Team Building Tip: Take Time to say Thank You.

Recruitment and retention specialists will tell you that compensation alone will not secure high performing teams. People like to be recognized by the organization for both effort and results. Recognition can be in many forms including awards and praise. The key point is to provide the recognition regularly and do it sincerely as false praise can harm morale equally.

By having regular times that you get together with staff you can share milestones and progress made, things needing to improve, and go over lessons learned from the past.

Celebrate success with fanfare and exclamation. By emphasizing the achievement of the team goals, the message will be clear. Allow for others to provide positive and constructive feedback as well. It will energize everyone.

Team Building Tip: When you should not follow orders

Half a league, half a league, Half a league onward,
All in the valley of Death Rode the six hundred.”Forward, the Light Brigade!”Charge for the guns!” he said: Into the valley of Death Rode the six hundred.

“Forward, the Light Brigade!”Was there a man dismay’d? Not tho’ the soldier knew Someone had blunder’d: Theirs not to make reply,Theirs not to reason why,Theirs but to do and die: Into the valley of Death Rode the six hundred.

Cannon to right of them, Cannon to left of them, Cannon in front of them Volley’d and thunder’d; Storm’d at with shot and shell, Boldly they rode and well, Into the jaws of Death, Into the mouth of Hell Rode the six hundred.

This excerpt taken from poet Alfred, Lord Tennyson’s Charge of the Light Brigade highlights what can happen when we are vague in our communications, don’t use a feedback loop and blindly follow leaders. 278 casualties out of 600 original British soldiers resulted from this battle in 1854 during the Crimean War between the British and Russians. In fact the brigade attempted a much more difficult objective than intended by the commander, Lord Raglan.

While an organization like an army would be deemed dysfunctional if nobody followed orders or requests, good organizations allow for constructive feedback before execution of plans. High functioning teams brainstorm, test ideas and allow different points of view before blindly following one person’s vision. Likewise, a confirmation process ensures that the team is heading in the right direction.

Note: We will continue to be open for groups in January and February 2012. Call to arrange an outing or click here to email. We also bring our highly regarded teambuilding programs to your space.

Team Building from where I sit.

There is an interesting movie called Vantage Point that shows the same scene over and over from different points of view. Each person’s perspective is colored by his or her background, culture, values, and physical vantage point. It is interesting to see how so many people can see the same event and recall it differently.

The same is true for your workforce. Depending on a person’s background, education, upbringing, and position in the company, they can view a project or challenge much differently. Part of this is their role in the firm. The other part is dependent on their vantage point.

Companies that solicit and exchange these different points of view may take a little longer to get results (not necessarily) but excel from being open and seeing a problem or opportunity from these different perspectives. Sales, support, production, finance and logistics see problems from how it affects them. The key is to constructively share these perspectives and develop an action plan that uses the talents and wisdom from those involved.

If everyone in the company is a stakeholder in the outcome, they will work together to achieve the best result, especially if they are part of the problem solving or creative process .

Avoid Death by Powerpoint

Most people don’t like meetings. Why? They are boring and slow. Spice up your meeting with an energizing program from Terrapin Adventures. Our entertaining facilitators will get your people thinking and moving. We have developed uplifting and fun programs from 2-4 hours at your location or meeting site. Using our portable equipment we focus on five areas.
• Getting to know each other on a deeper level.
• Building trusting relationships.
• Understanding and developing better communication skills
• Stimulating creative problem solving and being open to different points of view.
• Collaborating as an effective.

Team Building Tip of the Month: Aligning Incentives

If your organization is not getting the results you want, maybe you are rewarding the wrong things. Often we find companies that want their teams to work together but the company incentive system focuses rewards on individual or department goals. Thus a group or individual may be doing their task well, but at the expense of the overall product or output.

Many organizations success depends on solid hand-offs and coordination between departments. Production, sales, and customer service departments must work together to meet customer demand and expectations.

In complex processes, it helps to have regular meetings between departments to share information. Many creative solutions come from people with different perspectives.

Consider incentives for staff that reflect both their individual, department and overall company success in achieving tangible goals. Periodically review these goals to make sure everyone is aligned. People are smart and will do what they benefit from. Make sure it is the right thing.

Team Building Tip of the Month: Plan first, then Act.

I had the privilege of meeting, Ed Deming, considered the father of Quality Improvement. He is perhaps best known for his work in Japan. From 1950 onward, he taught top management how to improve design (and thus service), product quality, testing and sales (the last through global markets) through various methods, including the application of statistical methods. His adage was that you don’t achieve quality through inspection. Rather, you improve quality by doing it right the first time. Whose has time to do something over again because of errors or poor execution?

At Terrapin Adventures, we often see team building groups full of enthusiasm jump into solving a challenge without taking the time to plan ahead. Sometimes it goes well and sometimes not so good. As in life, groups often feel time pressure or fall into familiar patterns without considering alternatives and different points of view.

