Category Archives: Athletic Teambuilding

Let’s start by stating the obvious. Marathons are hard. And marathons are far more of an individual challenge than a team activity. So what does running a marathon have to do with you leading your team? A good bit, actually…   First, a brief summary of my marathon experience: My wife and I decided to […]

I got an email from a client that asked me for advice about a group of employees. In her words they were “having a hard time working together because they just don’t seem to like each other.” She asked what she could do to help the situation. Basically she was asking the same thing many […]

When I took our dogs on a walk the other day, I noticed something that could definitely help your team. We have one small dog (a cocker-spaniel and poodle mix) and one large dog (a lovable part-hound, part-shepherd mutt rescued from the animal shelter), and our neighborhood is filled with the barking of dozens of other dogs […]

I had just taken over as head coach of a high school basketball program. From what I had learned prior to taking the job, there were a few talented seniors, and the varsity team had won more than they lost the year before… But the last coach had not done any off season work for […]

The name for this fun five-ten minute ice breaker activity is taken from a commercial that everyone on your team has probably seen at least a dozen times… It’s the “Capitol One Challenge…” But you don’t have to give me credit for the idea! (so punny!)   Okay – enough with the bad jokes. Here’s your easy […]

Frozen Dinner Syndrome is the result of flawed expectations.

Remember looking at the box there in the freezer aisle, and convincing yourself that it looked appetizing… even desirable?

One of the most difficult parts of any team leader’s job is to have positive and effective feedback conversations.   Whether you are a coach, a sales manager, a school administrator, or a medical staff supervisor, The COIN model provides you a template for having feedback conversations that work and include 4 essential elements of […]

My daughter plays beach volleyball. So she was very excited when she learned about a week-long camp at Hermosa Beach, in California, that would be run by college coaches.  And she and my wife both think this is a great opportunity for her to get better and build relationships… But it was expensive.  And it […]

There is a 5 word phrase that dooms your team interactions. I have written before about how to benefit from the working with a “sandpaper person” on your team, and have also discussed the conflicts that can arise if your people are not aware of the strengths and challenges that different team personality types offer. […]