Collaboration Strategies Archives - Page 4 of 7

March 29, 2014 By Joyce Weiss Leave a Comment

There is No I in Co-Worker but There is a WE

Do you include everyone in team meetings… even those who work on their own?
Do you want to reduce conflict in the workplace and improve communication?

What can you say and do to help others feel included? Team members who feel isolated are not going to be productive, especially when they want to be part of the team. Of course some colleagues want to work on their own and don’t want to be part of team meetings. We all have different behavioral and work styles. Different equals different. Different does NOT equal wrong!

Here are ideas to help others feel like they are an important part of the team:

1. What solutions do you have to help solve this problem?

2. I consider you to be a key team player and need your advice.

3. How do you think we can improve our staff meetings?

4. Go out to lunch with your team members.

Some of your team members may feel left out and they don’t know how to express this feeling of isolation. I suggest that everyone on your team do his or her best to be as inclusive as possible. This may sound like something that you heard in high school yet I hear numerous clients tell me how they did not feel like part of the team when they did not share office space with colleagues or were in another building. This one idea will improve morale immediately.

Click here to listen to my powerful podcasts on Team Synergy and Communication

Want to Use this Article in Your Newsletter or on Your Website?

Of course! You are welcome to print this, and any other articles we send, if you use the following byline:
A recognized expert on Resolving Conflict in the Workplace, Joyce Weiss, M.A., CSP is an author, accountability coach, and a Certified Speaking Professional. To book Joyce to speak at your event or company call: 800.713.1926 or email: Joyce@JoyceWeiss.com
Visit her website at www.JoyceWeiss.com to sign up for your own FREE video series on Resolving Conflict in the Workplace.

Was this helpful?

Please send me any comments that you may have for this article. Hit the link at the end of this post to share your comments. Loyal readers like you help us find more people who could benefit from these posts to reduce conflict at the workplace and home. There may be someone in your life who is feeling stressed out…who could benefit from the inspiration and knowledge on improving their working condition or home life.

Until next time,

This is Joyce Weiss, Conflict Resolution Consultant
I help people become top level leaders who get GREAT results.
I teach them to tackle the tough conversations to build employee engagement, accountability, and rock star performance…
The Result? My clients get a better night’s sleep!

Remember…You Get What YOU Tolerate!

Click here to listen to my powerful podcasts on Team Synergy and Communication

Weiss

February 25, 2014 By Joyce Weiss Leave a Comment

The Superhero Supervisor

This edition of Communicate with Impact Weekly contains an interview that I took with Beth Crawford, The Sales Director at Troy Auto Glass. I met Beth at a Birmingham Bloomfield Chamber of Commerce meeting. I was mesmerized when she described all the great things that her leadership does at Troy Auto Glass. Troy Auto Glass is a family owned and operated auto glass replacement service center. It has been in business since 1962. They are approved by all the insurance companies and can help facilitate insurance claims. Beth has been an employee at Troy Auto Glass for 32 years.

Listen to our Interview

You will also find the text of the short interview below. Enjoy and let me know about your Super Hero Supervisors.

Click here for my article and interview with Rich Sheridan, President of Menlo Innovations on the importance of joy at work

What keeps Beth there?

Every person in the company is responsible for growing the company from the top down. The owners of the company are here every day and work as hard as everyone else. The entire team gives great service to all of their customers. All of the employees have been there for a long time.

What do leaders do to make employees feel special?

The owners support each one of the employees in their own job function making sure that they are able to do their jobs well. It is an easy place to work. They always have a company luncheon and the owners attend the event. When someone is employed for a specific amount of time they are given a gift or something special that they would want themselves. They are always thinking about the best way to make people feel special. Everyone is treated with respect and all employees know that their job is important.

What happens when an employee or colleague makes a mistake?

Conflict does not happen often with the team. Everyone does a great job from the technicians to the office and the team knows their job well. If someone needs training it is given to them in a caring way. People know that everyone makes mistakes and they are treated with respect when mistakes happen. They are trained so that they don’t repeat the same mistake in the future. Everything is so positive at work.

What would Beth tell a new hire about the company culture?

“We would make sure that the new employee understood what their job entailed so they felt comfortable doing their job. We would concentrate on having the person’s personality fit with our office. We spend more time with people that we work with than with our families. I would tell them that if they had a problem speak to their manager right away. We never want to have a situation where either the manager or employee felt unhappy. Happy employees help a company grow.”

What else did Beth want to share with us about the company?

