Delegating or assigning tasks and projects to someone else, can be very difficult to do. You may not want to ask for help or be anxious to prove that you can do it all. However, delegating can be one of the most liberating things you do for yourself and help with your career. Delegating can be seen as training and offer value to your company and accomplishments to your resume.

In today’s business environment, learning to delegate projects is especially important because we are all challenged daily to do more. If you are a manager or a small business owner, delegating can make the difference between profit and loss on your bottom line. Avoid the trap of believing the old axiom “If you want it done right, do it yourself.” Do not listen to that little voice in you that says, “it will take extra time to train and I can not be sure of the results or that the person will complete the task”.

Think of delegation as allowing others on your team to learn from your expertise, you’re giving them an opportunity to grow towards their potential and reach their career goals.

Even if you are busy right now, before you begin, take a little time to sketch out a basic project time line.

Doing the research helps you to implement the training plan. It may seem like a lot of work in the beginning but once this outline is developed you can use it over and over.
A good way to set the stage with your team is to sit down and find out what they want from their career and plan a course to help them get there! Create win win right up front!

Delegate tasks that provide your team ‘along the way’ opportunities to use as learning steps towards their career goals. If you do not delegate and take the time to train your team, you may be keeping all the growth opportunities for yourself!

Here are some steps to consider as you prepare to delegate:

• To maintain responsibility for the output of the project you’ll need to plan ahead.

Prepare a timeline outlining all the tasks/projects on the left and the dates they need to be completed to the right. Also schedule in regular follow up dates to make a progress check. Later, you can fill in the person’s name to whom the task has been assigned.

• When you meet for the first time with the person you have chosen, outline your project simply and ask for feedback on the project and the timeline. If you can, adjust your timeline to accommodate their input - this opens the door and moves you into the mode of collaboration and gains buy in from your helper.
• Build trust and strengthen your role as a manager by letting your helper know you will be following up on these dates ahead. Use positive language to support your team and let them know you are in this together. If appropriate, praise past accomplishments and link them to the present task.
• Plan to celebrate. Plan an opportunity for everyone to get together to share the stories of their personal success and tie it into the team’s success.

Last but not least, always have thank you/success note cards ready to let people know you appreciate their contributions.

Like this article? Feel free to reprint it. Just make sure you include the bio box below. Thanks.

© Cheryl Scoffield, Personal Shopping Assistant, Strategic Partner. All rights reserved. Cheryl is the founder of Imperial Personal Assistant a service which supports busy professionals by acting as the organizational hub for shopping and administrative support. Get the professional help you need!

Call 1.866.642.5145.
Email info@ImperialPersonalAssistant.com

People of all ages in business make the mistake of seeing the whole of their world in a mirror image of their own reflection. In all cases this level of ego has more disadvantages than it has advantages. They disrupt teams or prevent teams from forming. A brief description of my top five observations of people exhibiting this characteristic are:

1. The Sales Gun

This is the sales person in retail or commercial sales who has a successful method that works for them. They regularly win sales awards. They regularly exceed target. They are great rapport builders and/or great closers of a sale. Their methods at times may sail close to the limit of what the organisation wants to represent their values. However, they get the sale.

They don’t know too much about the organisation’s products. They have been tried as a sales manager but it was not for them. They have tried to coach junior sales people but only those people who think like them seem to be able to learn from them.

The sales gun as described above has a narrow focus around what has always worked for them. New ideas are to be treated in a satirical fashion or ignored.

Their inability to assimilate new ideas may be acceptable if life is not changing. They resist change. In any organisation undergoing significant change, the sales gun described as above is usually a casualty. That is because they are afraid to move out of their comfort zone.

2. The Autocratic Manager

What they say goes. To the point of what they say but not necessarily what they do. If it is a marketing campaign we are testing the only opinion that counts is their opinion. It does not matter that they are not typical of the target market. They will determine what advertising will work.

If they are an operational manager, only their experiences of people count. Only their experience of technology counts, even if it is outdated. Only their experiences of distributor characteristics and behaviour count. Only their experiences of the market count.

Managers like these can be successful for a period of time. However, life and the business, at some stage, pass them by. But not before they frustrate the talent coming through the organisation into leaving for another division or another organisation. Not before they reduce the initiative shown by individuals to rubble. Not before they make errors which they typically assign responsibility for to someone else.

