Quote of the Week

“Relationships of trust depend on our willingness to look not only to our own interests, but also the interests of others.”

– Peter Farquharson

Get to Know Each Other: It Dramatically Changes the Relationship

by Peter R. Wilkinson

There is great team building power in getting people to know each other outside the work environment. That is because the dynamics of their relationship changes, and therefore, their behavior towards each other changes.

What we know about our co-workers in the workplace is largely related to work. However, when we interact with people in a social setting outside of the workplace, we usually talk about family, interests, and other non-related work topics. Once we have done that, we now know each other as human beings, in addition to co-coworkers. Consequently, our relationship has changed, and we generally react to each other with a lot more concern. Normally, we become more supportive and that new relationship usually generates a more cooperative and productive relationship at work (Wilkinson, 2008, p. 66).

From: Wilkinson, P.R. (2008). Aha: insights for effective leadership and management. Baltimore: Publish America.

Reprinted with permission from the OSU Leadership Center, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, (614) 292-3114, http://leadershipcenter.osu.edu.

Coaching Call to Action

A client recently came to me with the objective of building trust and teamwork with his colleagues. One of the underlying actions was to do just as Wilkinson said – increase personal relationships at work by increasing interactions with colleagues through lunch and dinner meetings, informal hallway conversations etc. An interesting offshoot to this action has been self awareness in two areas: the desire to connect with people about non work issues and an increased interest in the listening side of communication.

This week consider who in your organization you’d like to know better. Step out on a limb. Connect with someone where your relationship is less than ideal. See what happens.

Community Involvement

February 26, 2009
Pounce on a Project II – 2009

Last month we worked on moving a marketing plan forward, getting email in-boxes cleaned out and completing items on a procrastination list. Here are what a few folks said:

“Getting started is such a big help and gets you on a roll.”
“It feels really good to get rid of stuff!”

What project would you like to get on top of and accomplish this month? Come to Pounce on a Project II – - 2009. Join Coach Andrea on Thursday, February 26th from 9:00 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. Eastern. We will join as a group by phone and declare what you want to accomplish: getting taxes ready for the accountant, cleaning out those boxes in the corner, getting your website finished or make cold calls.

During the morning, the group will gather by phone a few times to check progress and get any support needed to finish with a bang. At noon, the group will celebrate their accomplishments. Who says projects have to be boring and tedious? Bring your lightness and fun and join us for the energization.

To sign up or learn more, call or e-mail Andrea by noon on Wednesday, February 25th. Feel free to share this with friends and co- workers, the more the merrier. (Cost of the program is only the cost of long distance phone calls.)

Other articles you might be interested in:

1. Life Under a Microscope

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