How do you make the adventure last? In the last Energy Matters Newsletter I told the story of a group of scouts who when on a sailing trip to the Florida Keys. The impressive thing about these scouts was how they naturally developed teamwork and each one of them at some point stood out as the leader of the group. What was it that created this natural ability? Part of it was that they seemed to accept the total experience as an adventure, so they naturally built a lot of positive energy into the experience. Here's the rest of the story.

What Creates an Adventure for You?

Issue #18
November 15, 2005

Energy Performance Tip:

There were five things that these scouts did that caused them to develop teamwork and leadership.

I mentioned the first reason in the last Energy Matters Newsletter. Their approach to the experience was to see it as an adventure. When you can look at life, work, experiences, etc as adventures where you will be challenged and learn, it will take on a whole new energy dimension.

The second characteristic that created strong teamwork and leadership was that, as a result of seeing it as an adventure they chose to work together; not because they were suppose to, but because they saw the job as exciting. That's probably not a novel thought, but it sure made good sense to me. Basically, the excitement for what they were doing resulted in the teamwork they experienced.

According to these scouts the answer to developing teamwork is to find people who are excited about what they are doing. People who are not excited make for poor team members and most times they rob the team of the excitement of the adventure. If you are not excited about your job maybe you need to consider finding a job you are excited about.

The third characteristic about these scouts is that they learned from one another. One situation involved a strong current. The way they learned about the strong current was that one of them had to jump into the water. One person takes the leap and the others cover his back. Isn't that the way it should work in other situations?

When one person sticks his or her neck out, the others cover his or her back. Basically, it means taking care of your team members. When a team performs like this they choose to face difficulties together and find solutions together. Use the buddy system, it produces much more energy.

The fourth characteristic was that no matter how tough the situation was the scouts never talked of mutiny. They explained this by saying that you can't mutiny when you have built strong relationship with the team members. The stronger the relationships, the less likely people are going to sabotage one another. Even when things get tough, strong relationships help team members pull together to get back on course. It also reduces the concern about being embarrassed for inadequate performance. Strong relationship allow people to fail and still be accepted as a team member.

Finally, no matter how well you plan, those plans will always be subject to change. Learn that nothing is set in stone, and that flexibility is part of the game. Sometimes change will come because the leader wants to set a different course and sometimes the leader needs to be open to change from the crew.

I want to close with a quote from Andre Gide, "It is only in adventure that some people succeed in knowing themselves - in finding themselves."

My hat goes off to the Scout Troop on Long Island, NY for your courage and guidance to all of us who desire to be adventuresome.


Best to you all,

Dr. Bob

Would you like to see your

• Team members function at their maximum level of performance?
• Leadership, Management and employees learn how to take personal responsibility to reduce stress, deal with conflict and handle negative communication?
• And, have your key people realize their full potential as individuals and as a team?

1 Executive Energy serves as the catalyst to assist you in accomplishing these tasks! Over the past 15 years we have coached, consulted and facilitated with individuals and teams across North America. Our purpose is to discover individual and team potential and maximize enterprise energy. We believe that individuals instinctively know what it takes to perform to their potential, but are unaware of how to use energy effectively.

Our goal is to assist clients in this critical discovery resulting in maximum performance and increased productivity.

Our services include:

• Executive Coaching
• Leadership and Management Team Coaching
• Individual and Team Assessments using the Birkman Method
• Presentations and workshop on the many facets of Energy Management

For more information please visit our web site:

Dr. Bob Rausch, President/CEO of 1 Executive Energy, is a Certified Executive Coach and a Registered Corporate Coach. His Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology supports his knowledge and experience in the various facets of his work. Since 1975 Dr. Bob has inspired and challenged individuals, corporate leaders and their teams to unlock their potential and discover the keys to successful communication and productivity by effectively managing their energy resources. He is the author of Energy Matters - How to Tap the Power Within and High Energy Pharmaceutical Sales - Guidelines from the Frontlines.