Emotion – Friend or Foe?

By Certified Action Coach Dave Beam

Elation, sadness, frustration, anger, contentment, humor; human emotions.  Are they your friends, and welcomed and encouraged, or are they your enemies, lurking to bring you trouble?

They can be both!  Human emotion is not the problem or the answer.  It is what it is, and it is definitely a part of the human experience.  In my coaching and counseling experience, emotion is wonderful when it is in its place!  Emotion enables us to connect with life and other people. 

FEAR – It’s not real, but you think it is!

By Certified Action Coach Dave Beam

One of the great joys that I experience as a business coach is helping people unravel and dispel their fears.  Today, I will help you do that as you read and understand.

We have a simple flip chart concerning fear.  False Expectations Appearing Real.  Here is an astonishing reality.  You can be a fearless person.  Being fearless is not being some kind of super hero.  It is in reality just being who you really are.  I hope I have your attention.

How to Be a Positive Influence in Other’s Lives - Part 3

By Certified Action Coach Dave Beam

We have been considering how to increase our influence in others lives.  We initially focused on the fact that to increase our influence we must focus our efforts on the things that we can truly change and stop wasting our mental energy worrying about things that fall only into our “circle of concern.” Following this paradigm, the one area over which we have the most control is ourselves. Hence, we must become better leaders and improve ourselves first if we ever wish to affect others. The first topic we considered was practicing good listening skills which help build a high mutual respect. Today we are looking at another quality of effective leadership, consistency.

How to Be a Positive Influence in Other’s Lives - Part 2

By Certified Action Coach Dave Beam

Listening.  Most people think that they do it well.  Most people really don’t do it well at all.  And if you want to have influence as a leader, it is essential.

Listening to understand is one of the most powerful ways to express respect for another human being.  You are giving your attention and care to someone else.  You are setting aside YOUR opinions, judgments, reactions, and conclusions, and engaging your mental energy for one purpose, to understand that person. 

How to Be a Positive Influence in Other’s Lives - Part 1

By Certified Action Coach Dave Beam

One question that I get quite often from business owners is “How can I change my employees and help them take ownership so that they will care about their work, customers, and the business as much as I do?”  It is a great question, and is worthy of consideration.

First, I usually start by telling them that they really can’t “change” anyone.  They can likely change their environment, compensation, job, and comfort.  But my question is can anyone really change the motives, desires, values, and identity of another person?

One Big Problem With Your Business Is That You Expect Too Much From Your Employees

By Certified Action Coach Dave Beam

If you are a business owner or manager, I’m sure that title caught your attention.  You did read it correctly – what you expect of your employees is causing lots of problems in your business.  You may be thinking, “What kind of angle is this!!!  If anything, I don’t expect ENOUGH out of my employees.  In fact, some of them only scrape by on the bare minimum activity, and try their hardest to get out of even doing the bare minimum!”

The problem IS expectation.

How to Ask for Referrals and Feel Good About It

By Certified Action Coach Dave Beam

Most of my business comes from referrals.  Someone who has experienced my coaching, or attended an event, tells someone else they know and recommends they call me.  I am also a member of a regional referrals group, BNI.  Almost 100% of the business owners that I speak with tell me that the majority of their customers come from “word-of-mouth”.

What I want to help you with in this article is increasing the number of customers in your business through referrals.  One of the obvious ways to be successful at any endeavor is to take something that works and make it better.  Here are some practical ideas to help you gain more business and new customers through referrals.

The Joy of Discipline

By Certified Action Coach Dave Beam

I hope the title of this article caught your attention.  My guess is that many readers don’t typically put joy and discipline together.  I really think all of us could use a shift of thinking so that these two concepts are joined in our minds.

When you hear or read the word “discipline”, what comes to mind?  For many, it’s forcing yourself do all of the stuff that you really hate because you “should” do it, or “shouldn’t” do that; it is motivated by the feelings of guilt, compulsion, and condemnation.  Now I don’t know about you, but I don’t jump out of bed in the morning ready to jump into a lot of activity that I “have to do”, and that “I’d better do” and “shame on me if I don’t do”.  Who among us pursues such misery and pain consistently?

