Just returned from a 7-day cruise on the Crown Princess. As I was soaking up the rays of the warm Caribbean days, I couldn’t but help observe the business of cruising and how it works.

First of all, I should say this wasn’t a surprise. I already was well aware of the model. For anyone who hasn’t cruised, here’s the basic rundown. I offer it not to tell you what to do, but rather to prevent you from receiving a potentially nasty surprise.

The cruise companies start by offering you really low fares for a room, all the food you could possibly ever eat, and a constant stream of entertainment options. There are few that would argue this isn’t a great deal once you’ve experienced just these three aspects of your vacation and considered what you paid for it.

Once you are on board and captive, they start selling you on upgrades and other premium services. Here’s where the cruise ships make up for the good deal you got on a room, food, and entertainment. Interestingly what I’d guess to be the top 5 are all sometimes associated with addictions.

• Booze
• Pop
• Coffee
• Gambling
• Internet ($.75/min) and cellphone access

For the next ones, the sell is that “you really deserve this.”

• Premium dining rooms
• Upgraded staterooms
• Spa services
• Photos
• Jewelery and trinkets

And then there are the little extras that manage to add up to a big chunk of cash. These are often sold using fear as a motivator. In other words, you can go on your own, but then we can’t help you if you get into a jam.

• Cruise-provided transfers to and from the airport (twice as expensive as what a taxi cost)
• Trip insurance
• Air and hotel packages
• Shore excursions

Finally, there are the tips that are automatically added to your bill for your convenience. When you see how hard the crew actually works, you hope that they aren’t depending only on these tips to make a decent wage. They have some tough jobs.

I’ve found cruising to be a safe, affordable, and relaxing way to spend a vacation. I’ve also found cruise lines to be amazingly good at turning what looked to be a $2,500 vacation into $5,000 without even breaking a sweat. I’m not complaining, just offering a bit of advice. If you want to keep expenses low, you’ll need to steel yourself against the non-stop selling. If jacked-up prices aren’t a concern to you, then order beer by the bucket; you’ll get 5 for the price of 4.

Many years ago when I was just learning how to facilitate meetings; a workshop leader told me that when all else fails, trust the group. That advice has served me well for over 20 years. Since I know it works, I’ve decided to share it with you.

When you are sitting in the meeting leader’s chair, there will be times when all eyes are on you, wanting you to make a decision or help the group move through a particularly challenging situation. If you’ve got an idea that will help, go for it. That’s the role the group is expecting you to play, so play it well.

But what if you don’t have the answer on how to proceed or don’t feel comfortable making the decision? Does this mean you are an ineffective leader? I sure hope not or that would have been what people would have thought about me on many occasions

This is a tough spot to be in, but what I’ve learned to do is follow my teacher’s advice. I say to the group, “I’m not sure how to proceed. Any ideas?” Now rookie meeting leaders would balk at doing this because of the fear that they are giving up control of the meeting. They prefer to fake it and hope for the best.

Faking it isn’t usually an effective strategy. If you are pulling your solution out of thin air, chances are it’s a pretty weak solution. Also, groups sense you are making it up and start to lose confidence in your ability to lead them.

I’ve found the best way to maintain control is to give it up, especially when you have no business making the decision. Groups almost always treat this responsibility with the utmost respect, and they usually come up with something better than what I would have suggested.

So the next time you’re stuck, admit it, ask for the group’s help, and trust that they will figure out the best way to pull themselves out of whatever position they find themselves in.

Workplace stress levels seem to be at all time highs. With budgets slashed and staffing levels cut; many people have too much to do and not enough time to get it all done.

When stress levels go up, teamwork often heads in the other direction. Stress affects us in a variety of ways. It saps our energy, changes our moods, and messes with our concentration. Instead of supporting each other, we start snapping at our teammates. Bad behavior wears on relationships.

While stress does create a lot of problems in organizations, it doesn’t necessarily have to. How do I know? Because there are plenty examples where two people can be in the exact same circumstances, one deals with it while the other melts down. This same phenomenon shows up when examining whole departments and even organizations. Some remain effective during tough times and others don’t.

