When they think about building team effectiveness, most people don’t think of Emotional Intelligence (or “EI”) training because EI training typically focuses on the individual not the group. But, increasing the emotional intelligence of individual team members will ultimately improve a group’s effectiveness and enable them to use the power of emotion in their pursuit of organizational goals.

As humans, we all have our “blind spots” at work—areas where we over-react, or repeatedly make the same mistakes when dealing with certain co-workers or situations. In a team setting, these disruptive behaviors can undermine trust, respect and collaboration.

By helping team members develop the 5 Emotional Intelligence Competencies, you can build a cohesive team that works together and is less likely to fall prey to dysfunction. These five competencies are Self-Awareness, Self-Regulation, Self-Motivation, Empathy, and Effective Relationships.   

The basic premise of EI Training is that people can change.  Employees can develop these competencies and become:

• more self-aware (and have a better sense of their “blind spots” and what to do about them). 
• better able to regulate their emotions, specifically learning how to cool down in times of anger and frustration instead of venting or taking it out on others.   
• inspired to use the positive aspects of emotion to remain motivated… especially in the face of setbacks or challenges
• more empathic towards others
• more successful at building positive, respectful workplace relationship

With the help our Emotional Intelligence videos provide, you can create a more pleasant, safe and collaborative work environment for your entire organization.

More About Our Emotional Intelligence Videos and How They Can Help Your Team

The Emotional Intelligence Series contains 3 different videos that cover the understanding and demonstration of emotional intelligence as well as how it leads to optimal performance on the job. Host Daniel Goleman explains the science behind emotional intelligence and introduces scenarios that illustrate how improvements in the area of emotional intelligence impact employee well-being and overall organizational communication. The 3-part series is a perfect EI “how-to”course .

So, if you are noticing a dip in team productivity or an increase in emotional outbursts at your organization, the Emotional Intelligence Series, along with our overview video Emotional Intelligence, can help. Use them to fix common issues associated with negative emotions and to enable people to tap into the energy of positive emotions.

Visit CRM Learning for more training videos on interpersonal skills and other topics designed to increase productivity and create a better work environment. 

If you’ve read our article How The Abilene Paradox Video Improves Team Decision Making, you know that an inability to manage agreement can have a severely negative impact on a group’s ability to make decisions effectively. There are many different ways this paradox impacts decision-making: here are three that stand out the most.

1. The Abilene Paradox Creates an Atmosphere Where People are Afraid to Speak Freely: A group “goes to Abilene” when a member of the team proposes an action and no one takes a stand against it. While individual members of the team may believe that the plan is not sound, their fear of possible negative consequences if they oppose the plan, or their desire to maintain group harmony, keeps them from voicing their true opinion. Instead of mutual accountability and honest communication, the team begins acting on inaccurate data or “false consensus”. The person who originally made the suggestion may not even believe it is the best choice, but if no one is willing to give a differing the opinion, a poor decision will be made.
2. A Group Going to Abilene Won’t Evaluate Alternative Choices: A group going to Abilene is less likely to evaluate alternative choices when making a decision. Effective decision making requires this type of thorough investigation. When team members don’t voice concerns or opposition to an idea with which they disagree, the decision will likely be given the green-light and other (perhaps better) options will not be presented.
3. Potential Problems are Not Identified: When a group goes to Abilene, it does not engage in a rigorous discussion of a decision’s potential downsides. Instead, group members simply agree to go along with the suggestion, regardless of its merits. When a decision is made without being tested, problems are bound to come up. Groups that can productively debate a decision are much more likely to identify potential issues before they occur, allowing them to think of contingencies instead of being blindsided further down the road.

Avoiding the Abilene Paradox

Recognizing when your group has fallen prey to the Abilene Paradox, and addressing it before any final decisions are made, can dramatically improve your business’s decision-making process. Look through our previous article on the Abilene Paradox for more details about how to recognize it in your workplace, and what to do to put an end to it.

Recommended Training Resource

“The Abilene Paradox” is a bestselling video that uses the story of a family domino game to demonstrate how problems with group decision making can stem from agreement. Use it to build skills in preventing false consensus, improving group decisions, and overcoming fear of speaking out.

Negativity in the workplace can be related to overwork, job insecurity, lack of leadership, boredom, lack of rewards, personality conflicts and many other factors.

