How It Works

Step 1

DOWNLOAD THE CONVERSATION YOU WANT TO HAVE

Select the Team Talk that is right for you and purchase the individual or company license. Materials will be released for immediate download. Individual licenses allow one individual Team Leader to access to the content. Company Licenses permit anyone in your organization to use the content. If you purchase a Company License, one of our team members will reach out via email to ensure you are ready to successfully launch Team Talks in your organization.

WHAT’S INCLUDED:

When you purchase a Team Talk conversation toolkit, you are going to receive simple, thoughtfully designed tools that draw from industry-leading research and our deep expertise in leadership development and executive coaching. The guides will help your team explore even the most messy and complicated topics with curiosity and engagement. These are the conversations you want to have with people at work, but you don’t always know how.

NOTE: All Team Talk Materials can be printed or shared electronically so you can use them during either in-person or virtual conversations.

“We recently rolled out Team Talks and I have to say WOW! People were vulnerable and shared what they have been going through. It genuinely galvanized the teams. Highly, highly recommend you check these out. The materials are fantastic!”

Step 2

SCHEDULE YOUR TEAM MEETING

The Team Leader will invite their employees to an in-person or virtual conversation and attach the “Warm-Up” exercise. Click to download some recommended language for this invitation, but please customize for your group.

Recommended Group Size: Invite 10 people or less to allow for better conversations and enough time. We suggest breaking larger teams into smaller groups or multiple sessions.

NOTE: You may need to schedule additional time for more talkative groups!

Step 3

GET EVERYONE WARMED UP

Team Leader reviews the “Conversation Guide” and “Conversation Toolkit” to prepare for the meeting. All Team Members complete the “Warm-Up Exercise.”

Need Help Leading this Conversation? We offer “Train the Leader” webinars as well as professional facilitators to ensure teams have a great conversation. Contact us to learn about these optional upgrades and the support we provide.

Step 4

LEAD THE TEAM TALK

Creating a safe space for this conversation is critical — use these best practices to encourage participation and engagement from all:

• Set clear expectations for the behaviors you expect to see role modeled during your Team Talk (eg. no multi-tasking, maintain confidentiality, etc). Clear is kind.

• Role model the vulnerability and openness you expect from others

• Watch the clock — set clear timing expectations and share the microphone evenly

• Keep cameras on and eyes open for non-verbals — notice each other’s facial expressions and body language. They provide important emotional data.

• Use emotional check-in language in your reflections (“You sound frustrated” or “You seem excited about this”) to validate how people are feeling.

• Consider the environment and tone — do you want to create a formal or informal moment with your team? How could you remove any sense of threat or fear from this conversation so people will open up?

• If the meeting swerves off-course, stop and say what is happening. (“I am noticing we have 15 minutes left," or, “I hear your voice getting louder and want to check in on that.”)

Step 5

AGREE ON HOW TO CONTINUE THE CONVERSATION TOGETHER AS A TEAM

At the end of each team talk, there is an invitation to continue the conversation as a team. This is the benefit of the Team Talk approach!

Most leadership development strategies involve sending an individual to attend a class. This individual has a great learning experience, gets inspired and committed to practicing new skills, and then we send that changed person back into an unchanged environment. That environment often devours their excitement and your learning dollar disappears. But when an entire team goes through a learning experience together, like they will in Team Talks, they develop a shared language, and shared accountability.  The team leader gains insights that help them lead, and interpersonal dynamics and development needs rise to the surface.  We have seen this approach yield a much higher learning ROI for your investment!

If you are interested in learning more about Team Talks, or if you want us to develop a customized conversation for your organization, just reach out!

More Team Talks are in development and will be available soon. We would love to hear how your conversations go to help us improve and learn!