Leadership How-To: Combine Communication with Teamwork

To continue our periodic posts on Leadership How-Tos as a suggestion from participants in my last Leadership I class, I'd like to suggest an activity that combines two of the class topics:

1. Teamwork
2.  Communication

In the class, everyone takes a Communication Style Assessment .  You can click the link and order a paper copy like the one taken in the class for $14.00 each or click here to see all the other products that go along with the assessment.  You can order the online version for $16.00 or even order $2.00 blinking pins for each of the four different styles.

To better understand communication in the workplace and build camaraderie amongst your team (and have a little fun while you are at it!)  get this style assessment or another you find that you like and have your team members take it.  Then plan a 30 minute team building session to discuss everyone's results.

Facilitate a discussion that includes:
1.  What each person's style means to them.  Get people to describe a scenario at work that shows their style.
2.  Have a good discussion about the strengths and weaknesses of each style.
3.  Ask members of the team to pair up with someone who has a different style than they do and discuss ways to improve communication between those two types of styles.  Have them share with the group.
4.  Focus on the fact that no one style is right or wrong, but knowing ourselves and knowing others on our team helps us communicate more effectively.

To reiterate the points of effective communication between different styles, if your workplace culture supports it, order some of these goofy blinking pins 

(no, I am not getting a kickback for promoting any of these products :)  and facilitate some fun team building around giving them away when people either demonstrate their style or recognize the style of others in a behavior based example.

Want other example of a teambuilding activity?  Check out upStartHR's post here.