3. Everybody’s Friend

Their key, and perhaps only, skill is to build rapport. They influence other people to see their point of view. They see rapport building as more important than critical reasoning and understanding their target markets. They see rapport building as more important than understanding the cost and success drivers of the organisation.

Their success is built around being liked. Their field of view is that limited by a mirror. When they are not liked they see that as a failure. Even in positions of power when they have the ability to push through an unpopular initiative that is right for the time, they refrain from doing so because of the impact on their relationships.

They are accommodators and manipulators. They are good for the social fabric of the organisation but not for its longevity.

4. The Poor Questioner and Listener

They hear the first two to three sentences before beginning to formulate a statement about the topic of conversation. The statement may be a personal anecdote. Or it may be a reinforcement of the first few sentences uttered by the speaker. The statement may be a rebuttal. The words forming in their mind may be one of many kinds of statements but is never a question.

Never an open question asked to elicit information. Nor even a closed question to seek confirmation of what they heard.

They, therefore, go off on a tangent, interpreting the words they did manage to hear using only their mental dictionary. What they do hear they filter based on their upbringing, mood and thinking styles. However, they are not deterred by not actually knowing what was said in getting their own view across.

The liking for the sound of their own voice knows no bounds. These characters have not only a detrimental impact on the relationship with the individuals they deal with, but a detrimental impact on productivity. For example, projects are subject to the meandering of poor communication skills, becoming inefficient and ineffective.

5. The Joker

Everything that can be said or written is subject to a satirical or ironic line. Not a few one liners to break up a serious meeting, but a string of one-liners during the whole meeting. Every announcement is a comedy subject. Every training session is a time to giggle.

These disrupting, attention seeking misfits are better off trying for a stand up spot at the local comedy club than a professional role in an organisation. The issue is not that they use humour. It is that they always use humour, with everything that is done or said fair game for a comment. So much so that one wonders if they have ever had time to think about a subject.

People who prevent teams from forming or disrupt existing teams are a large mitigator of productivity and morale. They should be given ultimatums to change their behaviour or leave.

Kevin Dwyer is the founder of Change Factory. Change Factory helps organisations who do do not like their business outcomes to get better outcomes by changing people’s behaviour. Businesses we help have greater clarity of purpose and ability to achieve their desired business outcomes. To learn more or see more articles visit http://www.changefactory.com.au or email kevin.dwyer@changefactory.com.au ©2007 Change Factory

In honor of the anniversary of John Lennon’s death, I have chosen this topic. Imagine you were going on a very long, perilous and important trip. If you survive the trip, you will be rewarded with great wealth, leaning and satisfaction, but, more importantly, huge personal growth. The journey is through a treacherous and threatening environment, much of it uncharted and unknown. And you have no idea how long the journey will take, or how you will reach the destination. In fact, imagine if you didn’t even have enough resources at the start to complete the journey – you just have enough to get started. You will have to create new resources along the way.

Now imagine you were given the opportunity to select a group of friends and fellow travelers to accompany you on this magnificent mission. You will have to trust your success and even survival to these people. You will endure difficult and dangerous challenges and threats. There will be the temptation of greed, fear and unexpected obstacles and rewards. What kind of people would you choose? What characteristics would you look for? How would you test them? After all, your very life and indeed your future fortunes would be in their hands!

Imagine you have to make a list of the qualities you will look for in this team. Now make the list. Name twenty qualities you would not compromise on. What would they be? Courage, consistency, reliability, integrity? Honesty, confidence, steadfastness, dependability, fidelity, loyalty, constancy? What else? How about boldness and valor? Would you really be interested in their resumes, university degrees and past experience, or would character be more important? Now here is a shocking suggestion: how many people do you now know and do business with that would fit that profile?

Business is very much like the journey I have just described. Those whom we choose to travel that journey with, the team we select, the joint venture partners we pick, can and do make a massive difference. We need to be very vigilant and selective. Look out for red flags. Watch your associates very closely and carefully put your team together. Whenever you see a wolf among the sheep, cut bait fast. Don’t discuss it or rationalize it. Don’t justify or excuse it. See it for what it is and remove it.

