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.
best cleaning company Lincolnshire ..The other day I got a call from a friend... Read More
Did you know your work environment can actually make you... Read More
Internal business structures have been radically transformed over the past... Read More
Many believe a leaner government promotes better freedoms with respect... Read More
The second in a series of 2 articles giving a... Read More
CREATE A MOTIVATIONAL CLIMATE: Create a climate where others find... Read More
Too many techies get a bad rap for lacking teamwork... Read More
The first in a series of articles giving a slightly... Read More
Over the years there has been much ado about team... Read More
7 Key Dimensions of High Performance Teams We can always... Read More
Just today my partner Russ and I sat down to... Read More
As a business owner, I've had staff come and go... Read More
Winning teams aren't created by accident. Rather, the team or... Read More
What's the Secret Ingredient That Turns Groups into Teams? Working... Read More
Franchisees of a particular franchise must get along in order... Read More
The world of work has changed. It used to be... Read More
In most organisations the administration/support team, although they can be... Read More
Teams, teams, teams. They're all the rage these days. Whether... Read More
Teams run most businesses and teams work best if each... Read More
Most managers simply herd some people in a room with... Read More
The key to life is to be around the people... Read More
It's the summer of 1973, and a young film director... Read More
We live in very progressive times, one only has to... Read More
Ever lost for ideas while working in a group? One... Read More
As a manager, your employees will come to you with... Read More
on demand house cleaning Lake Forest ..Project Head Start has been successful not only for the... Read More
"Teamwork is the ability to work together toward a common... Read More
We all know someone who just drives us batty. Perhaps... Read More
Team Building Question:A team is full of animosity, pretended interpersonal... Read More
Reed Employment made a survey of their clients and compiled... Read More
Too many techies get a bad rap for lacking teamwork... Read More
The other day I got a call from a friend... Read More
For companies to be competitive, decisions have to be made... Read More
Proactive High Performance Teamwork is made up of nine proactive... Read More
The people in your team may feel a bit uncomfortable... Read More
"Tak kenak! Tak kenak!" "Adak Orang sanak!????"The quiet jungle has... Read More
The Fantasy: Your marketing budget is packed to the brim... Read More
Do you let your people express their thoughts about the... Read More
1. Involve them. Many employees want to be involved in... Read More
Winning teams aren't created by accident. Rather, the team or... Read More
One of the best ways to ensure that your planning... Read More
There's nothing that matches the power of teamwork to accomplish... Read More
Have you seen the tee-shirt with the slogan, "Talk to... Read More
Recently I decided to stretch my athletic abilities and add... Read More
What's the Secret Ingredient That Turns Groups into Teams? Working... Read More
Giving gifts to your co-workers or your employees can be... Read More
As a freelance writer myself, I know how important it... Read More
Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation... Read More
From the moment he putted with Bob Hope on the... Read More
Group discussions are where much of the creative work of... Read More
Team Building |