It’s been a tough time for learning… Whether you are in Grade Six, third year college or on a public service front line team, we have all been challenged to stay on top of emerging knowledge, new skills and staying fully engaged in our work and lives. For public servants, the confluence of anti-government sentiment, climate change and pandemic waves, has created a perfect storm in the halls of public service. We are trying to balance core values, public policy, high tech and the seven-year-old at home.
In 2014, I wrote this book … Handcrafted Leadership: The Art & Craft of Building Engaged Workplaces & Communities.
I truly believe that true engagement comes much better with daily practice than with sporadic workshops and committees. I also have learned that we need to approach engagement through the three critical lenses of … the individual, the team and the whole system. I also believe that goodwill is not enough. We need to build corner of the desk front line practitioners who lead, learn and practice with the best Monday morning engagement tools available. The book makes a beginning with 24 starter tools.
A New Year
So, in 2022 I wanted to take another look at team engagement.
I want to explore with some self-selected teams three things …
- How can we balance the learning challenges using the best of the old school analog (books) and the best of contemporary virtual (Zoom). This project, I believe, will be a true hybrid learning model.
- I also want to put this book into the hands of more public servants as a conversation starter.
- I just really want to meet you folks out there as I know you are wrestling with the big post-pandemic question … do we go back … or forward?
The “On the Same Page” Book Club
A simple, affordable team building challenge in 3 simple parts
- Buy the books.
One book per team member (autographed) at the bulk rate of $10.00/book. Oh yeah, if your working team is not ready right now for the challenge, why not find some friends and take it on.
- Read the books
It takes less than four hours to read the book, but you have four weeks to get it read. After the read, each team member comes up with their biggest learning and their biggest unanswered question. e.g. the author thinks he is pretty clever, but I bet he never faced the challenge we are looking at in the next six months with.
- Discuss directly with the author
The team gets to sit in on a one hour Zoom call (complimentary) with the author and a host. The best comments and questions will fill the hour.
The Analog read + The virtual conversation
= A hybrid learning model…