The most valuable asset to any business is our associates and the people we work with. When you find good people, stick with them. Support them, encourage them, reward them and honor them. They’re hard to find. Business is an exciting journey and it’s wonderful to be able to travel that journey. The rewards are magnificent. “You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one. I hope someday you’ll join us…”

Motivational Quote

“You make your own dream. That’s the Beatles’ story, isn’t it? That’s Yoko’s story. That’s what I’m saying now. Produce your own dream. If you want to save Peru, go save Peru. It’s quite possible to do anything, but not to put it on the leaders and the parking meters. Don’t expect Jimmy Carter or Ronald Reagan or John Lennon or Yoko Ono or Bob Dylan or Jesus Christ to come and do it for you. You have to do it yourself. That’s what the great masters and mistresses have been saying ever since time began. They can point the way, leave signposts and little instructions in various books that are now called holy and worshiped for the cover of the book and not for what it says, but the instructions are all there for all to see, have always been and always will be. There’s nothing new under the sun. All the roads lead to Rome. And people cannot provide it for you. I can’t wake you up. “You can wake you up. I can’t cure you. You can cure you.” - John Lennon

About Robin J. Elliott

For more than 19 years, Robin J. Elliott has worked with thousands of businesses in over 49 industries across the United States, Canada, and Africa. He specializes in helping small business entrepreneurs build wealth and gain access to new markets and profit centers through Joint Ventures. Through his Joint venture Seminars across North America he has thought thousands how to create increasing, multiple streams of income without cost or risk and very little time.

Get Robin J. Elliott’s FREE: “How To Grow Serious Wealth Using Joint Ventures” Mini-Course, and The Prophet of Profit e-Zine along with video blogs, world class articles, free video, and access to top Joint Venture Partners at http://www.jvwisdom.com

Corporate communication, corporate culture, corporate event, corporate governance – the word ‘corporate’ is often used to refer to something ‘relating to a corporation’; but it also has another, an older meaning - ‘united or combined into one body’. When speaking about organizations, the image of the body perfectly reveals the principles of their operation: each person in the group has their function, there is a strong coherence between the members, and everyone is working as one. This is precisely what corporate entertainment is for; namely, creating bonds and enhancing relationships to make individuals work as one body.

An entertaining event, be it outdoor activities, travel or a party, not only makes people get together, but also creates the sense of unity. Entertaining activities encourage communication between colleagues, team members, subordinates and superiors. People have the chance to get to know each other better. Contrary to work environment, relaxing activities extend relationships into more than job-related conversations.

Entertainment incorporates the human element into relationships both within and outside the company (depending on the audience) which is equally and sometimes even more important in building or improving relationships.

In the ever more demanding work environment it is easy to slip into tensions, misunderstandings, and conflict, which do no good for the corporation. Changing the environment and a bit relaxation while taking part in entertaining events helps the participants get rid of everyday stress and enjoy each other’s company. Thus relationships between team members, business associates, companies and their clients are being based on positive emotions, which have a great impact on people’s behaviour in their social environment and performance at work.
One of the forms of corporate entertainment where shaping relationships is practically the aim is team building events. Through entertaining activities that require the contribution of each member and a common decision, the group receives a dose of positive emotions and learns basic teamwork skills at the same time.

In a corporation, corporate entertainment may enhance interpersonal relationships in a number of ways: it inspires communication, helps to sketch relationships on a positive-emotion background, provides relaxation, reduces psychological tensions, and instils the spirit of team in the participants.

Donatas is an author of the most corporate entertainment
and incentive travel articles on the official Team Holiday web site.

Putting imagination to work as a “hard edged” business tool for accountability and creating sustainable business outcomes

Imagination has long been thought of as a soft, “feel good” concept that has no place amongst the hard edged realities of the business environment. The latest developments in Neuroscience, Quantum Physics and Solution-Focused Brief approach to change make it clear that nothing could be further from the truth however.

Harnessing your and your team’s imagination, in other words, focusing on “what is possible” is proving to be one the most effective methods to achieve sustainable business outcomes.

Conventionally team building and facilitation work focus on “solving the problems” or the dis-functionalities of a team and by so doing aim to encourage the team to become more efficient and achieve ever greater things. This approach has often been found to have limited success for 2 main reasons:

1) Energy flows where attention goes

2) Sustaining change is hard work….

What do those statements mean, how do they impact people management and team building processes and what is the way forward?

To start with the first statement: Energy flows where attention goes:

One of the counter-intuitive but by now well established principles of Quantum Physics says that the act of observing an object affects the state of that object, in other words an object (an atom for example) does not exist in isolation from the input of the observer. So it is with the brain. The developments of new brain scanning techniques (FMRI for example) have led neuroscientists to conclude that the brain functions as a Quantum process. At a very simplified level, this means that when our brains have developed a map or circuitry around a “problem” and we decide to “work through” this problem we actually strengthen the circuitry. By focusing our attention on these “problem” connections we actually create more and more of them. In other words when we workshop a problem with someone or a team, we set ourselves up to fail in the long run, because all we are doing is making it bigger and stronger all the time.

