Team Building Blog

Years ago, it wouldn’t be uncommon to hear a supervisor on the factory floor, barking, “Stop talking and get back to work.” After all, the formula for success was work equals productivity and talking equals wasting time.

I recall a study conducted by Robert Kelly of Carnegie Melon University asked people, “What percentage of the information that you need to do your job is stored in your own mind?” In 1986, the answer was 75%. In 1997, the answer was 15%. We can only imagine what that statistic would be today, but I’d guess it’s closer to 15% than 75%. This means that communication is more important than ever!

With the proliferation of communicating via email, face-to-face communication has become a thing of the past. When I cofounded Team Builders Plus in 1991, most of the team building programs that I conducted were for groups that all worked together on the same of floor of the same building in the same town. Now, groups are geographically dispersed around the world in places with different time zones, languages, and values. Is it any wonder that communication is typically identified as a major issue in organizational climate surveys?

People need to stop typing and start talking. The telephone is better than email, but face-to-face communication is best. How else are we going to get the information that we need to do our jobs?

I recently read an article that posed the question “is team building a waste of time?” In the article, one of the problems stated was that the exercises did not translate into their current project and issues. This is a key component when identifying the right team building program for your group.

Some folks think team building is heading to the bar after work for a few drinks and chicken wings or playing putt putt golf. If you are looking for a fun social activity, then those may be great choices for you. If there are issues or skills in your team that you want to build upon, then kicking back a few beers will not improve communication skills and accountability. When searching for a team building program, its important to understand what you want the end result to be. Team building can mean different things to different people. For some, team building means fun, interactive activities. For others, team building connotes a process in which people address the issues that are inhibiting a positive and productive work environment.

Prior to any team building intervention, you need to have a clear understanding of your expectations. You may wish to consider those behaviors that you believe the group needs to Stop, Start and Continue.

If your team is not getting along, morale is down, everyone is overworked and annoyed with each other, and you decide to take part in a treasure hunt, you won’t end up solving any of your team’s issues. Think of it this way. You go to a wedding and sit at a table with family members who you typically don’t get along with. You’ll be cordial during the reception but when you are back home, your feelings toward your family wouldn’t have changed.

So why team building? Because team building can be high-energy, engaging and it can target specific issues and goals for your team or it can just be a day of fun.

Baseball teams (little league through professionals) from across the country have worked hard to train for the upcoming season. They did not just work on throwing, fielding and batting. They were also building relationships with teammates and coaches since the bonding that goes on during training will last through the whole season. The team with the best athletes and skilled players are not always the team that makes it to the championships. Often the championship teams are the teams that have truly bonded, and the teams that value the personal and professional success of every other member of the team.

The same holds true in organizations. However, before we look at organizations, let us answer the following question: What is Team Building? Well, let’s break it down. By definition, a “Team” is a group of people that are working towards a common goal. And, “building” is to establish, increase or strengthen. So as we put these two words together, “team building” refers to a process of strengthening the relationships and the dynamics of an intact group working towards a common goal.

Whether your team is a sport team or a department in a Fortune 500 company, it is important to understand that the most successful organizations within their industry have a sense of individual and team worth. This often starts with team leaders and department managers being proactive with developing their team. Although it is very important to implement team development processes around the dynamics and issues of the team, often this time of the year brings about the desire to do a fun team building events.

So, is it the right time to build your team? The real answer is, there is never a bad time to start, but many teams enjoy the change of weather as an opportunity to do a fun team building event in the outdoors, such as GeoQuest, Team Olympics, Team Sailing…

Believe it or not, the holidays are already just around the corner and my favorite holiday is first on the list - Halloween! Halloween is the perfect opportunity to gather your team and take part in a fantastic team building activity called Movie Mayhem! Imagine your CEO dressed up as the Big Bad Wolf in Granny’s pajamas or picture your co-workers dressed as pirates swashbuckling it up on the promenade. Then aargh ye teammatees, Movie Mayhem is callin’!

Teams begin the activity learning about the different roles on a movie set and important part they play in the production, much like a team where you work. Then, the fun begins. Grab hold of your video camera, identify your team’s movie genre and take to your private room to create your script. You’ll then dive into your box of costumes and props and the fun and filming really gets cooking! Movie Mayhem is like no other team building activity. How often do you get to dress up as a cowboy or a medieval knight at work?