A Key to Great Listening – Being Present

By Certified Action Coach Dave Beam

How many times have you thought “I just don’t understand him” or “Why does she do that?” or “They really just don’t make sense”.  Consider the essence of what you are thinking.  Up to this point in the communication, you have not really listened to that person.  Realize this. Good listening is not natural.  As a typical self-centered person, your focus in communication is you.  You want others to understand you.  You want to be heard and appreciated.  If they would just listen, you could help them get this situation resolved.  You really do have the answers, don’t you?  And you don’t understand why ______ won’t listen to you.

Myth: A Communication Buster

By Action Coach Dave Beam

In my ActionCOACH events, I ask the participants to agree to some simple rules to maximize their learning.  One of those rules is this: “To get the most learning, you must drop the “I KNOW”.  What I already know about anything prevents me from learning anything different or new about that subject.  To maximize your learning, you must become deeply curious and interested, and set aside all preconceived notions and learning from the past so that all filters are removed.  For most people, this is very uncomfortable and vulnerable.

“Accountability – The Peak of Relationship” - The Seven Levels – Part 6

The Seven Levels of Relationship – Part 6
By Action Coach Dave Beam

When you hear the word “accountability”, what comes to mind?  The majority of people don’t smile and embrace it.  If I am accountable, that means I am exposed.  My performance and results are available and known to others.  People are often reluctant to admit their shortcomings and need for improvement.  However, champions love feedback.  They like to know how they are doing and where they stand so they can get better. 

Accountability creates the opportunity for maximum results and amazing outcomes.  When a team member has the full feedback from all the other members on how to improve, that member is empowered to be the best they can be.  We really don’t see ourselves accurately, and when the measurement of our performance is available to others, we get a real understanding of how we are doing and how we can improve.

“Commitment – The Practice of Integrity” - The Seven Levels – Part 5

By Action Coach Dave Beam

Commitment; It is the very first of our fourteen core values espoused by Action Coach.  The term encompasses perseverance, integrity, and trust.  Once you have created a synergistic agreement, where both parties win, then commitment is the grit that creates the traction that gets the project started and more importantly keeps it going.  Commitment is an upper level of relationship.  It is the natural next step after agreement.  Managers and business owners often expect accountability without commitment, and team members are not committed because there is no true understanding and agreement.

“The Synergy of Creating Agreement” - The Seven Levels – Part 4

By Action Coach Dave Beam

If you’ve been following the series, we’ve laid the groundwork for creating some amazing outcomes.  Once you have debunked myth and dispelled expectations through rapport and empathetic understanding, you are ready to create some fantastic results.  Together Everyone Achieves More = TEAM.  Most people mentally assent to the team concept, but often fall short of the actual experience.  The key to team synergy is truly being together.  Win:Win agreements can only be created and sustained when there is full and deep understanding.  Significant and powerful agreements are built on a deep foundation of complete understanding.

“The Breakthrough of Understanding” - The Seven Levels – Part 3

By Action Coach Dave Beam

We are considering the seven levels of relationship.  In my coaching over the last seven years, I have discovered that most team problems arise from weak communication and shallow relationships.  This simple model illustrates the progressive upward shift in relationship moving from a low level of misunderstanding to a productive and rewarding level of connection based on shared understanding.  Today we consider the transformational level of Understanding.  Enjoy and take action!

ACCOUNTABILITY
COMMITMENT
AGREEMENT
UNDERSTANDING
RAPPORT
EXPECTATION
MYTH

The level of understanding is truly the breakthrough in communication.  Developing a level of rapport is prerequisite to understanding, for in rapport we let down the guard and let another person in.  To be the leader in building a great relationship and communication, you must choose to seek first to understand before being understood.  I learned this key habit of effectiveness from Steven Covey’s Seven Habits of Highly Effective People.  The most essential tool for coming to an understanding is simply listening.

“The Comfort of Rapport” - The Seven Levels – Part 2

By Action Coach Dave Beam

We are considering the seven levels of relationship.  In my coaching over the last seven years, I have discovered that most team problems arise from weak communication and shallow relationships.  This simple model illustrates the progressive upward shift in relationship moving from a low level of misunderstanding to a productive and rewarding level of connection based on shared understanding.  Today we consider Level 3, Rapport.  Enjoy and take action!

ACCOUNTABILITY

COMMITMENT

AGREEMENT

UNDERSTANDING

RAPPORT

EXPECTATION

MYTH

Rapport is the bridge that provides an escape from the nightmare of myth and expectation and toward the land of understanding.  Rapport is defined as a “feeling of comfort and connectedness between people.”  I call it chemistry; that sense that we are connecting and beginning to understand each other.  Rapport develops as people lower their guard and begin to reveal themselves.  If you want to build great relationships, it is helpful to know how to accelerate this sense of relaxation and openness with others.

