It’s not good enough to be smart and know your job at Atmos Energy, one of the largest natural gas-only distributors in the U.S.  If you can’t build solid working relationships, you simply won’t be successful at Atmos Energy. 

Interaction Associates CEO Barry Rosen explores the people side of collaboration in this article, published in Training Industry Magazine’s 2015 Perspectives on Leadership Special Edition.

Self-directed work teams (SDWTs) are enjoying a surge of popularity these days. These teams are made up of employees who bring their different skills and talents to work together, without typical managerial supervision, toward a common purpose or goal.

Interaction Associates has wide experience working with global companies on strategies to advance women into top leadership ranks. In an effort to gather more data about challenges and obstacles, we recently conducted a Pulse Survey of 420 businesspeople.

Interaction Associates has wide experience working with global companies on strategies to advance women into top leadership ranks. In an effort to gather more data about challenges and obstacles, we recently conducted a Pulse Survey of 420 businesspeople.

At Interaction Associates, we often say that "meetings are a microcosm of an organization’s culture." That’s because the way people collaborate in meetings is a snapshot of the way they accomplish the mission of the organization.

For many leaders, developing self-awareness is one of their toughest challenges. We all have blind spots, so the question is: How can we identify them and become more self-aware around them? At IA, we point to The Model of the Facilitative Leader™ (see below).

The Beginning Eighteen years ago today, I packed up my things at my beloved desk at Barclays Global Investors, on the 29th floor of a large building on Fremont Street in San Francisco. I walked out the door with great memories. I had a wonderful ride as Director of Training and Development. I met smart, interesting colleagues, was forever turned on to the field of training and development, and experienced the best managers I have had before or since, Barbara Sanner and Kris Billeter. I was about to turn 30. I had pneumonia. I had worked a "side hustle" in the evenings for over eight years as the volunteer executive director of a non-profit martial arts organization, in addition to working a demanding day job. I was tired, and ready for a change. I had no idea what was next in my career. Working on the human side of business was not the question — I loved that field. I just wanted to find the best place and work mode to be challenged and grow creatively. I interviewed at a bunch of places and got some job offers. But nothing sounded interesting. That is when I got the idea to freelance for a short while for my former manager Kris, who had moved to Hewlett-Packard. I started on a big project to redesign HP’s worldwide management education curriculum, and became instantly hooked on consulting. The next 10 years were an amazing adventure that brought me into hundreds of different companies, where I worked with thousands of smart people who wanted to become better managers and leaders, improve team communications, design their jobs and organizations in a smart way, and communicate effectively with their employees. The Next Chapter After ten years of that work, I was ready for a new adventure. I had spoken to many people over the decade who were interested in working for themselves, or starting up interesting entrepreneurial ventures on the side of their day job. That led to starting the Escape from Cubicle Nation blog, which turned into a thriving coaching business, book and community. Helping people design and launch businesses, while growing their  leadership and business skills, was tremendously exciting. Building partnerships with large organizations that served the small business market was extremely rewarding. And then, after nine years (notice the general pattern?), I began to itch for a new challenge. The New Idea Having worked in just about every work mode possible (employee, entrepreneur, stay at home mom, freelancer, non-profit volunteer), I wanted to help the broader market see the unique new skills required to thrive in this wild ride of the new world of work. This led to writing Body of Work and launching this new site. This led to partnering with Susan Cain and Quiet Revolution to undertake a big, audacious project (The Quiet Leadership Institute, more about that soon!) that will empower introverts to use their natural strengths in the workplace, for the benefit of us all. We have so much more in common than we think- people in every work mode want to know that the work they do matters, they want to enjoy what they do, and they want to know that they will remain highly employable, no matter the economic climate. My heart sings when I get to help individuals, organizations and communities work together to create positive, productive and sustainable economic growth. So that is my next challenge! The Vision for This Space My vision for this next phase of my body of work, housed here at pamelaslim.com,  is that I will share: Tips and tools for identifying your unique talents, your ideal work projects and your value in an ever-changing marketplace Stories of individuals and companies who are doing a great job of communicating the thread that ties their brand story together Interviews with creative thinkers, makers, doers and be-ers (is that a word?) The broadest representation of who we are in the working world, including professions, people and communities that don’t get as much mainstream exposure as they should Best practices for leading organizations in the new world of work Stories about communities (like Fargo, North Dakota) who are working to improve their economies and social fabric by encouraging industry, academia, government, creatives and entrepreneurs to work together on mutually beneficial initiatives I look forward to you joining me on this next stage of my body of work adventure! If it is anything like the last few, we are in for a very fun and wild ride! 18 years old in my country means you are legally an adult. So it is time to get serious about this mission! Now a question for you: What’s next in your body of work? I want to know! Please share below in the comments.  

