Extraordinary Groups

Would you like to build a spectacular team? One great place to start is to uncover positive memories of your potential team members.

In the book entitled Extraordinary Groups: How Ordinary Teams Achieve Amazing Results, by Geoffrey Bellman and Kathleen Ryan, it defines an extraordinary group as “Outstanding results and an experience that caused a profound shift in how members saw the world.”

I once had the privilege to participate in a session with Geoffrey Bellman where we split into groups and shared answers to these questions:

1. Think of an amazing group or team experience in which you were involved. What three actions were key to that success?
2. Why was that team work personally rewarding for you? List three characteristics that made the experience stand out.
3. How did you feel? List three feelings.

My own experience in answering the three questions was eye-opening, and an exercise I recommend you incorporate into a meeting with your department or management group.

Bellman and Ryan identifies these eight performance indicators in extraordinary groups:

1. Compelling purpose
2. Shared leadership
3. Just-enough structure
4. Full engagement
5. Embraced differences
6. Unexpected learning
7. Strengthened relationships
8. Great results

If we could all give our groups the opportunity to be Extraordinary, what a gift that would be!