Virtual meetings present multiple challenges. This is especially true for new team members who are being introduced (virtually) to an existing team with a history of working together. Virtual introductions can be made easier by offering time in the first meeting for individuals to really get to know each other before business begins. An interactive discussion is helpful. Ask the team for suggestions as to how best to interact as a new team.

Meeting on Zoom, GoToMeeting, or WebEx is difficult. Long meetings are especially challenging. Be sure to set up early for the meeting, having the items you need available. Put away any distractions, such as a cell phone or additional paperwork (no multi-tasking). Keeping engaged will help you connect with those in the meeting. Facial expressions are the best way to ensure a personal connection (smiling and making eye contact directly into the screen). Watch for cues to ensure your message is being heard. Always use mute when you are not talking. Be open to dialogue on Zoom and engage in discussions.

When putting a team together, it is wise to create a communication guideline questionnaire. The questionnaire should indicate expectations, timelines, and communication vehicle preferences (ex. email, phone, or text). Each team member should put their expectations down on paper. These guidelines would be discussed at the first team meeting. Together, the team decides what works best in order for the team to be an effective group. The majority should rule, with personal exceptions. When working from home, it is best to have determined hours.

Honesty is the best policy—at the right time. Being honest at the wrong time usually leads to friction and hurt feelings. Working with people who feel honesty is the best policy – even in the middle of difficult situations – I have witnessed that it has not always helped their careers. Instead, most often being honest at the wrong time has hurt their chances of upward movement.

The individuals who consistently are well liked and respected are the ones who always greet those around them with a smile. Recently, I attended a family function with a combination of two different families. Members of the families did not know each other. One of the couples arrived and did not say hello because they were in the midst of a disagreement with a member of the other family. What does that say about the first impression they made on people they did not know—or even on people who knew them well? It took the group nearly two days to warm up to each other. If the couple had walked in, said hello, and stopped for a few minutes to chat, everyone may have warmed up more quickly and been more comfortable.

Affiliations offer companionship, respect, and safety which is why folks belong and groups grow. The negative side is when groups become one voice of yes people.

We all want relationships that bring a foundation. Beyond that, how do we retain our individuality with integrity and honesty yet keep the group strong? It is a question, I often ponder. Hopefully, groups will keep this issue on the forefront and avoid groupthink and shutting out different voices.

Renewing excitement after holidays are behind us and the new year begins is challenging. I remembered when I read Stephen Covey’s or Tony Robbins’ daily reflections to help jump start the day.

Self-motivation works best when looking at the upside of life and being grateful for the things we have going for us. Always staying in a hard driving mode gets old after a while. We must break and take some time to enjoy what we have. The length of the break needed depends on what works best for each person.

Truth will always matter. Once, during a television makeover show twenty years ago, the host asked me what I would never do. I replied that I would never lie to a client or audience. Truth can be told in a way that is not hurtful. For example, instead of saying that the suit looks awful, one might say it does not do the person justice.

In the second season of the television series, “The Sinner”, a young boy decides not to run away. He chose to face the consequences because lies eat away at integrity. And a very good friend and outstanding psychologist said, once integrity is gone, there is nothing left. Being truthful is not always easy but it is the right thing to do.

In today’s work and personal environments, to accomplish all that is needed, we can easily become overwhelmed. This sometimes lead to anxiety. Harnessing the anxiety to shift it into motivation, is the best way change the emotion needed to move toward accomplishment. Taking note of the anxiety triggers will help turn the it into motivation to achieve the goal.

The cooking competition show is about more than just the food. It provides a visual of ways contestants and judges work under pressure to deliver successful products and give constructive feedback. The show that continues to give feedback gems is the Kid’s Championship Baking Show.

Duff and Valerie are the judges and it is the way they use the three to one rule that clicks. They look for the three positives and one not-so-positive area to help the contestants achieve success as a baker. The judges balance the fine line on these impressionable young minds. We understand they were chosen for their baking skills, personality, and how they receive feedback.
All us of revert to the child in ourselves when under review and feeling pressured. (Even when we try to toughen up!)