Welcome back to another #ThoughtFULLThursday. My name is Casey Hasten and I am an Executive Recruiter, Director of Recruiting with VIP and your all-around #hiringguru. This blog is about building better teams and I cannot think of a better example than the teamwork needed when white water rafting.
The pictures above are from a personal experience. In the top right of the collage, you will see our raft about to be consumed by a wave. In the second, we are almost fully overcome by that same wave. But if you look closely, you will see smiles on every face. By this point of our journey downriver, we had complete confidence in our guide and entered the turbulence with certainty we would emerge into smoother waters unscathed.
How did our guide establish command of a group of people she had never met and who had never met each other in less than an hour? First, she established herself as an expert. Second, she built rapport within our newly created team to form connection. Third, in the early stages of the journey, while the water was still relatively calm, she instructed each stroke of the oar made by the team and demonstrated she would safely guide us through the waters. And finally, she celebrated with us as a team when we completed a difficult pass (paddle high five picture on the left).
There were eight rafts in our group and not every guide was created equal. Our guide was clearly in charge of the entire expedition. As we floated down the river, one boat got stuck. Another bounced a team member right out of the boat. In each of these cases, the lack of teamwork was clearly visible in the inability to course correct to avoid the more treacherous areas. This was a new guide who had not yet learned the technique of generating a team mentality quickly, which resulted in uncoordinated strokes. Our guide, while leading our small team, was quick to help the new guide out of his sticky situations and provided gentle guidance on how to avoid the next time rafting downriver.
How does this example help us build better teams in business? There are a lot of parallels to be drawn from white water rafting. It is important to have a guide, or a leader, who quickly earns the trust of the people they are leading. A quick way to do this is to lead by example.
Get in the middle of the mix right alongside your team. Our guide was right there with us the entire journey. When times are good, be sure to use those opportunities to continue to build camaraderie and connection so when you hit those rough waters, your team looks to you and each other for guidance and support.
Celebrate your team victories. I have written an entire blog here about the importance of celebrating as a team.
I am going a little off topic here, but I want to challenge each of you to get out there and do something that takes you out of your comfort zone. It does not have to be something as exhilarating as white water rafting. Maybe it is going to a networking event for the first time or volunteering for a project at work for which you will need to learn a new skill. Each time you step out a little, you learn and grow. As the headline in the picture says, “Life is not a spectator sport.”
I hope you enjoyed this #ThoughtFULLThursday. Be sure to email me and let me know what you did to get out of your comfort zone!
#raftwithaae #getoutsideyourcomfortzone #themountainsarecalling