Photo by Eugene Chan, in the Port Costa School I have spent a lot of time this year speaking about your individual body of work — that unique bundle of actions, behaviors, choices, emotion, output and art you create throughout the course of your life that defines your legacy. In this discussion and discovery, I have also been thinking about body of work on a bigger scale. The other day on Facebook, my friend Deb Brown, who is the President of the Chamber of Commerce in Webster City, Iowa, posted on my page "What about a community body of work?" Deb knows a lot about that, since she spends her days bringing together business owners, farmers, artists, officials, academics and entrepreneurs for the good of Webster City. While her efforts directly affect the merchants, they also affect the broader community, which benefits from a better economy, fun events, lower unemployment and more retail options. We are all part of a larger community, whether we choose to engage with it or not. Often, we stay in our isolated groups. Families stay locked up in their houses, unaware of their neighbors. Business people stay locked away in their conference rooms, unaware of the artists or unemployed workers in their cities. Coaches stay locked away in their Facebook groups, unaware of the accountants or military veterans who need help in their midst. Brick and mortar businesses stay focused on their buildings, unaware of the wild Internet world, and all the ideas and connections available there. What would happen if we determined that our body of work included our community’s body of work? What if we measured our success at the end of the year not just by our own well-being, achievements and bank accounts, but also by the well-being, achievements and bank accounts of those around us? What if we could take pride in knowing that we helped our local businesses increase earnings by 20%? Or that we used our connections to help bring a large employer to the area? Or that we got a favorite client in a national newspaper? Or that we helped raise awareness for a charity or cause that we may or may not be affected by? Or that we helped single moms figure out a way to get affordable child care so that they could get better jobs? Photo by Eugene Chan On August 2, a group of us gathered in the Port Costa School to ponder these questions. We were part of a day-long workshop, Build a Movement, Change the World, that was a fundraiser for the Port Costa School, and an incubator for a wide range of people who were interested in making the world a better place. During the day, we reflected on what we need to do to make our communities more healthy, creative, just, active and flourishing places. The speakers Lewis Stewart (my Dad), Ridge Green, Greg Hartle, Desiree Adaway and Abe Cajudo gave tons of ideas and insight into how we can be strong, effective leaders and community builders. (I promise to share lessons in upcoming blog posts) Lewis Stewart, aka Pops. Photo by Eugene Chan A big message that my Dad shared from his many decades as a community volunteer is that helping others in your community is not only important, but it is fun! A dedicated group of volunteers in Port Costa has been working for 30 years to restore the Port Costa School so that it can be used for community events, art classes and training programs. They didn’t receive funding or direction from an outside entity to do the work, they just saw the potential in the space and decided to do something about it. Each of us has what it takes to be a leader in our community. And by leader, I mean someone who cares about something in addition to our personal gain and well-being. My friend Scott Meyer, CEO of 9 Clouds in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, just wrote a great post about the idea of Civic Headhunters — people who could actively recruit community members who have a lot to contribute to a region. This is an idea that I would love to see take root in our communities. But until formal structures appear, there is a lot you can do as an individual. Here are some ideas for building your community’s body of work: If you have a marketing or social media background, ask your favorite local businesses if they have a Facebook page. If they don’t, spend an hour or so creating one for them, then training them on ways they could use it to promote their business If you have kids in school, ask their teachers what they need help with this year. Is it school supplies? Snacks? Professional development? Ideas for lesson plans? Educational activities or entertainment? Instead of complaining about what is not happening in your school (admittedly one of my biggest pet peeves), do something to make it better. If you have influence, help dog owners get permission to open a dog park in your community. Even if you are not particularly fond of dogs. If you have influence, help parents get new playground equipment for your neighborhood park. Even if you are not particularly fond of kids. If you are a well-connected professional and know your neighbor’s recent college graduate son is out of work, volunteer to sit down and  help him map out a job search strategy. If you know local artists, share their work on your social media channels, and invite your friends to attend their gallery openings If you love to cook, prepare a meal for the stressed out bachelor next door who always arrives home at 9pm with a fast food bag. If you are an artist with entrepreneurial friends, offer your artist space for a business gathering. Help them to create a unique and fun environment for colleagues or prospective clients. If you know active elders that love to help kids, see if you can match them with students in need of tutors, like this awesome English tutoring initiative in Brazil. If you are a business networking group, invite a different kind of speaker to your monthly event. Like a youth leader from the Boys and Girls Club, or a local farmer, or a stay at home mom. If you have a co-working space or local library that hosts community events, volunteer to offer your expertise by speaking, mentoring, or reading books to children. If you are sitting on a bus and a lonely elder strikes up conversation with you, take time to listen. Grieve the loss of their spouse. Revel in the cuteness of their grandchildren. Lament the fact that everyone is so busy on their phones these days that they don’t have time to talk with each other. Each individual action may not raise the GDP or reduce the national debt. But it will send a gentle ripple through the heart of the person you are helping. Who will feel inspired to help others. And the ripple will get bigger, and the impact will grow. And before you know it, you will start to feel the pulse of the body of work of your community. And you will find that when you have a need — to get a job, build your business, heal from illness or build a fence — your community will be there for you. What are ways your community is aware of and building a collective body of work? I want to hear your stories! Please share them below. Blog post links welcome!  