The Difference that Makes a Difference Solution-focused and strength based work takes the opposite route. It asks you to imagine: “If this is the problem you don’t want to have anymore… what would you like to have instead?” It asks: “What is the preferred future?”, and “What is smallest difference, that makes a difference, that will move you one little step closer to the preferred future?” By doing so the brain starts to make brand new connections. The process of creating new connections releases lots of positive energy. Harnessing this energy by taking concrete steps and committing to new constructive actions starts to cement the new circuitry.

Sustaining Change This brings me to the second statement above. It is all very well to have this rush of positive energy, but it doesn’t take long before the gravitational pull of doubt or habit drags us back to our old familiar ways and ancient problems and the beautiful new connections that we formed only a few days ago whither on the vine. Before we know it things are back to where they were and all we remember is that there was something very pleasant about that hour or that day during the coaching session. The hoped for sustainable change evaporates.

Solution-focused brief coaches and facilitators take the next step to nurture the new connections and help them grow big and robust and overgrow the old “problem” connections. We do that in a number of ways but first and foremost this is done through committing to action. What are you going to do from today, tomorrow, next week? What specific, measurable actions are you prepared to commit to, to move closer and closer to the preferred future. What are you prepared to experiment with, something small, but something different, something you haven’t tried before. We do this at every coaching session, and it is one of the crucial differences between Solution-focused Team work and other forms of team building. We write the actions and experiments down, and then we follow up. This is where accountability comes in. You and the team commit to specific measurable, achievable actions, and you know you will be held accountable to those actions at the next session, by the members of your team, by the coach, and most importantly by yourself.

It is this rigorous follow up and accountability that really sustains the change and nurtures the growth of the new circuitry in the brain. It will motivate you to keep moving forward to your and your teams preferred future, relentlessly transforming your imagined future into your day-to-day activities.

Further Reading:

- Team Coaching with the Solution Circle by Daniel Meier

- Quiet Leadership by David Rock

- Brief Coaching for Lasting Solutions, by Insoo Kim Berg

- Solution Focused Coaching by Anthony Grant

Article by Roland Hanekroot, New Perspectives Business Coaching, Sydney Australia, http://www.newperspectives.com.au,

email roland@newperspectives.com.au.

Take your business to the next level and keep it there!

The comfort one feels when eating a hamburger, hot dog, and other barbequed specialties is undeniably one of the best aspects of a fun summer picnic. That is why thousands of employers are choosing to show appreciation for their employees by hosting annual summer picnic events.

The company picnic is a great way for employees to see each other outside of the day to day routine, offer teambuilding activities, and a great way to offer some relaxation in a busy time of year. But with every company picnic, the common question is: “What will every one do?”

This is where inflatable games come in.

They offer something for everyone, whether it be an interactive game, a fun activity, or simply a visual appeal, inflatable games can serve many purposes. The right selection of inflatable games and rides for a group can be decided by looking at several variables.

The first thing to consider is the size of your group. The last thing you want to do is have a small amount of entertainment for a large crowd. There is nothing worse than having a bounce house be the sole attraction at an event that should have higher capacity inflatable toys!

Higher capacity inflatable games like slides and obstacle courses offer the ability to handle more participants in an hour. They offer approximately 3-4 times the throughput a standard bounce house can provide. Jump houses/bounce houses are great for special events and parties, but when you have a big crowd – it is always recommended to rent an inflatable slide or obstacle course to keep the lines down and your guests happy. (There is nothing worse than standing in a long line on a hot summer day!)

Many company picnics have long standing traditions of Softball games, volleyball tournaments, or like activities. These organized activities are great for teambuilding. A bungee run, inflatable joust, bounce house, slide, or inflatable maze can compliment the organized activity, or even act as great tools for teambuilding. Offering other ancillary activities like carnival games, pony rides, petting zoos, and even field games can be a great way to make sure there is something for people of all ages at the company picnic.

In today’s world company picnic entertainment is blossoming into a specialized industry, and industry professionals are becoming very skilled with the proper way to present event entertainment options and provide activities for the entire group. Finding a professional picnic entertainment provider for your event is just as important as finding a good catering company to provide the food at the picnic! In some situations you can find a planning company that will handle all aspects of the event, so that as the person in charge- you can sit back, kick up your feet, and enjoy the company picnic!

