Teams and Culture
We teach embodied learning to create new possibilities & ways forward for leaders & teams.
Today’s workplace is rapidly changing as the future unfolds with accelerating complexity and velocity.
The result?
Barely discernible boundaries between work life and personal life. Scattered attentions that lead to mistrust. Overwhelm and burnout in our round-the-clock culture.
While leaders have always faced uncertainty, the global, interconnected reach and scale today are unprecedented.
It’s easy to get distracted and lose sight of what we’re doing, why we’re doing it, and more importantly, who we are.
DISTRACTED ATTENTION: THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN BUSINESS-AS-USUAL & WILDLY SUCCESSFUL
It’s important to remember who we are.
We’re human beings with gifts and talents to share. We’re what makes the world go around.
“We are all much more simply human than otherwise, be we happy and successful, contented and detached, miserable,” were the wise words of Harry Stack Sullivan 75 years ago.
Yet in today’s environment it’s easy to feel too busy, stretched too far and scattered. We can lose sight of our humanity and our unique contribution at work and at home iwhen we’re tapped out and exhausted.
Our humanity calls us to remember who we are in order to take right action in the situation at hand. We need new ways of working and being together.
A way of doing business that’s increasingly transparent, authentic, grounded in solid ethics and care.
A way of doing business where profits are based in purpose, where promises are made and kept, tangible outcomes the result.
A way of doing business where people are engaged and trusted, conversations are clear, engaging and effective.
As the boundaries between our work and personal life have continued to thin, this philosophy of conscious business provides for new possibilities, for innovation, for greater community.
You see, qualities like authenticity, care, and transparency, are human qualities that evoke and build trust among people, and also build trust in the workplace.
And, trust can be cultivated, and pragmatically trained. Trust can expand right along with profits and the greater good.
Powerful leaders embody a centered presence. This centered presence mobilizes and motivates people to action.
Richard Strozzi, Strozzi InstituteExpected Team & Organizational Outcomes
- Learn by giving and receiving assessments with dignity and respect
- Step into greater accountability and support others in their success
- Cultivate trust and care in relationships
- Skillfully coordinate with others using conflict to inspire trust and creativity while decreasing drama
Before
- Unclear direction. Re-work. Exhaustion.
- Us -Them Culture. High Drama. Turf wars & both overt/covert competition for resources.
- Micromanaging vs. Leading. Lack of leadership development.
- Difficult conversations predominate, creating reactivity, poor attitudes & moods, work-arounds, gridlock.
- Customer & employee relationships reflect ‘what can you do for me?’ attitude, over-focus on price & salary.
- Culture of cordiality, while avoiding difficult situations or people. Low/No bar for excellence.
- Creativity actively discouraged while ‘following the manual’ highly valued at cost.
After
- Focus on results, boosting workplace productivity & reducing cycle time.
- Open culture. Learning organization. Collaborative & cooperative in mobilizing alliances around purpose & right action.
- Intentional cultivation of ‘the bench’ of leaders at all levels. Developmental coaching of both managers & leaders.
- Improved conversational skills and to effectively address performance with dignity. Surface & transform conflict for skillful resolution of challenges, increasing accountability.
- Relationships with all stakeholders valued & prioritized. Customers & employees treated with dignity & care.
- Innovate for success within a learning culture, open to new ideas/processes.
Companies that promote collaborative teamwork are 5x as likely to be aligned, high performing, energized and successful in making their contribution in the world.
Humans are intrinsically motivated to work together–it’s more creative, fun and rewarding all around.
We work with teams while they are in action on their most important work. Embodied learning brings purpose into sharp focus, shifts conversations and behavior, and opens the possibility of new actions that weren’t previously available.
Our clients engage us to work with their teams in a variety of ways – from a brief engagement to longer-term facilitated support of major projects.
This team work can take many forms, though they all involve a process of energizing teams via the deliberate practices.
When actions are congruent with words trust is produced. Real, authentic conversations occur. Together teams collaborate to turn compelling visions into pragmatic reality.
We typically bring everyone on the team to the table to work on shared purpose and goals.
We create trust. We engage in real conversations.
We develop the “common language” of the Core Commitment Cycle that builds towards greater levels of trust-in-action.
We practice new ways of working together in real time.
How We Help
Our customized programs are tailored to create a strong, sustainable company culture grounded in your organization’s purpose and values, and enacted through committed, skillful team members.
Our programs teach and develop pragmatic leadership skills, with a focus on learning how to learn: attention management, cultivating 360° awareness and body-based resiliency skills, and developing conversational skills–all through deliberate practice over time.
