It's not far down to paradise....

It's not far down to paradise....
Originally uploaded by Craig Williams Photo Gallery

The early morning when I woke up, felt a bit like the summer was ending and that change was in the air.

I have been working on updating photos - work is hectic and I need something to give my brain a rest and this side of my life helps to balance against the hectic business world.

This photo reminded me of summer, freedom, joy and change. As the detail below says it is from a song and it summed up my reverie.

It's not far down to paradise
At least's not for me
And if the wind is right you can sail away
And find tranquility
The canvas can do miracles
Just you wait and see
Believe me

Sailing by Christopher Cross

I managed to published my latest newsletter and a key element was how team members interact. Here is my top 5 tips

1. Train all team members in the standards of behaviour of the team's communication, response and interaction. Develop a clear set of expectations surrounding:
• Attitude
• Speed of Response
• Gossiping
• Politicking
Break these and it should be grounds for expulsion from the team.

2. Involve the team in choosing the team leader. The team leader has to develop the confidence of the team.

3. Ensure the team know what is important for success. Ensure highly visible recording of success – daily/weekly reporting – that is visible to the team. It is important to keep it simple and engaging for staff.

4. Ensure that the team captures ideas – someone should be responsible for capturing suggestions. The team must be kept informed of what happened with the ideas.

5. Team meetings should be at least monthly and the agenda focused on how the team can work better together. This must be the only item on the agenda. Three items to include in your ground rules (see 1).
- Any unresolved conflicts between team members must be resolved before the next meeting.
- Each team member must bring at least one suggestion that will improve team effectiveness to each team meeting.
- Team meetings are to be exciting and not reporting back sessions. If there are no suggestions from the team – the team leader must come with a problem/idea to discuss.

This will have the benefit of making the meeting more positive and focus on improvement.

Finally, the leader celebrates and recognises successes – allow the team to socialise use the team meetings to improve relationships.

I guess, if you get these things right, the team will be sailing along their "beach".