Once each team wraps up shooting and editing their movies, everyone will gather together for the gala movie premiers. Grab hold of some popcorn and treats, sit back and prepare to laugh yourself silly! After the Movie Mayhem movies are shown, the award ceremony begins and everyone will vote for awards like Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Actress, Funniest Character, Most Ridiculous Actor and many more categories. We’ll work with you to create some insane categories too!

Everyone can get candy at Halloween. Wouldn’t you rather walk away with an “Oscar” statue?

Be sure to check out the great article where co-owners of Teambuilding, Inc. Merrick Rosenberg & Jeff Backal are featured regarding teams and team building. The article is in the April 2011 issue of South Jersey Biz.

New York City is a fascinating place to visit. Besides taking in a Broadway show or eating a ginormous deli sandwich, popular tourist sites to see are the Statue of Liberty, Rockefeller Center, Central Park, Grand Central Station and the American Museum of Natural History. NYC is also a fantastic host to some of the best team building opportunities in the country. Teams can solve clues around Grand Central Station as they take part in CSI on Location or they can utilize hand-held GPS units for a GeoQuest treasure hunt throughout Central Park. The Bronx zoo is another great location for a treasure hunt called ZooQuest.

Looking for a fun, outdoor philanthropic team building idea? NYC is the perfect backdrop for Kindness Wins. Take to the streets and earn good karma points as you help others. Kindness Wins provides a timeout from thinking of ourselves and turns the focus on helping others. Imagine for a moment that your group spends a half-day together putting smiles on the faces of fellow team members and total strangers. More kindness equals more points.

When the weather gets a bit chilly, you can take your team building adventures indoors. ClueQuest is an indoor treasure hunt at the American Museum of Natural History where you and your team can explore exhibits you may have seen in the Night at the Museum movie such as dinosaurs, the Easter Island statue and Teddy Roosevelt.

If going to a venue like the museum is not an option because you’re going to be in a conference room, then really any of the team building programs that Teambuilding, Inc. offers would be a great idea, such as:

• Movie Mayhem
• You Take the Cake!
• Team Samurai

In the city that never sleeps, the possibilities for team building programs are endless.

Have you ever heard the expression, “I hate team building”?

Throughout my 20 year career in the team building world, I have heard this expression numerous times (of course, this is before they work with my organization). More often than not, team building participants love their experience as team building is a lot of fun and helps develop necessary skills such as; trust, communication, team bonding, and breaking down silos... But, even when a very small percentage of people make this statement, it concerns me as an owner of a national team building firm. So, I decided to probe a little bit further.

Over the past few years when people made comments to me like “I hate team building” or “not another team building program,” I asked them to elaborate on their comment. What I found interesting during this informal study was that everyone answered my question in a similar fashion, and it went something like this:

“My company has us do wacky team building programs. At first they were fun, but now I just don't have the patience for more of these touchy feely games. Enough is enough. We don’t learn anything and it just wastes everyone’s time.”

Typically, the individuals that respond like this are from companies that imposed team building activities on their employees without really determining the needs of their people.

If you want your staff to have a positive team building experience that helps them improve their group dynamics, I would suggest the following:

1. Assess the needs of your team – Without conducting a needs assessment (such a our Team Effectiveness Inventory), how do you know the real issues that need to be addressed during the team building program?
2. Combine developmental programs with fun team events – For example, one month do a program such as Why We Click With Some And Clank With Others (which is a developmental session on adapting your communication style to create a more powerful relationship with those on your team) and a few months later do a program like GeoQuest (a fun team bonding treasure hunt using hand held GPS units).
3. Don’t overdo team building – If you are implementing more than six team building events during a year, it will dilute the effectiveness of each program.

These are just a few suggestions. To learn more, I would recommend reading Team Building? 12 Questions to Help you Make the Right Decision by Merrick Rosenberg, Chief Learning Officer and President of Team Builders Plus.

Leaders, facilitators and team members often overlook the power of positive team building quotes. Not only can sharing a great quote at the right time help build credibility, it can also be motivating to those you are speaking to. I would suggest using quotes whether you are facilitating a leadership workshop, leading a team building program, or just speaking to your peers or staff.

I have chosen several quotes to share with you as a resource. Please use them when appropriate to help boost the effectiveness of your message. Of course, be sure to give credit to the original source.