Brendan Eveland is an entertainment industry expert with over 10 years of experience in the field at company picnic events across the Pacific Northwest. A partner owner of the Pacific Northwest’s leading picnic and entertainment provider, Clowns Unlimited, he has helped to develop the areas leading team of event planners who specialize in entertainment! See the website @ http://www.clownsunlimited.com where there is a huge selection of inflatable games and entertainers for company picnic events!

Who would you be if you weren’t in charge, and if you weren’t in control? Do you have the self-esteem it takes to risk looking foolish? Are you willing to “put it out there” in a big way and trust your teammates to catch you if you fall?

What would happen if you had to find a way to agree with the present moment? Would you have the courage to allow the flow and stop resisting “what is?” Are you willing to accept or even agree with others even when you don’t fully understand their point of view?

Depending upon your role in your company, owner, president, employee, entrepreneur, you’ll have a standard “seminar answer.” If you’re on the top rung of the ladder you’ll say something like “I’ve been to Covey’s Seven Habits Training.” If you are on the middle rung you’ll say something like, “I teach this stuff and have developed the material.” Or if you’re on the bottom rung you’ll say you’ve been through the “ropes course” at the company retreat.

Although these courses and methods are valuable, if you want to know the skinny on these answers to these questions, take the eight-week course at the Skinny Improv. The Skinny Improv is a comedy troop in Springfield Missouri. The troop performs every Friday and Saturday night, and offers lessons to anyone who wants to learn the same skills to use in business or in life. If you have an improve troop in your area it is worth the personal investment. You’ll learn a lot about team building and even more about yourself. Here are some of the lessons I’ve learned after six weeks of investing in myself for the training.

Lesson One: It’s not about you.

Although you are on the team, it’s never really about you. It’s about making everyone else look good. When you do your part and your intention is to be there for the other team members, then everyone is a star. It’s not your job to get the limelight, to get the last word or deliver the funniest line. It’s your job to make everyone else look good. When you focus on yourself, you do so at the expense of the team. In the business world being competent in lesson one will work magic for the team and work miracles for customer service.

Lesson Two: Go with the flow.

In Improv, you never know what the other person will do, so it’s easy to get thrown off guard. When you are caught off guard, the natural response is to resist instead of looking for agreement. When you are used to being in control it’s difficult to let go. If you are in a position of power you are used to planning and facilitating but you forget what it’s like to participate. It’s easy to ask others to step up but when you go with the flow you become a participant instead of the controller. So often in the business world we resist and stress over the current situations instead of looking for opportunities to go with the flow.

Lesson Three: Trust is paramount.

In order to have a great team you must trust that your team members are there for you. They will rescue you when you stumble, they will catch you when you fall. After all, they also believe in the philosophy that it’s not about them, but it is about making you look good. What goes around comes around. The end result is a great customer experience and in Improv the audience is the customer. In the business world your end result is to satisfy the customer so that you can keep them. You do this by making sure the team supports each other so that they can deliver the end result.

Lesson Four: Judgment blocks success.

It’s impossible to be creative in the midst of criticism. It doesn’t matter if the criticism is directed toward someone else or yourself, judgment blocks the flow of energy. It takes discipline and practice to learn how to suspend the gremlins in your head that tell you how stupid you look and it takes a conscious positive intention to allow others the same courtesy.

Lesson Five: Growth takes courage.

In order to learn something new we have to be willing to leave our comfort zone momentarily and that takes the courage to risk. When you believe that everyone on your team has your best interests at heart, and that you will not be judged your capacity for courage is maximized. You can only risk when you have trust, when you have learned to go with the flow, you let go of judgment, and when you’ve been on the giving and receiving end of the philosophy that “it isn’t about you.”

Marlene Chism works with people who want to stop the drama and take charge of their lives.
To learn more about life purpose, the Karpman Triangle or the Three Life Tragedies go to http://www.stopyourdrama.com Marlene is available for speaking engagements by calling 1. 888.434.9085.

ATTENTION NETWORK MARKETERS

Is your downline shrinking faster than a grape in the California sun? Or worse, does your downline look more like a dying vine than the vibrant and healthy wealth generating machine you envisioned when you first got started with your business?

If that sounds familiar or it is an accurate description of your team, then there is hope for your sickly, frail, lethargic business because the Doctor is IN the house to help you.