“The Nightmare of Myth and Expectation” - The Seven Levels - Part 1

By Action Coach Dave Beam

I have begun a series on the seven levels of relationship.  As I work with teams of people, most problems and challenges arise from a weak communication and shallow relationships.  This simple model illustrates the progressive upward shift in a relationship that can move it from an immature level of miscommunication and misunderstanding to a rich and productive level of connection based on shared understanding.  Over the next several newsletters, I will be giving out practical tools to help you produce a positive shift with your team.  Enjoy and take action!

 

ACCOUNTABILITY

COMMITMENT

AGREEMENT

UNDERSTANDING

RAPPORT

EXPECTATION

MYTH

Today I want to consider the two lower levels of relationship, myth and expectation.  When building strong relationships with others, it is good to recognize the enemies.  Relationships based on myth and expectations are fraught with difficulty.  The drama is generally high, and often moves from apathy and a low level tension to outbursts and emotional events. 

The Seven Levels of Relationship: Introduction

By Action Coach Dave Beam

Communication and relationships go hand-in-hand. As a business owner, manager, or leader of any organization, communicating well is all about building strong relationships with those you work with.  Today, I want to offer a model that illustrates the progressive growth of a strong relationship. It begins with a level of myth where there is little information and comfort, and ends with a high level of accountability and trust.  Each week we will examine each level a little more in depth, and then tie it all together. Once we have developed these seven levels, we will be better prepared to talk about how effective communication can help move your relationships forward. I don’t intend this to be esoteric or theoretical.  In fact, I use this model all the time to build results oriented teams.  In the coming weeks, I will be providing practical examples for each level, and show you how to progressively build strong relationships.  Enjoy the overview.  I welcome your feedback and comments via e-mail.

Communication - It’s the Response You Get

By Action Coach Dave Beam

As a business coach, I interview employees, managers, and business owners on a regular basis.  One of the questions that I ask is “What is Your Biggest Team Challenge?”  Most of the time, the answer that comes back is, “We need better communication”.

Apart from further investigation, that response has limited value.  What most people mean when they say they need better communication is that there are unresolved issues and disconnects within the organization that are causing an unproductive and unhappy place to work.  Further questioning often reveals a lack of trust that leads to limited accountability and a culture of blame.

Procrastination – A Story You Need to Drop Right Now!

By Action Coach Dave Beam

Last week we hopefully debunked some ideas about overwhelm.  This week, I want to help free you from another ball and chain – procrastination.

What is procrastination?  Is it a disease?  A virus?  A genetic tendency?  The word does seem to ring with psychological neurotic tones.  This is one of those sophisticated euphemistic labels that makes us feel better about lousy choices.  Perhaps you are one who hides behind that fancy word, procrastination.

Overcoming the Myth of Overwhelm

By Action Coach Dave Beam

Many times I start a coaching session by asking my client “What is currently your biggest challenge or problem?”  Often this is the story I hear, “Dave, I just have too much to do and not enough time.  I’m so far behind, I feel like I’ll never catch up.  I have so many people expecting so much from me.  I work and work and just can’t seem to satisfy them.  I’M OVERWHELMED.”  Is that sometimes your story?  Do you relate?  If so, I have great news.  You can be set free from overwhelm today!  If you want to know how, read on!

Nice People Are Selfish

By Action Coach Dave Beam

Well, if you consider yourself a nice person, you may be a bit taken back by that title. In the context of this article, what do I mean by NICE?

Let me ask you a question. If you are a parent, have you always been NICE to your children? Most parents would admit that there are times their children would not consider them NICE. Good parents confront their children, and challenge them, and at times discipline them because they care about them. Even though the child may not like their parents at the time of the correction, good parents care more about their child’s welfare than they do about how that child feels about them in that moment.

Take Some Dance Lessons – Effective Delegation Part V

By Action Coach Dave Beam

I love this analogy because it captures so many principles of effective delegation.  To create effective results in relationships, start dancing and quit wrestling!

Many business owners and managers struggle and strain with delegation.  They have the mindset that to be effective, you have to overpower your employees and force them into submission.  It is literally a wrestling match and the starting bell rings at the beginning of each shift or day.  It is a contest of will and strategy.  Sometimes your “best” employee is the strongest, the most talented, and the most self willed.  You feel like if you let up for a moment, “they” will gain the advantage.  Or you just “give in” and let them “have their way”.

