#122: Create High-Performance Teams That Do Extraordinary Things Every Day

Introduction

Today, on the "People Skills" newsletter, we're showcasing 12 of the best videos from one of our favourite expert presenters, Dr Liane Davey.

At Manage Train Learn, we've been a fan of Liane's for over 25 years, especially her videos on teamwork and communications.

In her "About Me" bio, Liane describes herself as follows:

"I've never climbed Mount Everest (and never will). So far, I've never been in space. I don't even have an Olympic gold medal (although I did win the Grade 9 Phys Ed award). But the prize for solving the most difficult team challenges is named after me (no, not really, but someday it probably will be)."

And our bet is that she will win that team challenge prize one day.

So, why not find out for yourself whether Liane Davey is also your cup of tea...

01. "Right Words to Say - When You Need to Say No"

It’s important you say “no” every now and again if you want to work well with your team, but if you’re too blunt or you don't explain why you need to decline a request, you're probably going to ruffle a few feathers!...

02. "Right Words to Use When You're Scared to Disagree"

Being able to disagree respectfully is one of the best ways to bring your full value to your team. But often we can feel like being the one to disagree makes us come across as argumentative, like we're holding the rest of the team back...

03. "Right Words to Say When Dealing with Passive-Aggressive Behaviour"

Passive aggressive behavior can be one of the most difficult issues to deal with on a team. It's an insidious form of conflict because the concerns are masked and hard to recognize, let alone deal with...

04. "Right Words to Say When Giving Feedback to a Leader with Low Self-Awareness"

I was asked a question by an audience member at the XL Leadership Summit. She interacts with a leader who talks a lot about excellence, but has very low self-awareness about how he comes across.

I answered by giving her a simple formula to follow to provide effective feedback to someone with low self-awareness: Situation, Behaviour, Impact, Question...

05. "Right Words to Say to Show You're Listening"

Listening is a critical part of communicating effectively, building trust, and creating sustainable team effectiveness. We often think that listening uses just the ears, but the Chinese character for 'listening' includes pictures of the ears, heart and eyes. Are you using all of them when you listen?...

06. "Build a High-Performance Team in 4 Actionable Steps"

Team building can be superficial and is usually only a band-aid on underlying mistrust and dysfunction. To build healthy, vital teams, you need to improve alignment, awareness, and the team dynamic...

07. "The 5 Things You Can Do to Make Your Team More Effective"

Too often, people point to their teammates or their team leader as the source of dysfunction on their teams. They also wait for other people to make the changes that will improve the team. It's time to realize that YOU are the one who can change your team...

08. "You First as a Team Member - Start with a Positive Assumption"

Starting with a positive assumption is one of the simplest means of building team trust and (leaders take note!) is an excellent way to facilitate team cohesion. When you short-circuit your biases and unpack your emotional baggage, you can truly appreciate the value that your teammates bring...

09. "You First as a Team Member - Add Your Full Value"

You can change your team for the better. Show up, get off cruise control, and bring the benefit of your experiences, your relationships, and your personality instead of just doing what is in your job description. You owe it to your team to draw from ALL of what makes your value truly unique...

10. "You First as a Team Member - Amplify Other Voices"

Are there members on your team who never get to share their viewpoint, or that get shot down when they do? If this is happening on your team, you can be proactive in making a difference. Loan your credibility and your airtime to teammates whose minority perspectives are usually shut out of the discussion...

11. "You First as a Team Member - Know When to Say No"

We tend to think that saying "no" makes us a bad team player. I mean, doesn't being the one to always say "no" make you negative, pessimistic, difficult? Well, no! When you're able to say "no" to things, you're better able to focus on the things you've already said "yes" to....

12. "You First as a Team Member - Embrace Productive Conflict"

Your team needs productive conflict. It allows you to tap into the value of different points of view by disagreeing about the issues in a way that promotes understanding and reduces defensiveness....

What Next?

If you have worked through each video in this newsletter, you will now have a great set of resources on the topic of "Teamwork".

Now's the time to build on what you've learnt.

With over 22,000 learning resources on our 6 websites, with 2 sites offering free downloads, you can now take charge of your own learning and apply what you have learnt in your work and day-to-day life.

With regular daily practise, reflection, and review, you will be amazed at how quickly the skills will become second nature to you which in their turn will increase your personal confidence.

Well done and good luck!