“I am really proud of our company. We work with customers who have been with us for a long time…even longer than I have been employed at Troy Auto Glass and I have been here for 32 years. We try really hard to give great service to our customers. Every customer has a different situation. Our customers feel the team spirit at our company. We have a lot of competition and customers return because we do more than our competition does with their customers.”

How do you serve the needs of your customers?

“I meet with our customers regularly and ask the following questions:

How are we doing?

Should we be doing things faster?

Car dealers may tell us that their customers need the vehicle faster or at different hours. We listen to this feedback.

When I get a new customer I sit down with them and find out what their requirements are and we meet these requirements such as having the job complete before lunchtime. We enter this information in the computer and we know exactly what we need to do. I find out what they need, how they need it, and what their expectations are to satisfy them. We tell them exactly what we can do for them so that they will not be disappointed or feel deprived in any way.”

How can my loyal readers find out more about Troy Auto Glass?

Click here for the website for Troy Auto Glass. The main phone number is 248.649.3109. Beth Crawford’s direct number is 248.220.1756.

Joyce’s Thoughts

Employee engagement is a topic is very important to me. Once communication barriers are removed, organizations can then concentrate on making employees HAPPY! This is not fluff. This is truly the new work reality. Please sent me what your leaders do to make your colleagues want to come to work. I will include a short survey for you to share with your team in upcoming article. It
will show leaders how people feel about the work place environment.

Want to Use this Article in Your Newsletter or on Your Website?

Of course! You are welcome to print this, and any other articles we send, if you use the following byline:

A recognized expert on Resolving Conflict in the Workplace, Joyce Weiss, M.A., CSP is an author, accountability coach, and a Certified Speaking Professional. To book Joyce to speak at your event or company call: 800.713.1926 or email: Joyce@JoyceWeiss.com. Visit her website at www.JoyceWeiss.com to sign up for your own FREE video series on Resolving Conflict in the Workplace.

Was this helpful?

Please send me any comments that you may have about this article. Hit the link at the end of this post to share your comments. Loyal readers like you help us find more people who could benefit from these posts to reduce conflict at the workplace and home. There may be someone in your life who is feeling stressed out…who could benefit from the inspiration and knowledge on improving their working condition or home life.

Until next time,

This is Joyce Weiss, Conflict Resolution Consultant

I help people become top level leaders who get GREAT results.
I teach them to tackle the tough conversations to build employee engagement, accountability, and rock star performance…The Result? My clients get a better night’s sleep!

Remember…You Get What YOU Tolerate!

PS Click here for my article and interview with Rich Sheridan, President of Menlo Innovations on the Importance of Joy at Work

February 18, 2014 By Joyce Weiss Leave a Comment

There’s NOT a Law Against Sharing Ideas with Your Team!

Does this sign represent some of your team meetings?

You either have a team that is open and sharing OR one that needs some serious help to reduce conflict in the workplace.

Do you experience the following behaviors from your colleagues or team leaders at meetings?

Silence

Rolling eyes

Sarcasm

Power struggles to prove that “they” are right

Leaders who don’t control long winded people
If so, there is something that you can do especially if you are tired of going to meetings that are a waste of time! Make an appointment with your team leader and suggest ideas on how future meetings can be more productive. You may be saying, “Joyce, I can get into trouble if I do that!”

You may be correct. Everything that I write about in Communicate with Impact Weekly is all about taking risks and making improvements. The good news is that you may receive the respect from your leader by being open and honest. If you don’t receive positive feedback, at least you took a chance to make suggestions.

I have several new assessments that show my clients how to prepare and conduct successful meetings. I will share more ideas in future articles.

If you are a leader ask yourself and your team…”Are we communicating openly with each other?”

Strong team communication means that:

Members express themselves openly and honestly

Warmth, understanding and acceptance are expressed

Members listen actively to each other

Differences of opinion and perspective are valued

Feel free to send me an email (Joyce@JoyceWeiss.com) or call (800.713.1926) if you want to learn strategies on how to run productive meetings. I have new assessments that are fun, easy, affordable, and eye opening to create rock star performance.

Make sure that your team knows that “There’s not a law against sharing ideas with your team.”

Want to Use this Article in Your Newsletter or on Your Website?

Was this helpful?

Until next time,

Remember…You Get What YOU Tolerate!

PS Click here to watch a short video on resources that you can use to resolve conflict in the workplace.

