How to turn your employees into a team, and why you even want to! Team Building: How to turn your employees into a team, and why you even want to!

Why do you want a team? TRAINING: “My role models in the business were the older guys on the team… These were the guys who really took me under their wing, and really schooled me in terms of what the business was about.” – Julius Erving EFFICIENCY: ACCOUNTABILITY: MORALE:

Teams Win Together “The way a team plays as a whole determines its success. You may have the greatest bunch of individual starts in the world, but if they don’t play together, the club won’t be worth a dime.” – Babe Ruth The inevitable bad day. The inevitable good day. “That’s what makes it so fun to be on a team. You’re sitting at your house, thinking up this wild, crazy stuff as to how it’s going to go, and the other guys are sitting at their houses doing the same thing.” – Bill Walton

Who is willing to Sacrifice? “I am a member of a team, and I rely on the team, I defer to it and sacrifice for it, because the team, not the individual, is the ultimate champion.” – Mia Hamm “A team will always appreciate a great individual if he’s willing to sacrifice for the group.” – Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

Coaching Your Team “I think what coaching is all about, is taking players and analyzing their ability, put them in a position where they can excel within the framework of the team winning.” – Don Shula “I’ve always found that the speed of the boss is the speed of the team.” – Lee Lacocca “A team takes on the personality of the head coach” – Ricky Williams

Cardinal Rules of Teams: Don’ts GOSSIP: You absolutely must stop talking behind anyone’s back, and stop tolerating other team member’s gossip. We’re not in High School. YELLING: If you are screaming at people, they are not on your team. Forget your football coach’s approach, and work WITH your people. If you feel the need to yell, figure out why that is, and deal with the problem at a reasonable speaking volume. NOSE RUBBING: Your team members are not your dog, do not rub their noses into the carpet. Most individual discipline should be done in private. Group discipline is appropriate when the whole group is at fault. COMPLAINING: Team leaders should not complain. Not ever. Not even about the weather. Complaining does not change anything, and your team is focused on action. PROCRASTINATION: Do what you say you are going to do. Period. If you are unsure if you can do something, state that. Under promise, over deliver. SLACKING OFF: This refers to during work hours while you are at work. Owners deserve time away from the business, but not in front of employees. No one needs to know whether you are playing golf or working from home. TALKING DOWN: Never, ever talk down to one of your team members. Stop referring to people as employees and start referring to them as team members or co-workers.

Cardinal Rules of Teams: Do’s ASK for the teams advice, one on one and in a group. PRAISE positive actions in front of the team. MAKE PEOPLE FEEL SAFE to voice their opinions by validating them – even if you disagree – and taking them seriously. LEARN all you can about your team’s jobs/responsibilities/strengths/weaknesses. ADMIT what you don’t know and what you are learning. Admit mistakes. COMMUNICATE all expectations, in writing as much as you can. STAY POSITIVE even on a bad day, show that the team will succeed. CHALLENGE people to think outside the box or come up with new ideas. MEASURE team performance and make a big deal about the numbers weekly. REWARD & CELEBRATE teamwork both randomly and on a schedule. FIND OUT more about your team’s lives, interests, activities. BE ACCOUNTABLE and hold the team accountable to goals, numbers, etc.

Meetings Weekly department meetings Weekly managers meetings Monthly company meetings Be prepared every time. Share numbers every time. Stay on topic. Do more listening than you do talking. Make them as short as possible. Write down anything you say you will do and bring that same piece of paper to the next meeting.

Team Building Ideas: Summer family outing Christmas party Potluck lunches Bring in doughnuts/fruit/something for everyone Weekly/Monthly e-mail or memo to everyone Raise cans/donations for a food drive or charity Pay for employees to do a 5K together Slow pitch soft ball team Bowling league Sports brackets Night at the races Sporting events “Good Vibes” Candy Jar

Now What? CONSISTENCY ACTION REACTIONS EDUCATION Culture changes Management changes Employee changes Job security Growth