Enough is enough!  Who has the energy or the desire to run their business or department like a military camp?  There is a better and more effective way to manage, and it follows the analogy of dancing vs. wrestling.

Positive Accountability – Effective Delegation Part IV

By Action Coach Dave Beam

When you hear the word “accountability”, what comes to mind?  Does it produce a positive, upbeat, exciting feeling, or a negative, uncomfortable, unpleasant feeling?

When I first start coaching with a person, they almost always have negative emotions and ideas associated with accountability.  They carry bad memories of annual evaluations with supervisors or bosses that were disconnected or on a power trip.  They have visions of tense meetings ending in probation and employee discipline.  They certainly don’t seek out  “constructive criticism” and “performance feedback evaluation” with delight.

The System is the Solution – Effective Delegation Part III

By Action Coach Dave Beam

Wouldn’t it be great when you are ready to delegate a task if you had a machine that could fully transfer your thoughts and brain into another person’s head with a simple flip of the switch!  Well, as far as I know, that one is still science fiction.

One of the key tools for effective delegation is systems.  How is it that McDonalds can deliver a consistent product from thousands of stores worldwide using teenage workers?  It is because they have created a detailed documented system for every detail of operating a franchise store.  You can create a written, documented system for your business as well.

Dropping Expectations and Creating Agreements – Effective Delegation Part II

By Action Coach Dave Beam

One of the most powerful distinctions that will help you effectively delegate is the distinction between expectations and agreements.  I am indebted to business coach Steve Chandler for teaching me this powerful concept.

Business owners and managers are often frustrated because the team often falls short of their expectations.  You expect them to show up on time.  You expect them to follow through.  You expect them to go that extra mile and bring some new ideas to the meeting.  I am certain that if I interviewed your team members, they would have their own expectations as well. 

Unmet expectations produce disappointment.

Facing Your Fears Concerning Delegation - Effective Delegation Part I

By Action Coach Dave Beam

A common challenge that I hear from business owners and managers is their lack of success in effective delegation.  I hope that you agree that learning how to effectively delegate is a key to your freedom.  Without effective delegation, face it, you have to do it YOURSELF!

The Quality of Life

By Action Coach Dave Beam

Would you like to improve the quality of your life?  To bake a better cake, you need better ingredients.  To create a better LIFE, you must choose better LIFE ingredients.  Today, I would like to help you understand those ingredients by sharing one of my favorite Action Coach flip charts, the QUALITY OF LIFE.

Don’t Read This If You Want To Have a Great New Year

(Our blog articles are archived articles from our weekly newsletter which is about 6-months ahead. Usually this is irrelevant, however this particular article was written for the New Year's season so it may seem a bit out of place but the information is still great! -Editor)

By Action Coach Dave Beam

Brad Sugars, founder and CEO of ActionCOACH, talks about people who live a Xerox life.  Xerox is the brand that is associated with copy machines.  What Brad means is that you could photocopy the experiences of many people for one year, and that will be the experience for each and every year – the same, the same, the same, over and over.  Call it a rut, which is just a grave with the ends knocked out!

Coach Helps Businesses with Problems in Communication

We were recently interviewed by the Herald-Dispatch (our regional newspaper). Below is the full text and a link back to the original article.

May 23, 2010 @ 12:00 AM

JEAN TARBETT HARDIMAN

The Herald-Dispatch

Whether you’re talking about business or you’re talking about family, communication is crucial, says certified business coach David Beam.

As a coach with ActionCOACH, a leading business coaching firm, one of his jobs is to help prevent a communication breakdown. The problem often occurs when expectations are not voiced on one end, or misunderstood on the other end. There has to be a two-sided agreement on what should be done, and helping business people reach that stage of communication is just one of the many of his goals as a business coach.

Having worked with more than 130 businesses in the Tri-State over the past eight years as a business coach, he hopes that he’s helped take businesses that perhaps had reached a plateau to the next level.
Along with improving communication, he likes to help small businesses find ways to develop in areas in which they may have been struggling.

Do You Love to Sell? – Sales Series Part I

By Action Coach Dave Beam

I just completed a presentation on sales, and it was so much fun I decided to write a few articles addressing this very favorite subject of mine.