One of the first rules of self defense I learned from my mixed martial arts teacher Kelly Fiori was the importance of training and repetition. "If someone attacks you in the street, you will not have time to think about how to respond. It must be absolute instinct. You must continually train so that self defense becomes second nature." This led to many hours of drills, and more times that I can count feeling the discomfort of closing my eyes as a fellow student grabbed me from behind, or put his hands around my neck while I desperately tried to get away. It freaked me out each time. But I kept at it, because I learned that I got slightly less freaked out the more that I practiced. Then I started to feel more powerful, even with my eyes closed. I almost clocked my teacher once when he jokingly grabbed my arms from behind when I was in line at Starbucks. I like to think he was proud of my reflexes. He was glad I didn’t have my coffee yet This mantra of training for the worst, so you can enjoy the best, became a key part of my philosophy in career development. How safe is your career? In today’s world, we need to take a proactive stance toward career security. Markets are unstable. Organizations change. Businesses go through booms and busts. It is dangerous to think that if you just close your eyes and get through your day, that things will just work out. They may not. You cannot control the stability of your career. But you can train yourself to be as safe and prepared as possible. Here are 5 ways you can practice career self defense: 1. Always have a backup plan. Know at least one way you could earn an income if your current situation changed. If you work for yourself and your business goes through difficulty, do you know how to interview for a job? If you work for a company and you get laid off, do you know how to freelance for awhile until you find another position? Spend some time thinking about a backup plan, and you will rest easier. 2. Know your deliverables. Whether you work for yourself or someone else, you receive money to deliver specific results. Revisit these priorities and expectations. Get clarity on any part that is murky. Then deliver what you promised. 3. Build your network now. The worst time to reach out to someone new and influential for the first time is when you need something. The best time is when you are simply interested in connecting with smart, interesting and hard working people. Build your connections before you need them. Help others before you ask for help. Then when you need help, they will be there for you. 4. Have proactive conversations about your role. Don’t wait for your annual performance review to find out how you are doing in your job. Check in with your boss, or your client, at least on a quarterly basis. Ask how things are going. Ask if there is anything you can be doing better to solve their problems. Ask what things are keeping them up at night, so you can understand the challenges they are facing. Most people avoid conflict, and will be thrilled if you initiate a safe way for them to let you know how you can improve your performance. 5. Check your current online profiles. How current is your "About" page on your website? Has your LinkedIn profile been updated since 2011? When was the last time you took a new headshot? What do you find online if you google your name? Take some time to update and refresh your online profiles so that you tell an updated and coherent story about who you are, what you specialize in, and why people would want to connect with you. Stay safe out there!