Guest Contribution by: Tianna Tye
Why settle for mediocrity, when we could be so much more? It’s a difficult question. It’s the type of question that CEOs struggle with and team members’ sense as the undercurrent of daily interactions. But, do you want to know something a little crazy? As a Team Dynamics Consultant, that ☝️ is my absolute favorite question.
Why? Because it tells me that a team is aware of their potential. And they’re aware that they aren’t fully harnessing it.
But they can. Instead of allowing their performance to plateau, teams can revitalize their energy and begin the journey towards high-performance in as little as two days. It just takes dedicated time and concerted effort.
Cue the Curate Well Co. Team Retreat.
THE TRUTH ABOUT CURATING A TEAM RETREAT
The biggest misconception of team retreats is that they’re one-size-fits-all… that couldn’t be further from the truth! Believe it or not, but we didn’t know how we’d be spending our 4-hour live session until a few weeks into the planning process! And that’s 100% intentional.
To create a transformative experience, we had to dig deeper behind CWco Team’s goals and get clear on the core challenges that held them back. To do this, I utilized my proprietary T.E.A.M. Method™.
PHASE 1: TUNE-IN
The Tune-In phase gets really real, really fast. This is where I pull back the curtain on current team dynamics and get a look at what’s really going on.
The CWco team underwent a full round of team dynamics diagnostics. Basically, we kept things confidential and conducted 1:1 interviews with each of the ladies to get a good lay of the land and to understand every team members’ perspective on what was going well and what could be improved.
Obviously, I can’t share the juicy details, but we did chat about things like their role, expectations, relationships with one another, and their vision for the future. I can’t emphasize enough how crucial this was to their retreat curation, because without this unfiltered data… pulling together a custom workshop is more like throwing spaghetti at the wall.
PHASE 2: EVALUATE
The Evaluate phase pulls the pieces together. This is where the program customization happens.
After collecting data during the tune-in phase, my team and I identified behavioral patterns and isolated core challenges that were holding the CWco team back. So the next step was to work through my arsenal of team activities, cherry-picking which experiences would help the CWco team get from point A to point B. Of course, this was followed up by a ton of tweaking and customization to ensure each and every word, prompt, and example would really speak to the ladies.
Where was the CWco team during this phase you ask? They were totally off the hook! Their job was to be open and honest with me during the Tune-In phase, so they got to put their feet up at this point and wait for the retreat weekend!
PHASE 3: ACTIVATE
The Activate phase is where the magic happens. It’s team retreat time!
I brought the CWco team together for a live, day-long team dynamics workshop. And let me tell you, it was a jam-packed day! We went through exercises that honored the past while planning for the future, uncovered anxieties to find middle ground, analyzed ways of working to streamline operations, and we even capped the day off by learning their appreciation languages so they can celebrate one another!
PHASE 4: MOBILIZE
The Mobilize phase is about commitment. We focus heavily on action planning.
It may be surprising, but the experience didn’t end after the retreat weekend! In fact, I’d argue that the retreat was only the beginning of the journey. Post-retreat, the team was served their Mobilization Report, a comprehensive document that captured all of the magic from their retreat. The observations made, commitments spoken, and action-items assigned were in there.
What’s the benefit of this? Well to be honest, a document is just a document. The real power in mobilization is keeping the team accountable to the agreements that were made during their session!
THE TRANSFORMATION
Why settle for mediocrity, when we could be so much more? ← I have to circle back to that question, because it’s just so dang-on good. One of the loudest themes that emerged from the CWC retreat is that you don’t have to settle. You can want more. More collaboration. More authority. More ownership. More closeness. More impact. As long as you can get aligned as a team on what “more” looks like… you can achieve it.
It takes a concerted effort. It takes you showing up for your team. It takes them showing up for you.
I’m Tianna Tye, founder of The Leaders’ Circle, and the premier Team Dynamics Consultant for entrepreneurs committed to building high-performing teams to scale their business and reclaim their zone of genius.
As a trained Industrial-Organizational Psychologist, my expertise in hiring, team dynamics, and transformational leadership make me a CEO’s secret weapon for managing all things on the “people” side of the business.
Ready to build the team that grows with you as your company shifts into the next evolution of impact? I’ve got you covered.
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