Team building

Does This Sound Like Your Corporate Culture?

Sandy Gluckman — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 18:18:20 -0500

Something For All Involved in a Corporate Culture To Think About

Ability to Change by Ted Eleftheriou

Ted Eleftheriou — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 01:56:00 -0400

It is Leadership Character that Will Get Us Through this Recession

Sandy Gluckman — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 12:03:49 -0400

Two Kinds of Leaders

So if you have been reading my blogs – firstly I thank you, and secondly you will know that I come from the platform that there are two kinds of leaders – those who lead with ego and those who lead with spirit.

Picking Up the Pieces After a Lay-off

Roberta Matuson — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 10:16:16 -0400

Laying people off is difficult. Picking up the pieces after a lay-off is even harder. The survivors, who are “the lucky ones”, are forced to take on more of the work, put in additional hours and in some cases take a pay cut. Your first instinct might be to jump right in and help with the tasks that must be done. A noble thought. However, your employees need more than another set of helping hands. They need a strong leader, who can help them move swiftly through this difficult period of time.

The following five tips will help you get your team back on track after a lay-off:

Average - by Ted Eleftheriou

Ted Eleftheriou — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 20:33:56 -0400

This past weekend I met with a good friend at where else…? Starbucks. We chatted for a bit about our families, the economy, weather, and as usual: golf.

When All Else Fails... Try the Opposite!

Ted Eleftheriou — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 19:44:27 -0500

Each of our children has their own jar. Whenever they perform some act of kindness, complete a chore that is required of them, or do something unexpected and/or extraordinary, they receive a little plastic token to add to their containers. My wife and I decide what is token-worthy AND how many. Putting their dishes in the sink after eating may earn them one token… while sharing the last ice cream sandwich with their sibling without being told to, may earn them three.

And Now for Something Complete Different...

Ted Eleftheriou — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 00:51:15 -0500

4-bbl carburetor, 305 (5.0-liter), V8 engine; coil-sprung MacPherson struts up front and live axle with coils in back; Cherry red exterior with gold-metallic trim; custom gold-detailed aluminum wheels; T-tops; velour seats; fully electronic instrumentation featuring a bar-graph tachometer a

What Does Your Personal Brand Look Like?

Ted Eleftheriou — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 20:12:38 -0500

Seth Godin has done it again. Seth has written a great post (which all of his are) about personal branding and the effects that the Internet can have on your career... good or not so good. Check it out at. And while there, sign up to receive his posts directly to your email. Like you should with mine as well... if you haven't already (little plug):

Thank You for the Thank-You Note

Ted Eleftheriou — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 14:16:26 -0500

Just the other day I observed my son diligently scribbling on a yellow piece of construction paper. It was a thank-you note to the family that gave our family our newest member: Sebastian (of Guinea Pig decent).

Our “fridge” is covered with unsolicited pieces of paper with heart-felt gratitude from our kids to my wife and I. Sometimes for something as little as allowing them to stay up past their bedtime to watch a Disney movie on TV.

Is Your Resume Written in Code?

Ted Eleftheriou — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 06:20:42 -0500

In their best-selling book, Made to Stick (Random House), authors Chip and Dan Heath tell the story of a study conducted at Stanford University by Dr. Elizabeth Newton. She assigned people to one of two roles: “tappers” or “listeners.”

Tappers received a list of well-known songs, such as “Happy Birthday” and “The Star-Spangled Banner.” They were to pick a song and tap out the rhythm by knocking on a table. Listeners on the other hand, were to try to guess what the song was.

A Resume By Any Other Name...

Ted Eleftheriou — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 00:41:16 -0500

Business As Usual?

Ted Eleftheriou — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 15:29:01 -0500

Daniel H. Pink's book, A Whole New Mind (Tom Peters says, "This book is a miracle." Seth Godin says, "...one of those rare books that marks a turning point." Ted Eleftheriou calls it "brilliant." :)), is a book that will challenge your way of thinking about education, careers and the way us humans think. Here's an excerpt:

Front Line Leadership that Builds GREAT Teams

Damian D. "Skipper" Pitts — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 00:22:13 -0500

So, a team is what you are hoping to build? But, what kind of team? A team who uses the academic approach to getting things done or one that brings real-world experience to the situation at hand? What criteria, then, do you use for choosing your teammates? Team building programs during the late 80's and throughout the 90's took place in the woods at the height of the now infamous ropes courses.

