Recently I was working with a team exploring ways they could be more effective and become a Fearless Team. Their goal was to move from Performing to Successful on the Team Development Ladder.

In this situation, teams often enthusiastically generate a list of things they could do… New ways of engaging, new projects, additional performance measures, etc.

Sometimes the gold is in what we drop and not what we embrace. This team came up with a concept I liked so much I want to share it with you – ‘Bless and Release’. They explored the ‘stuff’ they could thank and let go, to free up ‘space’ for new stuff.

4 areas your team could Bless and Release.

1. Limiting beliefs and team identity. This team realised they had a collective belief that their team lacked innovation. Perhaps this was the case once, but the evidence didn’t support this as the current truth. In the workshop they gave themselves permission to be innovative.

2. Processes that no longer serve. Most processes we follow within a team were originally established for good reasons. Many are no longer valid now. What process is your team following because ‘that’s the way we have always done it’?

3. Old Habits. This team had a habit of saying ‘yes’ to requests from the rest of the organisation, a habit that lead to stressful workloads and the team not achieving their own KPIs. They agreed to prioritise incoming requests in line with the their strategic direction and business plan.

4. Dysfunctional relationships. Another team I worked with identified that a tense relationship between two team members was impacting the whole team dynamic. The two people involved agreed to put the past behind them, and use the better understanding of one another they had gained through our workshop to begin a new working relationship.

Over to you. What could your team could Bless and Release to become a Fearless Team?

Go fearlessly!