January 28, 2014 By Joyce Weiss Leave a Comment

The Dating Drinking Discussion with Teens

3d_ebook_cover_sm — Top Level Leadership Tune Up Master E-Course

I was a guest on Mike Domitrz’s radio show-The Gift of Respect and his TV Show-Impact. I am very impressed with Mike’s important message and how he educates parents, students, teachers and the US Military on respectful dating and building mutual consent. Mike’s company Date Safe Project has numerous resources for you to check out.

Both Mike and I help our clients understand the importance of respect. This is why I decided to share Mike’s interview with you. Many you may have children or grandchildren who are starting to date or attend college. I can remember some interesting conversations that I had with my children when they were teens! I wish that I had Mike’s tools to share with them at that time. Parents and teens need to have tough conversations and Mike’s tools teach us how to open up the door easily so we can have these important two way discussions. One of the most important keys is to have mutual respect…especially when we hear how our loved ones had to deal with people who disrespected them.

At time a few parents don’t want Mike to speak at school assemblies. The parents have told him, “My child is not involved in dating or drinking yet-my kids don’t drink or date and won’t until they get older.” Mike tells these parents that their children may not be involved at this time, yet he encourages parents to have the discussion NOW so both parents and their children will be prepared in the future.

Our actual interview is located on the link below. If you can’t open it up, I have included they key points of the interview in this blog post.

Joyce’s Radio Interview on the Mike Domitrz radio show, The Gift of Respect

Students listen to Mike…they didn’t know that they had a choice during those uncomfortable times when they go on dates. After Mike’s programs, students are well informed. They learn that they are not odd for not drinking or dating at this time in their life. They learn that even though getting mutual consent sounds “stupid” they would rather ask than have an embarrassing moment when the consent was not mutual.

Parents love his message because they learn specific skills to teach their kids when it comes to mutual consent and respect. We are not taught these important skills. He has two websites as great resources for parents, teachers and students, and the military: HelpMyTeenIsDating and DateSafeProject. People can find helpful videos and articles.

Discover how you can tackle tough conversations with negative people, bullies, or slackers by enrolling in My Top Level Leadership Tune Up: Communicate with Impact Master E-Course. Click here to see testimonials from clients who took the Course so you can get the respect that you deserve and that better night’s sleep!

3 Main ideas teens learn after Mike’s training

1. Give your partner a choice and respect their answer. Respectfully say, “No” to him or her without sounding mean. Listen and respect their partner’s response if they say, “NO.”

2. What to do when students go to high school or middle school parties when alcohol is present. How to handle a situation when a friend is using alcohol and someone is trying to hit on him or her. Mike suggests that they intervene by distracting the aggressor. The friend can say, “Our friend had a lot to drink and we will give her or him a safe ride home.” Mike strongly suggests that a few friends do this together. They need to be positive and non-judgmental. The friends will know that they are doing the right thing if the assaulter blames them for budding in.

3. How to help by being there for friends or family members who have been assaulted. Mike tells parents not to say, “If anyone touches you, I’ll kill him or her.” The child will not go to his or her parents if they are assaulted. Instead Mike teaches parents to say, “I’m here for you and will support you any way that I can.” This keeps the door open and shows mutual respect.

How did Mike become an expert on Safe Dating?

He was studying theater in college when he received a phone call from his mother that his sister was raped. He was shocked, full of anger, and enraged. Over time he realized that he could take his anger and do something positive with this negative energy. He heard a speaker who spoke about consent. Mike started speaking to schools and the military about mutual consent and respect. He was an angry brother who turned into a VERY effective speaker full of passion to help others learn these important life skills. His sister is his inspiration. She is a true survivor. He shows people how to deal with conflict. Will they be crippled by conflict or resolve it and learn how to move on? It’s great to meet a colleague who speaks on a different topic than I do BUT who gets the same results…Be Direct with Respect®.

You can reach Mike at 800.329.9390 and mike.d@datesafeproject.org.

Want to Use this Article in Your Newsletter or on Your Website?
Of course! You are welcome to print this, and any other tips or article we send, if you use the following byline:

A recognized expert on Resolving Conflict in the Workplace, Joyce Weiss, M.A., CSP is an author, accountability coach, and a Certified Speaking Professional. She helps people to tackle the tough conversations to build employee engagement, accountability and rock star performance! To book Joyce to speak at your event or company call: 800.713.1926 or email: Joyce@JoyceWeiss.com. Her website is JoyceWeiss.com.

Was this helpful?