I absolutely love to sell my services.  However, I have observed many other business people that view sales as a necessary chore at best, certainly not something to enjoy.  Perhaps I love sales because I view salespeople and the sales process differently than most.  So what are your beliefs about sales and salespeople?

Creating the Foundation and Framework of a Great Sales System - Sales Series Part II

By Action Coach Dave Beam

This is Part 2 on my series on sales, and this week I am going to show you how to start building a great sales system that works!

You need to start by creating a great foundation and framework.  The foundation for a great sales system is a definition for sales. First, what it is NOT.  Sales is not just taking an order, nor pushing a product or service on people.  Professional sales is certainly not just throwing out a pitch and trying to persuade people to do something that they are reluctant to do.  In my opinion, these beliefs about sales are deficient and make a poor foundation for building an effective system.

Positioning: The Key to Great Outcomes – Sales Series Part III

By Action Coach Dave Beam

If you have been doing your homework, you have now defined a clear set of steps for your prospect to take, and you are ready to clearly position each step with them at the front end of every appointment or call.  Here is my recommended formula for creating a great positioning to open each meeting with your prospect: Permission, Process, Proposal, Permission – the 4 P’s of Positioning.

Connecting With Your Customer – Sales Series Part IV

By Action Coach Dave Beam

Once you have your customer positioned well (they know where you are going and have given you permission), then it is time to build some rapport and make them feel comfortable.  80% of the sales process is emotional, so setting the customer at ease is critical for a great outcome.  What I am about to share with you is one of the most powerful sales awareness tools available.

Are You Letting Your Business Grow?

By Action Coach Dave Beam

At Action Coach, we have a definition for a true business:  A commercial, profitable enterprise that works – without the owner!

Many business owners are taken back and even offended by this definition.  Others say it is a great concept but not realistic.  A few get it.  Please, set aside your “knowledge” and pre-conceived ideas for a moment, and find this “interesting”.  Once you “get this”, it opens your business mind to a whole new world.

Creating the Best Questions – Sales Series Part V

By Action Coach Dave Beam

One of the most powerful tools that a professional salesperson uses is questions.  Questions keep your prospect engaged with the process.  Great questions can help customers clarify their thinking and help you understand exactly what they want.  Remember, it’s not about what you have to sell; it’s always about what they want!

Presenting Your Products and Services – Sales Series Part VI

By Action Coach Dave Beam

Well, here it is at last.  You have established a great relationship with your prospect, positioned them well, and asked the best questions so that you have a great understanding of what they want and how they will buy.  Once you create an agreement with them concerning what they are looking for, it is time to present your solution; your proposal.

Asking for the Business – Sales Series Part VII

By Action Coach Dave Beam

Did you know that over 68% of sales people (or folks disguised as sales people) never ask for the business?  If you consider this interesting statistic, and change your ways and start asking for the business every time, your sales conversion rate will improve.

Working Through Objections and Stalls - Sales Series Part VIII

By Action Coach Dave Beam

Today I want to address a topic that every salesperson will appreciate – Working Through Objections and Stalls.  How do you respond when you get common stalls and objections like “Well, I really want to think about it” or “I’ll call you back first of the year” or “I really would like to go ahead, but I can’t afford it right now.”

Taking Ownership – The Key to Life and Business Success

By Action Coach Dave Beam

If you have attended an Action event, or have had a coaching session with me, this one will be familiar.  Today, I want you to consider the distinction between being an OWNER versus being a VICTIM.

“Before You Try to Fill the Bathtub, Close the Drain!”

By Action Coach Dave Beam

When I begin coaching a new client, we always evaluate four basic areas of business mastery.  We examine money, time, destination, and delivery mastery.

Today I want to consider delivery mastery and why it is critical to your business success.  If you have delivery mastery, your customers consistently receive quality products and service from your business delivered on time.  This will be evidenced by minimal customer complaints, and you will be current in your response time and product/service delivery.

“I Just Don’t Have Enough Time!” Part 1

By Action Coach Dave Beam

How many times have you used the EXCUSE of not having the time to do something you really want to do?  You protest.  “That’s not an excuse!  That’s reality.  I really don’t have enough time to do everything I want to do.”

What I want to challenge is your paradigm and mindset.  You are making yourself a victim to something that is out of your control.  You have as much time as everyone else.  You have 24 hours a day – no more and no less.  That does not change.  So if you want a different experience in life, YOU must change. 

