Maynard Leigh Associates
 Ace Teams Tips

Wholehearted Appreciation

• Recognition

• Receiving appreciation

• Spontaneity

• Formal celebrations

• Encouragement not criticism

Making It Happen

Recognition: Choose some fixed points during the next team project for applause moments. These might be when a specific stage of a major task has been reached, the achievement of a particular result, or simply when a team member has completed a discrete piece of work.

Look for ways to institutionalise the applause process so it is built into how the team functions and becomes a way of life.

Receiving Appreciation: Find creative ways of acknowledging successes that don't cause embarrassment. How many can the team think of within 10 minutes? People clapping or cheering is only one, obvious way. Find ways that people enjoy receiving applause. How about some of these:

• Opening bottles of bubbly

• Party poppers and streamers

• A secret sign that only the team know

• Playing a tape recording of a crowd cheering wildly

• Marking up a big success on a large wall chart

• Some silent appreciation

Spontaneity: When was the last time you spontaneously celebrated success? Sometimes, it takes planning to be spontaneous. You need to have your attention on the issue. Have a week's theme of 'random acts of gratitude and appreciation'. Or rotate the role of 'achievement spotter' - a weekly job of looking for people whose actions deserve attention.

Formal celebrations: Why not plan an 'awards ceremony' - if not for yourselves, then for your customers (external or internal)? It could be anything from a 'homely' lunchtime with take-away food and drink, or a picnic, or an elaborate function. You might have as much fun planning it as attending it.

Encouragement not criticism: Create a 'balance sheet' showing the relationship between encouragement and criticism. What is the team's 'default' behaviour? If it is a tendency to criticise, start building in some 'praise points' - examples of actions that deserve positive rather than negative reactions. As the saying goes "catch them doing something right".

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