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.
cleaning help near Mundelein ..Once you've set a goal for yourself as a leader... Read More
Ever watched a really brilliant idea meet with resistance and... Read More
Perhaps you're a small business owner wondering how you and... Read More
Do you let your people express their thoughts about the... Read More
Truth on mlmDid you know that the truth on mlm... Read More
In the new corporate environments where everyone wears more than... Read More
Remember playing in your childhood sandbox? If you enjoyed being... Read More
One of the best lessons I have learned is the... Read More
Most believe that leadership is an innate quality that some... Read More
The other day I got a call from a friend... Read More
Let's look at the detail of giving feedback. Whether you... Read More
Group discussions are where much of the creative work of... Read More
Over the years there has been much ado about team... Read More
A lot of effort has been carried out in the... Read More
The people in your team may feel a bit uncomfortable... Read More
One of the most memorable quotes that I heard from... Read More
Consensus is the appropriate decision strategy for the most important... Read More
In most organisations the administration/support team, although they can be... Read More
1. Humor reduces stress levels and stress is the number... Read More
Turbulent TwistersYou've read about it in the headlines and experienced... Read More
In a recent group coaching session, a client mentioned that... Read More
Most managers simply herd some people in a room with... Read More
Team building takes work but the results are worth it.... Read More
Many believe a leaner government promotes better freedoms with respect... Read More
So much has been written on this subject; Team Work,... Read More
reliable maid service Wilmette ..Turbulent TwistersYou've read about it in the headlines and experienced... Read More
Maybe you find yourself in a new team environment and... Read More
What's the Secret Ingredient That Turns Groups into Teams? Working... Read More
Reed Employment made a survey of their clients and compiled... Read More
The rise of the internet has given businesses a new... Read More
Why do we human beings complicate things? Is it that... Read More
Most managers simply herd some people in a room with... Read More
The Fantasy: Your marketing budget is packed to the brim... Read More
In a recent group coaching session, a client mentioned that... Read More
Team Building Question:A team is full of animosity, pretended interpersonal... Read More
Many believe a leaner government promotes better freedoms with respect... Read More
Perhaps you're a small business owner wondering how you and... Read More
Irrespective of any given situation, "Team Work Works!" It is... Read More
The first in a series of articles giving a slightly... Read More
Recently, while developing a customer service program, I asked my... Read More
It's frustrating when your co-workers, audience members, teenager or even... Read More
Most believe that leadership is an innate quality that some... Read More
Do you remember how you felt after your last interaction... Read More
Recently my fourteen-year old son Matt dressed up as Santa... Read More
A lot of effort has been carried out in the... Read More
No figure in history is like General Patton. He was... Read More
As the world of manufacturing has become increasingly competitive, managers... Read More
At a time when many companies are scaling down their... Read More
This sports cliche is a memorable phrase that reminds people... Read More
When was the last time you spent excessive time and... Read More
Team Building |