Learning to manage our stress and applying what we learn is part of being an effective team member. One might also say it’s part of being an adult. I do a lot of stress management workshops, and share with people the same strategies that others before me have shared. The information isn’t new. The problem is that we don’t apply it. Which of these strategies might you make use of in your team?

• Use diversion. If you aren’t thinking about the stressors in your life, they won’t affect you. So one popular and relatively easy strategy is to distract yourself by watching a movie, playing with your kids, or diving into your favorite hobby. Taking your mind off the problem for awhile isn’t a long term fix, but it’s a great way to give your body and mind a break.
• Straighten out your thinking. Stress isn’t a result of what happens to us; it’s a result of the story we tell ourselves about what happens to us. Sometimes those stories are pretty incredible. They don’t represent reality and aren’t helpful. Make sure the stories you tell yourself make sense. The power of positive thinking really is…well…powerful.
• Solve the problem. Most of the things that cause stress in our lives can be defined as problems. The best way I know to remove stress is to solve the problem that’s creating it. Life is full of problems. Instead of worrying about them, why not take action? Think about those times where you gave more energy to worrying about the problem than you gave to actually solving it. That’s what I call wasted energy.

Stress really can mess up our relationships and teamwork. If you notice it taking a toll on yours, revisit the three strategies and put one or more of them to work for you.

“What if it’s hard” asked a recent team-building workshop participant after we had just completed an exercise about working with people who have styles quite different than our own. At the time I thought he might be joking, even though his face suggested he was being quite serious. So I tackled his question straight up.

First up, agree with the premise of his question. It is hard. People who are different from us challenge our values and beliefs. They force us into doing things that aren’t comfortable. They somehow manage to push our hot-buttons; leaving us frustrated, angry, and exhausted.

With that out of the way, I decided to make the case for why it is worth the effort. Here’s what I came up with. If you can add to the list, please do so in the comments.

• Reciprocity. If we go out of our way to accommodate others, perhaps they’ll one day return the favor. And if we don’t see ourselves as being difficult for some of the people we work with, well then it’s time to develop some self-awareness.
• Learning. When people force us out of our comfort zone, we can’t help but learn something about them and ourselves in the process.
• Results. Let’s assume for a minute that we don’t always know the right thing to do, nor do we always know the best way for doing it. Mixing it up with people who are different from us helps us discover new and often better approaches. Together we are able to more effectively solve problems than we could have on our own.
• Necessity. Finally it all comes down to this. We live and work together. We are social beings. For most of us, we aren’t financially in a position to pull out of our jobs or society and live in isolation. With this reality as a backdrop, what choice do we have?

Is is hard? Yep. Is it worth making the effort? Absolutely. Look around at the people with whom you work, especially the ones you don’t like. Now find a way to connect and succeed together.

On Sunday evening I watched the Saints beat the Vikings in the NFC Championship game. Anyone watching the game had to notice how hard and how often Brett Favre was being hit. He took an amazing amount of punishment. It was painful to watch as he limped to the sideline, got the once-over, and then came trotting out to get pounded again.

A couple times I found myself thinking, “Stay down. You’ve taken enough.” Assuming it was in Favre’s best interest to not get killed on the field, staying down would have made a lot of sense. But the team had a goal, and Favre saw himself playing a role in meeting that goal, no matter what. And so he kept plugging away.

For most of us, the things we are being asked to do for the good of the team don’t involve physical injury. It might mean swallowing our pride, working a little longer or harder than preferred, or doing the bad job more than you would care to. They seem like big deals at the time, but when compared to risking broken bones, they don’t seem quite as big.

Your team needs you to step up. Will you?

I suspect most of us would like to think our life had an impact.  We ponder big questions about changing the world and then get bogged down by the enormity of the challenge.

Here are some ideas for making this reflection process more manageable.

1)  Recognize that I don’t need to think in terms of worlds, countries, states, or cities.  They are just too big. Perhaps, I can define a tiny portion of the world that is within my sphere of influence.

2)  Look at my list of important issues and simply choose one on which I will focus my attention.

3)  Study the issue. Find out what the problems are and what is being done. Get to know real people who are involved with the issue. Listen to the stories. By immersing myself, I may discover the spark that ignites my passion.

4)  At the same time I am learning about the issue, look for opportunities both big and small to support the cause and then take action.