None of us is as smart as all of us. - Ken Blanchard

No man is wise enough by himself. – Plautus

Teamwork divides the task and double the success. - Unknown

Coming together is a beginning. Keeping together is progress. Working together is success. - Henry Ford

You don't get harmony when everybody sings the same note. - Doug Floyd

We must all hang together, or assuredly, we shall all hang separately. - Benjamin Franklin

It is amazing how much people get done if they do not worry about who gets the credit. - Swahili proverb

None of us, including me, ever do great things. But we can all do small things, with great love, and together we can do something wonderful. - Mother Teresa

The way a team plays as a whole determines its success. You may have the greatest bunch of individual stars in the world, but if they don’t play together, the club won’t be worth a dime. - Babe Ruth

Michael, if you can’t pass, you can’t play. - Coach Dean Smith to Michael Jordan in his freshman year

We’re going to turn this team around 360 degrees. - Jason Kidd
A single arrow is easily broken, but not ten in a bundle. - Japanese proverb

A boat doesn’t go forward if each one is rowing their own way. - Swahili proverb

Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence wins championships. - Michael Jordan

Interdependent people combine their own efforts with the efforts of others to achieve their greatest success. - Stephen Covey

When a team outgrows individual performance and learns team confidence, excellence becomes a reality. - Joe Paterno

It’s easy to get good players. Getting them to play together, that’s the hard part. - Casey Stengel

Individual commitment to a group effort, that is what makes a team work, a company work, a society work, a civilization work. - Vince Lombardi

There are few, if any, jobs in which ability alone is sufficient. Needed, also, are loyalty, sincerity, enthusiasm and team play. - William B. Given, Jr.

Teamwork is the fuel that allows common people to attain uncommon results. - Unknown

Build for your team a feeling of oneness, of dependence on one another and of strength to be derived by unity. - Vince Lombardi

A championship team is a team of champions. - Unknown

No member of a crew is praised for the rugged individuality of his rowing. - Ralph Waldo Emerson

A major reason capable people fail to advance is that they don’t work well with their colleagues. - Lee Iacocca

For additional teambuilding quotes or stats, you can visit our website, Teambuilding, Inc.

What is your favorite team building or leadership quote? We would love to hear from you, please share in the comment section.

It’s up to us to teach our children but sometimes, when we least expect it, our children teach us. My son brought home a letter from his school today about teaching thankfulness. It made me think about my own work environment and how often we say thank you. I must admit that we do a pretty good job of saying thank you and recognizing each other’s accomplishments, no matter how big or small they are. Oscar Wilde said, "The smallest act of kindness is worth more than the grandest intention."

From a simple bless you when someone sneezes to saying thank you when a coworker holds the door open for you, these pleasantries that most of us take for granted matter and they in fact promote teamwork. Think about it for a moment. If you sneeze and no one says bless you, are you likely to say it back to someone else when they sneeze? Probably not. But you will pay it forward if someone blesses you. It’s the same for a thank you. Is there a coworker that you just don’t get along with? When was the last time you thanked him and he thanked you? If you but heads a lot, how can you argue against a thank you. A thank you can be the pebble in the pond that ripples bigger and bigger and before you know it, that coworker may turn out to be one of your closest confidants. Maybe you’ll find out that it was just a misunderstanding the whole time, a difference in communication styles.

Here’s an idea: Look for an opportunity to thank someone today, and do it. Don’t go overboard and send your team flowers or a singing telegram to show your appreciation. You’ll be surprised how far just a small thank you can go. And, by the way, appreciation is good for business. A Lenox etiquette poll found that nearly five out of every 10 people don't always say thanks — that remembering to do so is a sales point of difference. It also goes a long way toward forging the relationships that can turn into opportunities.

Team building programs are another way to say thank you and not just a thank you to your own team members either. Team building programs like Wheels for the World and Kindness Wins are a great way to build your team while making a positive impact on your community.

Just imagine how being thankful can change the world. Maybe if enough people celebrated being thankful, it might just become into a national holiday…oh wait, it is. Happy Thanksgiving!

A Funergizer’s client participated in one of our DIY activities for a holiday party. They were looking for a training company to deliver a team building program for them. Having a lower budget they were unable to hire a training company, but still wanted to offer a fun event for their employees. After discovering the Funergizer’s DIY product line at The Training Catalog, they were pleased with the cost effective team building activities.

“We then went for the DIY Funergizers Race Around the World activity. It was so much fun! Our staff loved it so much we are now looking at what Funergizer activity we can use again,” commented a Human Resources Manager at Grant Thornton.

They offer several programs that range from Team Olympics to Game Show Trivia to even a Papparazzi Challenge. The activities give the client all step-by-step guides and instructions as well as “how to” videos with a money back guarantee. After clients experience one of these team bonding events, we always receive rave reviews about the quality of the materials.