Choosing What is Best – The Key to Time Management - Part 2

By Action Coach Dave Beam

I work with so many clients that feel overwhelmed and out of control.  They believe the lie that if they just had more time, or if they managed their time better, that they would lose that feeling.  The fact is that the feelings of overwhelm are rooted in a lack of clarity about what is best.  Almost everyone has more to get done than time to get it done.  If you lack clarity on what is most important, then you will feel overwhelmed and indecisive and will lack focus as you try to accomplish whatever you choose to do.  Another common myth is that we can multi-task.  The truth is you can only do one thing at a time.  You may be master at changing from one thing to another quickly and jumping from one task to another, but at any moment you are only doing one thing.

The Power of Weekly Planning - Part 3

By Action Coach Dave Beam

If you have read the last few articles and done your homework, you should now have a basic understanding of your core values and priorities.  To help you gain mastery in your life and schedule, I recommend that you read David Allen’s book, “Getting Things Done”.  He provides a clear process for capturing and processing all of your ideas, to do’s, duties, things to read, places to go, – EVERYTHING in your life and on your mind.  He outlines a brilliant system that shows you how to capture, define and process everything in your world so that your mind can be freed and available for maximum performance.

You Just Can’t Find Good Employees – Part 4

By Action Coach Dave Beam

Today we finish our series on team recruitment.  If you have been following the steps, you are ready for the climatic event in hiring – the group interview. 

If you have successfully followed the process, you have invited 10 – 15 (or even more) potential candidates to a meeting.  These candidates have been “de-selected” from a larger pool of people calling in response to your up-front marketing efforts. 

You Just Can’t Find Good Employees – Part 3

By Action Coach Dave Beam

Last week, I shared on how to put together an effective ad to attract the best people to candidate for your team.  The “ad” needs to be placed where you will be most likely to find the person described.  I always recommend that you and your team invest significant effort and time in creatively placing this information to attract the largest possible number of qualified candidates.  Refuse to go “below the line” (an action phrase that means you are victimizing yourself to blame, excuses, and denial) by believing that this is not possible. 

You Just Can’t Find Good Employees – Part 2

By Action Coach Dave Beam

As promised, this week I am going to start to share the basics of the Action Coach hiring process.  It is based on the principle of de-selection.

Most traditional hiring processes are about choosing the best candidate by conducting a thorough examination of each qualified candidate, often starting with a resume.  There are several challenges with this traditional approach.

You Just Can’t Find Good Employees - Part 1

By Action Coach Dave Beam

I hope this week's title caught your attention.  It is one of the most common complaints I hear from business owners.  Many feel victimized by the supposed poor work ethic and complain that more and more there are fewer and fewer good people willing to work and take responsibility for their job.  A number of those with that story are convinced that it applies especially to their industry, or is tied to their geographical area.

Six Keys to a Winning Team Key #6 – 100% Involvement/Inclusion

By Action Coach Dave Beam

The sixth key to a winning team is 100% involvement and inclusion. Each member must know that they are accepted by the team, and each member must also choose to participate 100%. Those who are not fully engaged pull down the team's performance. 100% participation creates powerful team synergy.

So far I have given you the information to create a wonderful action plan to bring your team to new levels of performance and results. Every key is essential for maximizing your team performance, and this last key is absolutely no exception.

Six Keys to a Winning Team Key #5 – Action Plan

By Action Coach Dave Beam

A fifth key to a winning team is to have a written action plan. Great ideas, an inspiring vision, and even a happy work place don't automatically produce results. Results come from taking action. Each team member needs to know daily who is supposed to do what by when.

The name of our franchise is "ACTION COACH". There is a great reason for that. Nothing happens in life and business until someone takes ACTION. You can have a strong leader with a common goal and great, clearly defined rules, but with no action, nothing happens.

Six Keys to a Winning Team Key #4 – Support Risk Taking

By Action Coach Dave Beam

A fourth key for producing a winning team is to support risk taking. For people to maximize their potential, they need to try new things, even make mistakes! The only people who don't make mistakes are those who never try anything new. Winning teams will always be willing to stretch their limits. As long as you have defined the rules of the game, the team should be encouraged to innovate within those defined boundaries.

Six Keys to a Winning Team Key #3 – Rules of the Game

By Action Coach Dave Beam

The third key for winning is to know the rules of the game. Can you imagine trying to win a game if you didn't know the rules? Often employees lack motivation and productivity because the expectations are unclear. Do your employees know the company core values? Have you invested time in defining core values and communicating the company culture to every team member?