Are you interested in learning how you can put 3-5 new reps into your networking business day in and day out without fail? Knowing what your comp plan pays, what would happen to your weekly checks if your business was growing at that pace? Get my FREE power call and get started on the road to financial freedom and start fulfilling the dreams that got you into network marketing in the first place.

Oh, I’m sorry, you’re not getting weekly checks? If you’re not, then maybe what your MLM business needs is a CHECK UP.

Like any patient, your business needs a doctor. Consider me to be your MLM health practitioner and I have the prescription for getting you and your networking business earning six-figures within 12 months so that you can enjoy the success your hard work deserves. I’m willing to bet you didn’t get into your networking business to fail. So, why do you settle for mediocrity? If you are not putting 20 to 30 people a week into your business, then you’re settling for mediocrity. Let me help prescribe the antidote to mediocrity and pump up your downline as if it were on steroids.

Have you ever wondered how the people on stage at the business meetings that you’ve attended got up there in the first place? My fellow network marketer, you might be surprised if you only knew the answers. You will learn that and more when you get the FREE power call. Get the prescription that will have prospects seeking YOU out instead of you chasing them.

No need to bug your friends. No need to bug your family. No need to spend evenings in another hotel meeting hoping that your prospect will join you. No need to purchase a bunch of flashy flyers or mail postcards. There are other ways to grow a business explosively.

If you’re ready for the doctor to fix what is ailing your business, then log onto my website to get your FREE Power Call invitation right now.

For those that ACT NOW I’ll also send you three fantastic secrets that those guys on stage dont want you to know. I’ll bet that they keep telling you to continue bugging your friends and family until you get three signed up and then you go out and help them get three? Well, how’s that working out for you? Are you still trying to figure out that binary thing?

Its no wonder you have a headache my friend…but I have the prescription you seek that can have your business in PROFIT in no time at all by putting 3-5 people a day into your business. Get the FREE power call and start making the money that attracted you to your opportunity in the first place. It can be done once you know how. Get the call now.

Steve Alan Chambers is a retired 22-year veteran of the USAF. He lived in Europe for 10 years and has lived in the Tampa, Florida area for the last 12 years. Steve has been involved in numerous network marketing company’s since the 1980’s and has built several business that have sustained him and his family through the years. He has been married to his lovely wife for 28 years and they have three grown children. Steve’s passion is music, motorcycling, and the company of good friends. His goal in life is to teach the world to sing in perfect harmony…(lol).

This past fall, I received a call from Mike Kirsche, who told me a fascinating story about how the CEO and President of his company, Michael R.Hecomovich, along with a group of 10 executives, created and built a high performance global sales and marketing organization that has close to 0% turnover every year, and where salespeople (called team members) consistently meet or surpass targets.

Hecomovich founded Global Marketing Services (GMS) in 1998, in response to a request from IBM, who was searching for an outsourcing partner to handle U.S. and European sales and marketing for its printer supplies products. GMS now has 28 employees throughout North America and Europe who operate virtually, only meeting face-to-face as a global team once a year.

From the beginning, Hecomovich envisioned the company would operate on the principles of teamwork, co-operation, collaboration, and servant leadership. About a year into the business, he attended a meeting where management guru Ken Blanchard spoke about his book Gung Ho! The concepts in the book gave language and structure to what he and his executives were doing, and so was born the simple-to-understand-but-hard-to-sustain GMS’ formal emphasis of their Gung Ho culture.

‘Gung Ho’ is a Chinese word for working together. It describes boundless energy, enthusiasm, and dedication to a task to achieve results. Blanchard’s book is packed with invaluable information as well as a fascinating and compelling story.

The three Gung Ho management principles are presented as an allegory: a retelling of an organizational turnaround based on three Native American lessons. In The Spirit of the Squirrel, the lesson is the power of shared values and seeing work as important and worthwhile. In The Way of the Beaver, the lesson is accomplishment through an extraordinary level of self-motivation, empowerment, and self-discipline. In The Gift of the Goose, the lesson is the recognition and cheering on of others.

Implementing these principles in your distribution company or manufacturer’s rep firm is not a one-time event. For continued success, a company has to constantly focus on and continually renew their commitment to them. Kirsche, Executive Vice-President of Business Development and Leadership at GMS, is responsible for seeing that all GMS team members retain their passion for their extraordinary “Gung Ho” culture.