By taking the time to discuss options, gain consensus, and clarify what each team member will be expected to do improves the result. Yes it may take more time, but satisfaction is increased because agreement was reached and communicated to those involved and affected by the task.

In complex projects and tasks, there are multiple steps to achieve the goal. Often the preceding step(s) affect whether the subsequent tasks go well. Teams need to understand how what they do impacts the overall project and that excellence comes from the overall success not just their piece.

Adventure Race for a good cause

Locals that would love to compete in their own Amazing Race, just like the TV show are in for a treat. A race has been designed where competitors can run, crawl, climb, jump and swing over nine obstacles through Savage Park, it’s called Terrapin and the Hare 5K Adventure Race and it’s being put on by our neighbor Terrapin Adventures as one of the many community activities they run to raise money for charities. Many are already signing up to join Terrapin Adventures in their goal to raise money for Playworks DC, a charity that supports learning by providing safe, healthy and inclusive play and physical activities to local low income schools.

The event takes place May 15th from 8:00 am to 11:30 pm starting at the Savage Mill parking lot next to Terrapin Adventures. Local sponsors include: RamsHead Tavern, Earth Treks and REI. If you don’t want to partake, you can cheer on your friends. Lots of prizes and t-shirts for walkers and runners will be given out. Cost is $25 plus a minimum donation of $25. Supporters who would like to partake in the alternative one mile walk pay $15 plus $25 minimum donation. Those interested should visit www.terrapinadventures.com to register.

For those that have not experienced it yet, Terrapin Adventures is located at Savage Mill off routes 95, 1 and 32; guests can spend an hour or the whole afternoon having fun and learning new skills. This unique outdoor adventure center has guests scaling one of the 12 routes on the Terrapin Tower, conquering all 25 High and Low Challenge Course Elements, experiencing 2 G’s of force on the Giant Swing, and enjoying the thrill of gliding through the forest canopy on a Zip Line. Terrapin Adventures is also helping guests explore Maryland nature with kayaks, bikes, horses and even geo-caching. For more information visit www.terrapinadventures.com or call 301 725-1313. Let yourself soar!

Team Building Tip of the Month: Laughter Is A Gift That Should Be Shared

I have some long time friends that always make me laugh out loud when I see them. Not just a chuckle, but the kind of laughter that brings tears to my eyes and makes my stomach hurt! I feel rejuvenated after their visit.

Too often we take life too seriously and get bogged down in life’s details to enjoy the tonic that comes from laughter. Laughter relaxes the body and mind and helps keep things in perspective.

Clever jokes, funny stories should be shared. Recalling or telling a joke or story makes everyone feel better. People who share funny anecdotes or self- deprecating humor puts others at ease and builds for stronger relationships.

Communication Keys: Listen With Your Eyes and Ears

When you meet someone, ever notice their posture and expression. Are they friendly, cautious, confident, aggressive or passive? Much of what people say has nothing to do with their words. Their body language indicates whether they are open or closed, interested or not.

While words are important, it is important to understand if your audience is receptive to your message or are they just being polite. Eye contact and a forward posture indicate they are engaged. Crossed arms usually means they are closed but they could also be cold.

To get a feel for your audience, ask an open-ended question that requires the respondent to put together their thoughts. This will provide a hint to whether they are receptive to your message.

They Got It But Do They Get It?
In this age of electronic communication, we are quick to communicate, often in an abbreviated fashion. People may get your text, tweet, email or voice mail but do they get it? To ensure you not only received the message but also understand it, paraphrase it back to the sender being specific about the who, what, where, when, and why? This takes time, but the specificity will prevent misunderstandings later.

Collaboration: Getting Everyone On Board

We have an exercise called the Australian Trolley where a group needs to coordinate moving a pair of two by four beams. It looks simple to do but is hard to coordinate. Successful teams communicate up and down the line about the goal (getting to an end point) and how to execute a plan (working in unison to move the boards in an alternating fashion).

Another exercise we use is called Bull Ring where anywhere from 8 to 15 people must raise a ball that is balancing on a metal ring with strings and move it to another resting place. This requires clear communication, someone taking the lead, and accepting different points, as depending on where you in the circle, the task looks different.

As in the real word, we sometimes add complexities (needing to change positions on the Australian Trolley or blindfolding some of the team members during Bull Ring) to mimic constraints and on the fly problems that come up in real life.

In both cases, teams must collaborate to be successful. Keys traits of high performing groups include:
• Clear communication of goals, plan of action, who is doing what by when
• Ability to adjust on the fly when problems or hiccups arise
• Openness to different points of view as individuals bring different strengths and perspectives to solving a problem.
• The incentives of the group are aligned so that everyone benefits from success.

Terrapin Adventures does team building year round. We can run programs inside and outdoors, at your location as well as our own at Savage Mill.
Call for details or email your inquiry to info@terrapinadventures.com .