Any one of us can be tempted to “go negative” from time to time.  Sadly, for some, it is the way they communicate most of the time. Whether you are working to combat your own negativity or are needing to respond to negativity from others, here are a few things to keep in mind: (more…)

“It’s easier to just do it myself.” Have you ever heard that said? And be honest: have you ever said it?

It can feel true. Teaching what you know takes time and energy that are hard to spare from the everyday demands of your job. And teaching what you know isn’t part of most people’s job descriptions. So why not just do it (whatever “it” is) yourself, rather than teaching someone else?

There are many reasons – and here are three questions to consider if you’ve been saying “it’s easier to do it myself.” (more…)

Whether or not we were one of the “cool kids” in school, we all remember the teenage angst and pain that came when we felt excluded by our peers.

Turns out that this pain and frustration isn’t just for teens.

A recent study from the University of Georgia’s School of Business shows that adults respond with “some pretty unsavory behaviors” when faced with the prospect of exclusion from their workgroup.

These behaviors aren’t driven only by the obvious exclusionary acts such as not being invited to a meeting or to join the crowd going for coffee. Apparently even uncertainty about the potential of being excluded from the group can cause enough anxiety that individuals start lying about their performance, undermining people outside the group, and cheating or taking risky short-cuts in order to prove to their colleagues that they’re worthy of being included. (more…)

Ever wonder what your employees are thinking about you?

If so, you’re probably a better-than-average leader who takes the time to observe body language, facial expressions, and tone of voice, so you can tell when someone’s frustrated, confused, or just plain upset about something that’s happened.

But even in the best of manager/employee relationships, you’re probably not going to get the type of  in-depth honest feedback that might help you make real changes. Even in organizations where 360-degree reviews are consistently used, feedback isn’t always timely – or completely honest.

So what’s a manager to do when s/he wants to improve?

It goes back to observation, and to caring about what your team thinks and feels.

It’s not hard to learn how people act when they’re upset, hurt, frustrated, or angry.

It’s not hard to notice when something you’ve done has triggered their reaction.

It can be hard to be honest enough with yourself to acknowledge the connection between your actions and their reactions, and to be vulnerable enough to explore how you might do things differently in the future. (more…)

When it comes to retaining and motivating your best, most highly-skilled workers, here are five important things to remember:

People want to work in a positive, supportive atmosphere.  Leaders set the tone by communicating well and being available to support problem solving.

People want to grow and be challenged.  Leaders can support employees’ attempts to keep learning and broadening their skills, and can mindfully assign challenging tasks.

People are motivated by different things, not just financial compensation.  Leaders can become more aware of what encourages each individual to achieve his or her best. (more…)

Intellectually, we know delegation is good. It’s a way of developing staff — helping them learn and grow and preparing them for bigger roles within the organization. We also know it’s good for us to let go of having to do everything ourselves.

But when we ask others to do a task…how can we be sure the other person will do it right?

Well, we can’t be sure, of course. But we can be consciously intentional about picking someone whose skills and attributes are a fit for the job at hand.

Instead of just “dumping” your request on the nearest person’s desk, take a moment to assess three factors:

1. What skills are needed?

For example, accurately compiling a cost comparison report requires skill with numbers and familiarity with spreadsheets. Crafting a blog post for your department requires skills in research and writing.

2. What attributes are needed?

Someone with good logistical skills can easily handle the basics of scheduling an important meeting – but if they’re not friendly and empathetic, they might not be the best person to manage the tricky diplomacy required to get senior management to juggle their calendars.

3. What risk is involved?

(more…)

“So much of what we call management consists of making it difficult for people to work.”
     – Peter Drucker

A successful entrepreneur recently shared his management philosophy with me.
• Create a place where work is fun
• Hire management that has a positive attitude and people skills
• Build a team that works together to simplify and streamline processes
• Provide the best customer service possible

Four simple ideas that can make the difference between success or failure for any organization.

First of all, work should be fun. We ought to get up every day with the enthusiastic expectation of seeing our colleagues and taking satisfaction in making a difference for the organization. We spend more than a third of our lives at work. If it isn’t enjoyable we should look elsewhere. It is management’s job to instill a sense of joy in work by showing appreciation for what employees do. (more…)