"Individual commitment to a group effort - that is what makes a team work, a company work, a society work, a civilization work." – Vince Lombardi, American college football coach. Most of us who work with multiple coworkers consider ourselves part of a team, and in fact, our leaders may refer to us as such. But are you really part of a team? Strictly defined, a team consists of a cohesive group of individuals, all of whom work within the same workflow process, contributing to the completion of one or more cooperative projects. Some researchers further define teams as consisting of 3-25 people, leaving out duos or "dyads" because their interactions are too simple, and larger groups because of their complexity. In general, teams tend to be tight-knit, with common goals and joint … [Read more...]
Yakkety-Yak: Top Ways Coworkers Waste Your Time
"Much talking is the cause of danger. Silence is the means of avoiding misfortune. The talkative parrot is shut up in a cage. Other birds, without speech, fly freely about."—Sakya Pandita, 13th century Tibetan spiritual leader. The gift of language is something like being your own boss, in that the good news and bad news are basically the same. In this case, the good news is, we humans have the capacity to communicate more effectively than any other species on Earth, and we can use it for great good. The bad news? We have the capacity to communicate more effectively than any other species on Earth, and we waste it on stupid things. During a recent survey, I asked my readers about the things their coworkers do to waste their time. My goal was to raise awareness about unproductive … [Read more...]
Around the Bend: Behaviors That Drive Your Coworkers Crazy
"Behavior is the mirror in which everyone shows their image."—Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, German writer and statesman. In recent months, I've conducted Q&A surveys via my Productivity Pro® newsletter, collecting the results using the SurveyMonkey app. If you're a reader, you've probably seen them; you may even have responded—thank you if you did! I've learned some interesting facts from my readers, most of which have direct application in any workplace. One of the first questions I asked my readers was, "What bugs the you-know-what out of you?" Given the wording, I expected some blunt answers, and that's what I got. Most respondents listed their greatest pet peeve only, but some listed several. They came down to three broad categories: Lack of … [Read more...]