Alone, none of these will make a big difference, but each will make some difference, and that is a step in the right direction. Mother Teresa summed it up best when she said, “What we do is less than a drop in the ocean. But if it were missing, the ocean would lack something.”

Photo by spettacolopuro

There is nothing more challenging than leading a team that’s lost its energy or one that never had any in the first place. Team members are going through the motions, but without enthusiasm. If this is your team, and you are fantasizing about new team members; fight off your desire to give up on them, roll up your sleeves, and tackle the problem.

Solving problems always starts with figuring out the root cause. There are usually multiple suspects that need to be considered. One that is often on the list is boredom. Team members lack energy because they are bored.

If it turns out that your team is bored, first figure out which of the following are missing and then do something about it:  A compelling goal, meaningful incentives, variety, or fun.

• Revisit the goal. Decide together what it is that the group is working to achieve.  If it turns out that the goal is simply to complete the work that flows through the department, you may need to step back and ask questions about how to make that more meaningful.  A compelling goal has importance and is challenging.  Let the whole group participate in creating it.
• Make sure the incentives are in place. People will do their job for a paycheck.  But to get them doing it with enthusiasm and energy requires something more.  Everyone is motivated in different ways.  Find out what matters to people and build more of those types of incentives into your work plan.
• Add variety. Routine is, well…routine.  The same thing over and over again dulls even the most enthusiastic among us.  The challenge is to mix it up a bit.  New goals, new incentives, changing roles, or a new process can all help breathe new life into a stale team.
• Create some fun. Just because they call it work, does not mean it has to be overly serious.  Fun events can strengthen relationships, recharge batteries, and help people renew their commitment to the work.  The easier approach is to find ways to add fun into the daily routine.

Team members have moments of boredom, but if that’s the prevailing feeling on the team, it’s time to take action. Now do it.

What if one or more team members in a volunteer setting don’t have the needed skills to get the job done?

This is a touchy situation.  If you confront the volunteer, the organization risks losing an active member.  If you let the problem go unresolved, you risk losing the other team members who may just not want to deal with the problem.

Sadly, this situation could have been prevented by following a simple procedure.  Whenever a new team is formed (even a volunteer team), decide first what skills are needed.  Create a job description for each position.  Finally, check the qualifications of the volunteers prior to selecting them to the team.

If it’s already too late for that, here are three ideas that may help.

• Refocus. Most projects involve a wide range of tasks, each requiring a unique set of skills.  Perhaps the person is not suited for one set of tasks.  Are there other tasks the team needs doing that might be a better fit for the person?  If so, guide the person into those tasks.
• Discuss skills. As a group, sit down and identify the specific skills needed to be a smashing success.  Decide if it is important or not to have experienced people in each role.  Through this discussion it may become more obvious that the person is not cut out for this team.
• Honest conversation. The team leader or another member of the team needs to offer this person the observation about skills.  Team members need to be honest and straight-forward about expectations of each other.  This conversation can be difficult, but is usually the strategy that most likely results in success.

Photo by Crystl

It’s 2010 and you’re back to work.  Now what?  Well you could start by reading your email and going through that big pile of paper on your desk.  Then you could check your calendar and figure out which meeting is first for the day.  After a couple hours it’s time to step out for a little lunch.  Back to your desk, more email, more piles to work on, more meetings to attend.  End of the first day, whew!  You’re outta there and heading for home.  Tomorrow you’ll be back and do it all again.

That’s certainly one scenario that might play out for you.  We’ll label it the “Business as usual” scenario.  The question I have for you is whether that’s what you want.  Do you want to show up each day and simply respond to what is thrown your way, going through the motions as you have on so many days that have come before this one?  It’s easy to do.  You’re good at it.  Routine is comfortable.  Autopilot takes less energy.

Let’s consider at least one other scenario.  In this one you’ve shown up to work on the first day of the year with a vision of how things could be.  You’ve got a goal that made you leap out of bed with excitement.  When you arrive, the first order of business is to begin developing your plan for how to meet this goal.  You take care of the stuff that needs tending, but your focus is clearly on the goal and what it will take to achieve it.

It’s a new year.  Your are in charge of your own life.  What’s your vision?  What will it take to bring it to life?  Now go get it.