Please send me any comments that you may have for this blog post. Hit the link at the end of this post to share your comments. Loyal readers like you help us find more people who could benefit from these posts. Please let others know about these blog posts on reducing conflict at the workplace and home. There may be someone in your life who is feeling stressed out…who could benefit from the inspiration and knowledge on improving their working condition or home life.

Until next time,
This is Joyce Weiss, Conflict Resolution Consultant

I help people become top level leaders who get GREAT results. I teach them to tackle the tough conversations to build employee engagement, accountability, and rock star performance. The result? My clients will a better night’s sleep!

PS Discover how you can tackle tough conversations with negative people, bullies, or slackers by enrolling in My Top Level Leadership Tune Up: Communicate with Impact Master E-Course. Click here to see testimonials from clients who took the Course so you can get the respect that you deserve and that better night’s sleep!

PPS Watch Mike interview me on his TV show, Impact on WHY respect is so important to me.

January 21, 2014 By Joyce Weiss Leave a Comment

Quick Questions to Check Your Team’s Intentions

For any company to succeed, the people within the organization need to work together effectively. Without teamwork, details slip through the cracks, customers feel neglected, and the company’s profits quickly dry up.

But before you do yet another team building exercise, you need to assess where your people are now, as well as how your company’s culture is letting a lack of teamwork prevail. Resolving conflict in the workplace will be easier after you read this blog post.

Use the following five questions to gauge where everyone stands and what needs to change

1. What negative behavior am I letting slip by?

Too many managers and leaders allow people to be negative. Employees say and do whatever they want, regardless of how their words or actions damage the team. Either the manager doesn’t know how to address the negative behavior, or it’s been going on for so long that it’s habit – it’s a part of the culture. But the longer you let it continue, the harder you have to work to bring everyone together. So nip any negativity in the bud now.

2. What rules or policies do we need to get rid of?

Many companies have outdated policies and guidelines that may have worked when the economy was thriving, but during today’s economic times, the outdated rules ultimately hurt morale and hinder customer service. Your employees know which guidelines work and which ones don’t. Listen to them.

3. What cliques do we need to discuss so everyone feels included?

Cliques aren’t just prevalent in high school; they’re a part of business life too. Unfortunately, negativity, gossip, and not feeling included are the things that drive star performers away. Whether people like their job or not, they need to feel a part of the company. If they feel uncomfortable, they’re not going to be their real selves. They’re going to be sarcastic rather than helpful, and won’t be willing to go the extra mile.

4. What am I doing as a manager that is stopping everyone from working together?

Even though you want your staff to work together, some of your practices or work habits may in fact be sabotaging your team. Regardless of what you say, people will always do and respond to your actions – not your words. So find out how you might be contributing to the teamwork dilemma.

5. What are we not going to allow?

All effective teams have a code of honor they follow – a list of values or ideals they’re going to live and work by no matter what. When your team decides what’s important and what’s not tolerated, they’ll have ownership of the ideas and will follow them.

Click here for more strategies and a podcast on, Why Should Your Company and Clients Keep You?

Let Teamwork Work for You

Teamwork is the essential key to a successful company. When everyone works together, projects get done (on time and on budget), creativity reigns, and people actually want to come to work every day. So use these five questions to get the teamwork engine running. Both you and your customers will be glad you did. Conflict in the workplace will be resolved and you will have time to do what you want and need to do during your day.

Was this helpful?

Please send me any comments that you may have for this blog post. Place your comments in the comment box at the end of this post.
Loyal readers like you help us find more people who could benefit from these posts. Feel free to share this post. Just make sure and give credit to: Joyce Weiss Training & Development LLC > www.JoyceWeiss.com

Please let others know about these blog posts on reducing conflict at the workplace and home. There may be someone in your life who is feeling stressed out…who could benefit from the inspiration and knowledge on improving their working condition or home life.

Until next time,
This is Joyce Weiss, Conflict Resolution Consultant

I help people become top level leaders who get GREAT results.
I teach them to tackle the tough conversations to build employee engagement, accountability, and rock star performance. As a result…my clients get a better night’s sleep.

Remember…You Get What YOU Tolerate!

PS Click here for more strategies and a podcast on, Why should your company or clients keep you?

There is No I in Co-Worker but There is a WE

The Superhero Supervisor

There’s NOT a Law Against Sharing Ideas with Your Team!

The Dating Drinking Discussion with Teens

Quick Questions to Check Your Team’s Intentions

Contact Joyce

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