Team Building: 10 Practical Tips that Work
Posted on October 20, 2010 by Guy Farmer, One of Thousands of Leadership Coaches on Noomii.
Want your team building to actually work? Use these practical tips to get the most out of your team building activities in the workplace.
Many organizations try to do team building only to find that their people revert to old behaviors quickly. The reason this happens is that it takes time for team building to take root and grow in your organization. If you think about it, it took a certain amount of time to create the culture that currently is practiced in your workplace so it will naturally take time to establish a new way of doing things. Here are ten practical tips to help you get the most out of team building.
1. Leaders participate fully and set a positive tone.
2. Team building is taught to employees at every level.
3. A one-hour time block per week is set aside.
4. No interruptions or piggybacking on other meetings.
5. No using phones or texting in any way.
6. Leave egos at the door, everyone is equal.
7. Use a seasoned, neutral facilitator for activities.
8. Do activities that build deeper interactions.
9. Practice new behaviors over time.
10. Evaluate how you’re doing after six months.
The key to successful team building is to do activities that bring people together on a deeper level and help them acquire skills to keep the momentum going. It’s best if we practice team building over time so that everyone gets used to doing it. Once people know how to do it, it becomes second nature and your workplace becomes one of collaboration and shared purpose. The only think missing is your decision to start doing it.
Take care,
Guy
