Joyce Weiss

I work with organizations and individuals who want to kick conflict and chaos to the curb - Queen of Conflict Resolution and Communication Coach

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The New Normal: Doing More with Less to Decrease Conflict in the Workplace

I had the pleasure of being a presenter at a conference sponsored by the MI Society of Government Meeting Planners in Grand Rapids MI.  The topic was The New Normal:  Doing More with Less.  The main idea was to reduce conflict in the workplace by improving communication skills. Thanks to Andy Silver, The Director of Training for MI Department of Community Health, who helped me understand the needs of the audience which helped me customize the program to their needs.

The following is a list of 3 questions for you to ask yourself and share with your team to discover how you can improve your working c0ndition and decrease conflict in the workplace:
1.  What systems do you use to identify what is important to whom and when?
2.  How do you weed out or stop things that are not working and recharge with new program alignment?
3.  What barriers are hindering you from creating a positive work environment?

The answers to these questions are a good way for you to improve your working condition and reduce conflict in the workplace.  Your team can improve communication skills by coming up with new ideas on how to do more with less.

Please share your answers with me and I will respond because I enjoy connecting with my loyal readers!

Below are 2 short video testimonials that describe how Doris Sims from the Greater Lansing CVB and Mona Murphy from Flint Area CVB enjoyed the session.

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Until the next time…Joyce Weiss

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Leadership Consulting: Great Leaders Make NO Excuses

Have you ever attended a meeting when complaining prevailed?

Did you wish that the leader stopped the negativity in order to move forward?

This blog post describes how a strong leader took a negative situation and turned it into a very productive meeting.

I recently attended the School of Education and Human Services board meeting at Oakland University in Rochester MI.  Our fearless leader Dean Louis Gallien told us how Oakland University may lose 23% of its state allocation if state legislators accept our governor’s budget plan for higher education.

Dean Gallien told us that our governor needs to fix our state budget and make tough decisions.  He led us into discussions on how to move forward and figure out what we must do to continue making Oakland University vital and growing.

The board of directors did not waste time feeling like victims or blame the government.
“No excuses” became our mantra for the rest of this productive meeting.

I wish all leaders stopped constant complaining during meetings. This kind of behavior only breeds negativity which stops problem solving and creativity.

Think about your own situation for a moment – especially if your budget was cut or if you experienced a reduction in staff or benefits.

How much time was wasted in conversations on what was taken away?

We need to spend more time on the positive things that the company is doing.
We need to spend the rest of our time discussing ideas for streamlining, cost cutting, and restructuring.
Many of us are experiencing the “new work reality” about reduction of budgets.

Do your best to use the following tips to keep creative ideas flowing:

  • Look towards the future
  • Search for a second right answer
  • Find opportunity from change
  • Do your best to stay positive during challenges
  • Accept responsibility and don’t blame others
  • Don’t walk away from negative people – run!

These are not easy to do BUT they are necessary in order to move forward and succeed.
Let our competition complain and stay stuck in their status quo while we find answers to our challenges.

Remember – You Get What You Tolerate!

Until the next time.
What is your most pressing question about your own meetings?

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For more information, articles, and podcasts on conflict resolution, visit https://www.joyceweiss.com

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So…You Want to Be a GREAT Listener?

Many of my clients ask me to include ideas in my training programs  on how we can become great listeners.

Effective listening skills will help improve our relationships and sales.  The next time you are in a conflict make sure and use this technique because it will help you gain control and concentrate on what is really being said.

We have to ask ourselves if it is more important to be right or to resolve a conflict.

Enjoy this 2 minute video and let me know what your most pressing communication challenge is in your own life.

The rest of this blog post contains the words included in the video.

Has anyone ever told you that you’re just not listening?
Do you ask a question and the other person tells you that you already asked the same question?

If so – not to worry.  We are all so busy doing the things that we do and at times our mind is on over load!
Here are a few reasons why people aren’t great listeners:

  • They are thinking of what they are going to say while the other person is talking
  • They tune out the person’s message because they don’t like what the other person is saying
  • They are thinking about what’s for lunch

Here’s the bold solutions tip for today:

  • Really focus on the person who is talking
  • Slow down your pace and concentrate only on what you are being told
  • Turn off all internal dialogue
  • Repeat what the other person just told you (parroting technique)

This one simple technique can help you become a GREAT listener.  You will see how others appreciate your concentration.  You will also see how others will listen better to you.  It may take a while to change your listening habits, but it will be worth the work since you will see how your relationships and sales will improve.

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For more information on Joyce’s accountability coaching and speaking please visit:  https://www.joyceweiss.com

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Do You Have a Super Bowl Team?

Today is the Super Bowl and I am getting ready to go to a party to watch the best team win. How can you tell if you have a winning team?

I just returned from a training in Wynne Arkansas and worked with the winning East Central Arkansas Regional Library System Team. I am extremely impressed at how hard all the team members worked together to develop into an even stronger team.

I asked the group to define what team building meant to them. They came up the following characteristics:

  • Support
  • Building relationships
  • Keeping up the slack when team members are not at work
  • Building Trust

We discussed all of these characteristics during the training. Building Trust was the one that we all agreed to concentrate on during the training. We discussed that silence in meetings is probably a good indication that lack of trust exists. We came up with a solution for everyone on the team to be fully engaged at meetings. Silence does not hold you accountable. If you agree with your team, tell them. If you don’t agree, tell them why. It is a risk to open up our mouth when we don’t agree with the team. If trust exists, then it is easier to do.

I encouraged the Wynne AR team to talk to team members when an issue comes up in the future. It is dangerous to let it go or gossip with each other. We went around the room and discussed what each team member needed to build trust with each other. We came up with some great suggestions on how to build trust even during challenging times.

Decide how you can build trust with your team when things get stressful. Hope these ideas will help you build your own team synergy.

Please let me know your biggest challenge with your team.
Write your challenge in the comment box of this blog and I will answer.
I am committed to stay in touch with my loyal readers – so please keep in touch!

Please watch Holly Mercer’s (Director of East Central Arkansas Regional Library System) video testimonial that she made right after the team building training:

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Developing Respect in the Workplace by Building Trust

I just worked with the MI TWP Association in Grand Rapids MI on a “Building Trust in Your Community Workshop.” The group was open to the ideas and participated in numerous group exercises.

Below is an exercise that I asked the audience to complete.

On the left side of a piece of paper write down the name of a person who you don’t get along with. Write down a few characteristics that describe this person. On the right side of the paper write down the name of a person who you get along with really well and write a few characteristics that describe this person

OK…now for the fun! Most of the time people tell me that the description of the person that they don’t get along with is NOT like the person doing the exercise. It is interesting because participants tell me that the description of the person who they get along with describes the person doing the exercise.

Here is the challenge: Personal bias gets in the way. We get along with people who are like us and many times have conflict with people who are NOT like us. Hopefully this will help the next time you have conflict with someone. Ask yourself if the differences between you and the other person is really the issue.

The definition of conflict is the following: “An open clash between groups or individuals.” It can be due to different ideas, behaviors communication styles or cultures. We all deal with conflict in different ways!

I hope that this tip will help you resolve your next conflict. Please look for a video tip on this subject in one of my next blogs.

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Let us hear your thoughts in the comment section below.

Feel free to share this tip with your team-just be sure to give Joyce credit when you share or publish.

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For more information, articles and podcasts, visit https://www.joyceweiss.com

Until next time!

Contact Joyce

Email: joyce@joyceweiss.com
Phone: 248-681-5831