was very much from the point of MPI, sings it praises and showing the steps that had been taken to prevent any further fruit fly invasions, by sea.  To me, while this showed the positive steps that had been taken to eliminate a threat, it felt like a piece of propaganda feel good material.  And yes that effective, as it make you focus on the positive and move you forward.    And let’s face who doesn’t like reading about animals.   

AS you probably see from the Bibliography below bother articles came from the same publication and only a few years apart.  My conclusion is that well we may agreement against a point or situation in the end what we really want is move forward and focus on a solution, the positive rather than the problem, a negative.

Bibliography

. Fruit fly find sparks call for better biosecurity in NZ. (2012). Orchardist, 88(2),12-15

Sea-dog helps hunt for pesty stowaways in Northland. (2014). Orchardist, 87(9), 22-23.