Boost Your Success With An R&D Team

One of the best ways to ensure that your planning is successful is to create your own R&D (research and development) group. All truly successful businesses have departments or teams specifically dedicated to finding and developing new and better ways to do whatever it is the company does, so why not you?

At it's most basic, and R&D group can be a small group of friends that you bribe into helping you with problems by offerings of pizza and beer. At it's most complex, it can be a worldwide network of e-quaintences who have signed on to receive email newsletters from you outlining the projects you are working on, and who in return offer feedback or creative help from hundreds of different perspectives.

Wherever your group falls along this continuum, to be effective they must have a clear idea of where you're going and what help you need. Be clear and clean in your discussions, and accept all feedback openly and without defensive posturing. Of course, if someone is taking advantage of your goodwill by scarfing up your pizza, but offering only bland or even hurtful critiques in return with no real effort at being helpful or creating solutions, don't invite them back - just be sure it's them, and not you, who are the problem!

Don't forget to keep your R&D team up to date on the progress of the projects they helped on. After all, it's their baby too, and no one likes to help out and then be left behind - if you pull a "thanks for all your help, b'bye now" routine on them, they will get frustrated and won't want to play any more, leaving you to do all that work by yourself. Reciprocate in kind by joining in their R&D teams if they ask (or offer first, to be really nice).

Creating and using R&D teams can save you much wasted time, pointless effort and avoidable pain. No one of us knows as much as all of us put together, and the group dynamic is a good example of a behavior known as "emergent phenomenon" - it often generates results that are greater than the sum of its parts. By sending your ideas and problems through your R&D team, rather than attempting to handle it all yourself, you'll end up with a far greater number and higher quality of ideas to work with (even if you do end going with your original plan) than you could ever hope to come up with on your own.

(Fun note: Even mad scientists and evil overlords, the two most basic "one-man operations" there are, take advantage of this stress-relieving concept. Remember - you, too, have minions. Use them!)

(c) Soni Pitts

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Soni Pitts is the Chief Visionary Butt-Kicker of sonipitts.com. She specializes in helping others reclaim "soul proprietorship" in their lives and to begin living the life their Creator always intended for them.

She is the author of the free e-book "50 Ways To Reach Your Goals" and over 100 self-help and inspirational articles, as well as other products and resources designed to facilitate this process of personal growth and spiritual development.

bathroom cleaning service Northbrook ..
In The News:

ETA sharing on Apple Maps and Google Maps keeps contacts updated automatically while you drive safely. Learn step-by-step instructions for iPhone and Android.
Data removal from brokers protects against AI-powered scams and deepfake threats in 2026. Learn how data brokers sell your personal information to scammers.
Learn how to act against cybercriminals in 2026 with essential security steps like two-factor authentication, software updates and credit freezing.
Choose between OpenAI releasing Sora text-to-video model, the AI race heating up, or Waymo driverless cars launching in cities across the country
Learn how to set up Google Maps and Apple Maps on your phone to automatically remember where you parked. Step-by-step instructions for enabling location services and parking detection.
Phishing scammers use rnicrosoft.com domain to impersonate Microsoft by replacing "m" with "rn" in typosquatting attacks that steal login credentials.
OpenAI announces new teen safety rules for ChatGPT users under 18, blocking romantic roleplay and requiring extra caution on body image topics.
A 2025 data breach at fintech company 700Credit exposes personal information of more than 5.8 million people through compromised third-party integration partner.
Retailers lose $76.5 billion annually to return fraud as nearly 10% of U.S. retail returns involve fraudulent activity, with $850 billion in returns expected in 2025.
ShinyHunters claims responsibility for stealing 94GB of Pornhub user data affecting over 200 million records and demands Bitcoin ransom.
ChatGPT 2025 now connects to Apple Music, Canva, Expedia, TripAdvisor and OpenTable through built-in apps that help users create playlists, design graphics and more.
Apple releases emergency patches for two zero-day vulnerabilities actively exploited in attacks. iPhone and iPad users urged to update immediately.
DoorDash launches Zesty, an AI-powered social app that recommends restaurants through conversational search, now testing in San Francisco and New York.
Cybersecurity firm Infoblox reveals that over 90 percent of parked domains now redirect visitors to scams and malware, making simple typos extremely dangerous.
The Fox News AI Newsletter covers the latest artificial intelligence technology advancements, including the challenges and opportunities AI presents now and for the future.
GPT-5.2 is now live for all ChatGPT users with improved coding, writing and image interpretation, with Kurt Knutsson offering his review.
New iPhone replacement scam uses pressure tactics and fake carrier calls to steal devices from buyers. Criminals claim shipping errors and demand urgent returns.
Amazon Ring's new facial recognition feature sparks privacy controversy as Electronic Frontier Foundation critics argue the AI upgrade expands surveillance risks.
New Android banking trojan Sturnus steals credentials, reads encrypted messages and controls devices.
Denmark's 3D-printed student village proves automation builds 36 apartments faster than traditional methods. Skovsporet project shows housing future.
Discover Android's new Sound Notifications feature that alerts you to smoke alarms, doorbells, and baby cries even when wearing headphones.
New SantaStealer malware reportedly threatens holiday shoppers with password theft. This Christmas-themed info-stealer targets browsers and crypto wallets.
The Christmas season brings a surge in Netflix phishing scams targeting shoppers with fake emails. Stacey P received convincing scam but verified account first.
San Francisco Giants invite Jamie Grohsong to throw ceremonial first pitch at Oracle Park after he learned to play baseball with a bionic hand following an injury.
FBI warns cybercriminals are stealing family photos from social media to create fake proof of life images in virtual kidnapping scams targeting victims.

