Team Spirit - Who needs it?

1) The Wind of Change

2) About the Wind of Change

3) How does the Wind of Change blow?

4) Experiences of the Spirit of Community:

• Groups into teams
• Team spirit: who needs it?
• Learning as a community

• Scenario painting
• Corporate visioning
• Forming strategic partnerships

Seeing is Believing

"What you see is what you get!"

Your vision of how the team might work

Purpose

To create a community spirit within work teams such that all individuals have the opportunity to realise their personal potential as a team member.

General

This experiential event heightens the team's awareness of individual needs, and provides an opportunity for you to take responsibility for meeting your own individual needs in a supportive atmosphere.

The experience builds upon relationships within existing work groups. The precise format and content are determined by the team members themselves.

Unlike corporate visioning, which is concerned with mission and goals, team process visioning relates to how people interact as team members. It uses the five senses firstly in relation to how things are at present, then how they could be. This procedure is completed by individuals, then by the team as a whole building upon individual work. The event itself provides "live" circumstances upon which the team may build.

Individual experience during the event can be enhanced back on the job by Action Centred Learning using the team as a resource.

Method

Uses real events in the team's history, in addition to the "here and now" to identify areas for improvement concerning team member interaction. Members are given a continuous opportunity for feedback, thus creating a specification for individual and team change. Complete autonomy is encouraged in order that the client group may "coach" other teams back at work with whom they interact, thus contributing to a potential learning organisation.

The Visioning Process (Try this for yourself today)

Individual Work

1.To familiarise yourself with the process firstly consider a problematic domestic or social activity or situation in which you interact with others. In your mind's eye "be there" in that activity and jot down a few adjectives to describe what you see, hear, feel, touch or smell (not literally ).

2. Write down one word which summarises this situation for you.

3. Chunk up! That is, ask yourself the first question below once; and then the second question as many times as you wish. The higher you go the better.  Write your one sentence answers one above the other starting in the very centre of the page.You will know in your Heart when you have climbed to your summit. Don't be constrained by the top of the physical page. Done properly this is not an easy excercies. Take time -- not to think -- to feel!. Individuals  may choose to share their experience of this process with the group, without necessarily disclosing any content.

• What do you want instead?
• What would that do for you?

Teamwork

4. Now  that you are familiar with the process, as a team, select a problematic work task or one which could be imporved with which everyone is involved.

5. As individuals think of an adjective which accurately describes the overall process of team member interactions when this task is being worked on. The team should decide whether to share their adjectives or not. This process then becomes information in and of itself.

6. Chunk up as before. This time however chunk down as well.That is starting with your first upward chunk, ask the two following questions successively until you get to a point at which you feel or know you could take action now. Write your one sentence answers one below the other down the page. Through time at your place of work once you have brought about the intended outcome of your first action move on up the list to your starting point. Again, done properly this is not easy. It should not be rushed. You may experience a number of emotions and thoughts as you progress.

• 1. What is stopping me getting it? That is -- the first upward chunk you noted down.(and so on up the chunks through time perhaps)

• Write down successively detailed answers to the above question for the first chunk only. Further chunks may be considered during your next time together as a team. Continue until you arrive at a blockage level at which you feel you can answer the question "What can I DO about it now ?" Together with others as necessary of course. Tell others what you propose before taking action. You may decide to share this page with your team for example. Sharing is a first step in community as we all know but little realise  -- that is to say, make Real!

7. Now, refer to your "inner picture" of how this task is carried out at present. What / who do you see, hear, touch or smell (not literally). Jot down a few key words under each heading. Take time to "be there" in your imagination: what is, or is not going on for you and why? Try to "be" each of the other people with whom you work on this task. How do they affect you, how do you think you affect them? Make some notes.

8. Now visualise how you would like team member interaction to be in the future using the information you have just generated. Be specific in what you would like to see, hear, feel and smell or "sense". Who might help you to bring your vision about, and how? Consider aspects you would like to build upon and areas you would like to see an improvement in. You will have the opportunity to share this information with the team if you wish.

9. To make your vision come alive, you have to put yourself in the picture. This is done by letting go, and letting the artist who is inside us all paint the picture for you! This way you find out who you really are! Don't believe it? That's negative, think positive, think colours!

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