Additionally, we sometimes use a variety of resources including individual/ organizational assessments, retreats, embodied leadership training, and executive leadership coaching.
Those who participate in our programs report improved energy, increased trust, and greater capacity to collaborate and set limits with teammates while connecting. Participants cultivate an inviting presence that allows teammates to approach them with energy, purpose. Together they take powerful action toward what’s important. Together they lead.
Who
Our clients are forward thinking leaders who see the potential for their teams to proactively contribute to the bottom line while consciously creating a company culture of openness, authenticity and innovation. They are committed to leading generative change in their own lives and in the lives of the companies and organizations they serve. They’re ready to stretch in their leadership and ‘know’ that leading has to do with developing themselves, their relationships, and improving the work practices and lives of their team members in alignment with core values and significant financial goals.
We partner with CEOs, EVPs, CLOs, division presidents and directors, and project team leads to create people-driven change that lasts.
How
Holistic embodied learning is foundational to all our programs.
We teach leaders and teams to access the wisdom of their bodies, their intuition, their hearts and minds to lead in sustainable ways.
And we do this by teaching a series of embodied practices that lead to ‘new normal’ competencies. In turn, team members are enabled to stay the stress, increase resilience and narrow the leadership gap by bringing their best selves to work . . . without the waste of inefficiencies and burnout.
When
When leaders and their teams need a boost, are in the midst of transition or ready to up their leadership game. For example, when
- An internal organizational or leadership shift is underway that calls for new conversations, behavior and culture
- Entering an important new market, or launching a new team
- Teams are not communicating well
- A recent merger or acquisition and there’s a need to orient new leaders and teams in a shifting culture
- Motivation is low and burnout likely
- Facing inter-generational strife on the team, as a leader
- Remote team members are struggling to fit into the organizational structure
The Core Commitment Cycle training afforded us a healthy team building platform to develop a shared language and the trust that’s so essential in our business. Sessions were focused on the practice of the key elements in the Core Commitment Cycle, namely Mindful Attention, 360° Awareness Practices, and the Conscious Language of Speech Acts and Promise Based Management
I’ve found that I’m a better husband, father, and leader because of mindfulness practices and increased awareness of my conditioned tendencies. In short, I’m much more mindful of employing the CCC in all phases of my life.
Within the organization we now have a common culture and identity which was not the case previously. We know that together we can do more and better. We have now a commitment based culture that will help us to take actions to support and develop our business and improve our efficiency. Personally I’ve realized the importance of mood management to lead a team. Mood really is everything.
Working with Chris, I began to appreciate that my capacity to lead and transform my organization could only increase through others. At first “mindfulness” sounded to me like squishy overused synonym for group hugs and undisciplined leadership. I couldn’t have been more wrong.
I’m very thankful that I was open-minded enough to listen, read and learn about the science behind Chris’s Core Presence Coaching™ process, based in mindfulness practices. By acknowledging and appreciating the need to connect with others, and practicing mindful awareness, I was able to engage more deliberately with co-workers and lead in the organization.
Embodied Leadership Training for Teams
We help leaders in your organization learn to powerfully walk their talk through customized training sessions involving Mindful Attention, 360 Awareness and focused Conversations for growth and skillful action.
Core Presence Leadership Coaching
Change is tricky, yet we coach leaders toward pragmatic, tangible growth and development for the sake of extending their purpose into the world. Initial Discovery Conversations, paired with 360 assessment feedback often kicks off the coaching process.
Core Commitment Cycle
A pragmatic process that integrates Awareness, Attention, and Conversations to align conversations and value-based commitments resulting in the power of words to shift moods and coordinate effective execution for extraordinary results.
Leadership Retreats: Values, Core Commitment Cycle, & Conversations for Action
Our custom designed off-site retreats are designed with you to build connection, foster collaboration and increase trust while making the promises and commitments required to get contribution made and the work done.
Team & Culture Clients Say. . . . .
In the years that I’ve known Chris she has proven to be an exceptional coach and advisor. As a business owner it’s easy to get caught up in the details of the business and lose your perspective as to what’s really important in the long term. When I talk to Chris about what’s going on in my company and the issues I’m facing, I always seem to find the crucial breakthrough I need.
Chris is one of those people you rarely come across in life. She is the finest life coach I’ve ever worked with: smart with great insight into people and organizations. Chris’ abilities go way beyond just being a coach: she’s an astute business woman who understands how her knowledge and talents can be utilized. I’d recommend her without hesitation.
