TEAM BUILDING STRATEGIES WITH TRIP

Photo credit: Jason Goodman of Unsplash.com

TEAM BUILDING STRATEGIES WITH TRIP

This TRIP Tip starts a four-part series on “Team Building With TRIP”! This is something that I’ve been wanting to do for some time now. Over the years, I’ve been involved with a lot of teams in volunteer work, boards of directors, the U.S. Army, and corporate America etc., and it is always a lot of fun, but sometimes frustrating. It’s that frustration that I want to eliminate with a TRIP roadmap to successful team building,

How can TRIP help with team building you ask?  By using it backwards! Huh? Yup, we will start with “Purpose” instead of Tenacity. The series will move from purpose to imagination, to resilience, and lastly to tenacity.

When you look at TRIP from this reverse perspective it becomes clear that it flows naturally in team building and task completion. As with any project you must know your purpose first, so that’s where we will start.

The components of team building starting with Purpose are:

·      What is our purpose/goal?

·      Why is it important?

·      When will we know who our teammates are?

·      How will teams set their goals?

·      Where will we work virtually/in-person/both?

What is our purpose/goal?  The team leader must illustrate this concept as he puts his team together. Once everyone is on board with a solid understanding of the purpose or goal they will be working toward the rest falls into place more easily.

Why is it important?  The team leader will also stress the importance of the mission. This could be a new product, new concept, project or many other things that needs a team to accomplish. Understanding the importance builds a cohesive unit who will want to support one another.

When will we know who our teammates are? There are often teams within teams and knowing who you will be working with is important to form the bond of individual specialties and differences.  Your team leader will have this prepared in advance.

How will teams set their goals?  The team leader may assign them or give the team autonomy in what they do first to accomplish their tasks. Sometimes this is a team exercise in and of itself and can prove fruitful if planned and executed well.

Where will the team work…virtually/in-person/both?  This will also be a team leader decision to assign directly or indirectly with the team. Some members may work better virtually in the middle of the night while others need to see the team members during the day time. This is where accurate and effective communication will pay great dividends as the team learns to work together.

These types of strategies will be only as strong as the team leader who will set the stage and pace for the work to be completed. A fair amount of advance planning on their part will help with a quick and efficient start. Celebrating the small successes in the “Purpose” phase with team member recognition and possibly a pizza party or a new team building exercise that is fun will go along way to helping the members bond and learn to trust each other.

Here are some fun team building exercises:

• During the workday set up a 500 piece jigsaw puzzle and try to complete it as a team in a specified time.
• Brainstorming sessions have always been a favorite of mine...pick a problem about  the project and brainstorm a solution.
• Take my TRIP Technique Assessment(R) and openly share your results and discuss the suggested actions.  This will share a little about each members personality.
• Lastly, have a contest like who can bring the best cookies, or who has the best desk decorations on the 4th of July or Halloween.

Obviously, there are a lot of ways to start building a new team and this is my take on it.  I’ve utilized much of this type of plan in my life, and it has served me well.

I hope this first step to understanding team building with TRIP has opened your eyes to a different way to look at it.

Next up will be how to use the “Imagination” phase to your benefit and build a team that is full of creativity and energy, and some new exercises to build new pathways to great communication!

Remember, take a TRIP for a lifetime, not a trip of a lifetime.

Keith……