Several years ago, I wrote an article “Friday is Red Sock Day” in which I described the strategies used by my father to effectively convince his children – and his colleagues – to wear red socks on Friday. Every Friday. For years.
The strategies used by my dad include:
- Lead by example: Every Friday my dad wore red socks and hiked up his pants to show you he had them on.
- Membership is voluntary: Everyone chooses whether they belong to a team or a club, including the red-sock wearing type. Figure out what motivates team members to join or decline.
- Provide regular reinforcement: Built into dad’s message was weekly reminders. Structure your check-ins for improved accountability and feedback
- Communicate clearly: Dad’s message was simple, “Friday is red sock day. Are you wearing your red socks today?” It is streamlined, memorable, repeatable.
- Consistently provide constructive feedback: On Fridays, everyone in the home/work bubble got immediate smiles or frowns from dad after he checked their sock selection. Co-workers knew that failure to wear red socks on Friday required apology donuts on Monday. At home, we had to immediately change socks before going to school.
These same strategies can be used by leaders to help build strong team/project cultures. To get you started, use the following worksheet (download a PDF version) with best practices and question prompts to brainstorm specific tactics for each strategy. The investment is worth the effort. Pareto Labs research indicates that an inspired employee is 125% more productive than one that is merely satisfied. Imagine the impact a shift like that can have on your project!
Your challenge, should you decide to accept it …
- Brainstorm ideas in each of the five categories on the worksheet.
- Merge your best ideas from all categories into one list and prioritize them in order of value, tempered with ease of implementation.
- Implement at least one idea per month for the next six months. (Yes, you can do more, but at least do one per month!)
- Enjoy the shift in your project culture!
~ Cinda
Cinda Bond, MIPI, has been an OrgMetrics partnering facilitator for more than 10 years. She has facilitated more than 500 sessions for teams throughout the country. She also collaborates with engineering and construction teams to develop large documents containing hundreds of pages for construction contracts and proposals.
For more information please contact Cinda Bond, CindaBond@Orgmet.com / (925)640-9007 (cell), or OrgMetrics RobReaugh@Orgmet.com / (925)449-8300
Cinda Bond, MIPI, has been an OrgMetrics partnering facilitator for more than 10 years. She has facilitated more than 500 sessions for teams throughout the country. She also collaborates with engineering and construction teams to develop large documents containing hundreds of pages for construction contracts and proposals.