You, Your Team, and Your Coach

The grand purpose of coaching is to help your managers,... Read More

Marche, or How Teams Work.

On the trail in Northern Canada "Marche" was the word... Read More

How To Help A Sick Team Become Healthy

Team Building Question:A team is full of animosity, pretended interpersonal... Read More

Leadership Quality Through Kindness

In days past, loyalty was a given. The worker in... Read More

What Do Trainers Do When They are Not Training?

In the new corporate environments where everyone wears more than... Read More

Effective Brainstorming

Most managers simply herd some people in a room with... Read More

Team Development in the Little Leagues

A grassy field, two nets, a soccer ball and some... Read More

Landscaping Business; Employee Relations

There are few industries or service type businesses, which are... Read More

Motivation - The Benefits of Spending Time with Your Team

Benefit 1 - You get to understand them betterAlmost everyone... Read More

3 Steps To Successfully Build A Team In Any Program

Any x by y matrix plan has one big risk...... Read More

Discovering the Truth on MLM

Truth on mlmDid you know that the truth on mlm... Read More

Functioning in a Dysfunctional Workplace

Sometimes the greatest challenges lay not within the actions of... Read More

Building High Performing Teams: Putting the I Back in Teamwork

Ever watched a really brilliant idea meet with resistance and... Read More

Creating a Winning Staff Team

As a business owner, I've had staff come and go... Read More

A Team That Gleamed

Too many techies get a bad rap for lacking teamwork... Read More

You are Excused from Training

Trainers, please picture this... You are presenting in a new... Read More

Working with Difficult People: 3 Questions to Help You Turn Your Tormentors into Teachers

The Dance of ConflictWhen faced with the prospect of meeting... Read More

Raising Issues In Your Group or Offline

In a recent group coaching session, a client mentioned that... Read More

Workplace Fitness: Tongue-In-Cheek

According to the Oxford Dictionary of Current English, to speak... Read More

Team Success with ?Innies?: Why You Want Them on Your Team and How to Help Them Excel

Everyone knows, works or lives with "innies." Who are they... Read More

Company Picnic Ideas and Planning Tips

The company picnic is a beloved tradition at many firms.It's... Read More

4 Tips for Keeping a Team Motivated

Companies often have incentives for reps, but sometimes that isn't... Read More

Corporate Team Building

There is a WHOLE lot of talk these days about... Read More

Feedback For Learning Can Turn Your Team Into Winners

Feedback:Most experts agree both types; constructive and positive feedback are... Read More

Story Telling With a Purpose

For a brief time, I tried to sell life insurance.... Read More

insured cleaning company Wilmette ..