Here are some of the secrets GMS uses to pay attention to and reward success:

Implement a High-Profile Recognition Program that Focuses on Attitudes and Behaviours

GMS created three awards to honour individuals who exemplify one, two, or all three of the Gung Ho principles. Peers nominate team members and a review committee makes the final decisions. The awards are given at the annual January meeting and are presented by the nominating Team member.

The Spirit of the Squirrel Award goes to individuals who behave in ways that show they understand how their important and worthwhile work benefits other team members, clients and channel partners.

The Way of the Beaver Award recognizes individuals who have an incredible sense of independence and personal responsibility, and use these characteristics effectively within a team setting. Beavers don’t achieve engineering marvels because some other beaver orders them; they are empowered to use their own best judgment.

The Gift of the Goose Award is presented to an individual who exhibits exceptional compassion, humility and commitment to support the team. Members go out of their way to acknowledge, encourage and cheer others on.

One final award, The Order Of Gung Ho, is bestowed upon team members who have received all three awards, and who have sustained their performance for the two years following their most recent award.

Have a Yearly Theme with Weekly Activities

GMS’s 2007 theme is “Gung Ho, Friends!” GMS’ executives establish 12 monthly focus topics based on principles and concepts developed in Blanchard’s book and each week one member of the team circulates an email with his or her thoughts on the monthly topic. It might be a relevant text or quote, a book or movie recommendation, or a personal observation or experience. Some examples of monthly focus topics for 2007 are:

Values guide all decisions, plans and actions
Able but challenged
Freedom to do the work
Valuing individuals as persons
Empowering others
Character, integrity and selflessness

Communicate Constantly

At GMS, team members talk daily. There are two to three regional meetings a year, and one annual meeting that includes everyone in the company.

Teams also use conference calls to talk with each other, their clients and their channel partners frequently each month, and may also travel together to call on clients.

The results

Turnover at GMS is virtually 0% (and has been since the company opened its doors in 1998). All team members are high performers who consistently meet or exceed expectations, and GMS executives pay close attention to how they and each team member lives the corporate values. Oh yes, they have a lot of fun, too!

Nicki Weiss is an internationally recognized Certified Professional Coach, Master Trainer, and workshop leader. She brings to her work 25 years of experience with corporate sa1es executives, small to medium size entrepreneurial business leaders, and sa1es teams of all shapes and sizes.

Sign up for her award winning ezine - Sa1esWise - for great tips on finding, retaining, and developing ideal clients and sales teams at http://www.saleswise.ca

Whether it is a party or formal ceremony, it would take some effort to imagine a corporate event without the element of entertainment. An entire corporate event in its broad sense (including corporate retreats, corporate Christmas parties and non-cash incentives), may seem nothing more than entertainment. The element of entertainment is also present in the schedules of such events as corporate meetings, sales conferences, product launches, trade shows and so on (why not start a conference with a stunning lights show?). In any case, entertaining programmes are far more than just having fun.

Corporate events make people come together; meanwhile an entertaining programme may bring great benefits for the company. To be more precise, corporate entertainment is a powerful tool to create and sustain the desired relationships among the employees or between the company and its clients or business associates and other groups of people depending on the purpose of the event.

For instance, non-cash incentives or corporate retreats are ideal to enhance relationships between the company and its staff. Moreover, as these are often given for groups, communication among the participants is thus inspired. Group retreats afford more time for personal interaction, so employees can to get to know one another as human beings and not just as co-workers. This ‘human factor’ is vital in corporate environment that can otherwise appear utilitarian.

Similarly, entertaining team building events, such as canoeing, sailing, karting, snowmobiling, and other team activities help to forge the spirit of community. Team building activities challenge teamwork skills needed to accomplish common goals and teach ways of co-operation, which can prove a useful experience back at work.

In the case of business meetings, an entertaining programme is a way to build business relationships. As a shared experience, it allows for a relaxed atmosphere during negotiations and increases the probability of a beneficial agreement.

Last but not least, an entertaining programme arranged for clients is a powerful tool of motivation. Feeling appreciated, customers will repay with loyalty.

Thus, the element of fun facilitates communication and tightens bonds among people, which is very important for a company who wants to maintain a positive, upbeat atmosphere at work and smooth relationships with the people outside the company: business partners, customers as well as the public.

Writing articles is my second job and I can say hobby as well. You can find more articles of mine here: http://www.teamholiday.co.uk/articles/team-building-articles