Take the "Great American Small Business Challenge"

Michael Kramer — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 17:28:02 -0400

How prepared is your company to weather the current economic storm? Does your company have the organizational flexibility and resiliance you need to remain successful? Now is the time to consider ways to make your company more efficient, cost-effective and relavant to your customers, employees and community.

Leadership Lessons from... Mt. Everest

Michael Waddell — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 21:29:59 -0400

Michael Useem is an avid mountaineer, a university professor and a successful author. So it is only natural that he uses mountain climbing as a metaphor to teach leadership development.

According to Useem, Mt. Everest is among the most demanding of
nature’s 'classrooms'. Success requires that those who aspire to such a
heights put aside their personal interests for that of the team they
are climbing with. The leadership demonstrated by the individual
guiding the team to the summit makes the difference between success and
failure.

Considering a Team Building Experience?

Damian D. "Skipper" Pitts — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 09:14:10 -0400

The Bison Group, a team of U.S. Marines turned business professionals, the dominant and domineering provider of team building maneuver course-management programs for the business marketplace, has become the military style training organization that many leaders and educational officials love to hate. Especially when they fail to understand the similarities between the battlefield and the boardroom, classroom or marketplace.

Star Power: Dr. Andrews' Patient List is a Veritable Who's Who of Sports

Ellen Gibson — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 18:45:07 -0400

Click to view th Star Map

1. JOHN SMOLTZ, Tommy John surgery, shoulder surgery;

The Most Valuable Player in Sports is ... this Doctor

Chuck Salter — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 19:30:20 -0400

What Word of Mouth Marketers can learn from the Spice Girls

Jeff Brainard — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 11:51:11 -0400

Okay so the Spice Girls are nothing if not old pieces of pop culture that 90's kids will look back on and say, "I can't believe we listened to that." Still, for some reason their first hit Wannabe was so played out I hear the tune in my head some days. Today a strange thing occurred, a combination of hearing this tune in my head and being in a groggy daze from using too much bleach to clean my shower this morning caused me to hear the girls singing as a customer giving advice to a marketer.

When Performance Reviews Underperform

Mark Goulston — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 17:49:57 -0400

Many people suffer from performance anxiety when it comes to giving or receiving employee performance reviews. By inadvertently colluding to get through the process as quickly and painlessly as possible, managers and subordinates squander a great opportunity to positively affect performance, productivity, and results for their company, as well as help both the manager and the subordinate succeed individually.

These observations come as no surprise to either manager or subordinate. So why the avoidance?

There are a number of reasons:

To Grow Your Firm, Put the Brakes on Bad Habits

Keith Ferrazzi — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 17:49:52 -0400

To err is human, to knock it off is divine.

We all have habits that hold us back in the workplace because they make it difficult for colleagues to respect us and to enjoy working with us.

You may already be aware of some of your issues. (Two of mine are avoiding necessary conflict and talking over people.) But you may have no idea how problematic these behaviors are for your colleagues.

Separating the Cream from the Crap

Mark Goulston — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 17:49:48 -0400

10 Ways to Frustrate and Squander the Cream of Your Crop

Unclear vision from the top
A mission that seems meaningless
Little or no strategy
No system for holding people accountable
Having a system for accountability but not using it (a.k.a. the slackers get to slide by)
Mediocre managers who lack clarity, commitment and passion are difficult to respect
Rewarding mediocre people whose only skill is knowing how to work the system
A culture rife with whining, complaining, blaming and excuse making

The New Guy

Keith Ferrazzi — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 17:49:46 -0400

You're likely going to have a new co-worker soon -- maybe several of them. Whether someone new steps into your workplace or you're changing jobs yourself, the introduction of someone new into the workplace is like the arrival of a present. Everyone wants to peel back the wrapping and see what's inside. Over the years, I've learned a few important principles.

High-Tech Gear for Olympic Athletes

Paul Hochman — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 12:30:07 -0400

Beyond the double glass doors, out past the marble fountain burbling near the Tiger Woods building, a billion perfect blades of grass stood at attention. Songbirds twittered. Sunlight shone. Flags fluttered over twin soccer fields so plush the pitches looked like swimming pools. All was as it should be on Nike's Beaverton, Oregon, campus: perfect.

Team Building - X-Teams and Searching for Gold

Dr. Scott Simmerman, CPF — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 17:31:29 -0400

I produce and sell team building games for leadership development. Since this is my first attempt at a blog, let me start with a simple article I produced about using our flagship game for the purpose of producing high performance teams and organization-wide impact: