#28: Leadership Teams: How Often Do You Talk Ways of Working?

I'm going to suggest that it is either 'We once did some years back', or 'We haven't.

In James Kerr's book 'Legacy: What the All Blacks Can Teach Us about the Business of Life' the ruby players talk about being a team and improving as a team a lot. In business, leadership teams talk a lot about the business, customers, production problems, and so on, but very little about their effectiveness as a leadership team.

The All Blacks work ON their business and business leadership teams work IN their business.

I'm not advocating such a dramatic change as business leadership teams completely switching to working ON the business because business still needs to get done - the In the business part.

However, I am suggesting that business leadership teams are so busy 'doing the do' that spending a little time on their team performance would bring significant improvements to their business. No longer should team effectiveness be reserved for the once-in-a-lifetime team away day, but instead become a regular part of business life with small and consistent behavioural changes, whcih will yield huge gains.

How? Try any one of these options:

Option - Ask the Capability Question

1. One of the leadership team asks the leadership team, 'How would you rate us as a leadership team, out of 10?'. Gather the answers by everyone writing their number on a page, so as not to influence each other.
2. 'What one thing could we do to improve our score significantly and quickly?'. Gather the answers by everyone writing their number on a page, so as not to influence each other.
3. Write the list of improvements on a board with numbers. Each person votes for a number. The most votes win, and someone agrees to make it happen.

Option - Ask the Capability Question of the Teams

An anonymous survey asking the teams that report to the leadership team, 'What one thing would you like to see improve within the leadership team?'.

Option - Complete the Drivers Questionnaire

Understanding ourselves is the key to understanding others. Kahler's 5 drivers provides a fascinating insights into what drives us.

By completing the free questionnaire you can find out why you do what we do. For example, if you have the 'Be Perfect' driver it will affirm the reason you put in the extra effort at the last 5% of a presentation when everyone else thinks it's done.

Find out which driver you are...

• Be Perfect
• Hurry Up
• Please People
• Be Strong
• Try Hard

...By completing this questionnaire: https://www.makingbusinessmatter.co.uk/drivers-questionnaire and then discuss as a leadership team by first guessing what each person is, and then do the reveal.

Option - Personal Values Leadership Team Discussion

Each of us values different things. Some, lean more towards family being the be all, and oithers ambition, and so on. Finding out who values what helps us to understand each other better and then to know why conflicts happen. For example, you value intimacy (knowing about each other personally) much more than I, so when I don't share what I did at the weekend, this is the reason.

Either simply print a list of values from a Google search or Clare Walker created these very easy to use Personal Values cards: https://amzn.eu/d/fZJ22vd Perfect for a discussion on person values.

Option - What is Your Productivity Headroom?

Learn, as a team, 3 productivity power habits; 1. Assess - Eisenhower's Matrix, 2. Prioritise - Eat That Frog, and 3. Focus - Cabbage Butterfly.

They will become your productivity superpowers.

Learn these habits as team by using this Weekly Planner:

• Buy a Be Your Eagle Daily Planner (US Amazon): https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D1GN37WB?ref=myi_title_dp
• Buy a Be Your Eagle Daily Planner (UK Amazon): https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0D1GN37WB?ref=myi_title_dp

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