Plan a fun but productive in-service day

I feel like I’ve planned hundreds of in-service days but the truth is that it never gets any easier. It only gets harder every time especially if it’s with the same team. I don’t want them to be bored so I need to make sure that every time I plan one, it is going to add value to their work, their careers or their lives.

Let’s take a step back. What do I even mean by an in-service day? This could mean a lot of things. When I talk about an in-service day, I’m referring to a day set aside at least a few times per year where a team gets together, preferably off-site (not at work), to reflect, reenergize and strategize. There are so many reasons why having in-service days is so important:

  1. It’s time to do team building, for us to get to know each other better and for us to work better together.
  2. It’s time to recharge and get excited about our work again, or maybe more excited than we were before.
  3. It’s time to engage in some reflection, remember why we do what we do (mission and vision) and get refocused on our core values.
  4. It’s time to plan for the future (strategy) without interruptions from our day-to-day work in the office.
  5. It’s time to learn and grow as individuals and as a team, to gain new knowledge and skills and to make improvements to products, services or processes.
  6. It’s a time to clarify expectations and get everyone on the same page.

So, how do I plan a fun and productive in-service day? It’s just like planning any event. It takes committing time to it and depending on the goal, some resources.

Venue and Food

It’s important to pick a venue away from work. If an organization has a big budget, these in-service days could be more extravagant but it can also be done for a very low cost. I plan most of mine at free venues like the local library, park district or village hall.

Be sure to serve breakfast, lunch and snacks. Depending on the agenda, these days can feel very long. If budget is tight, do it potluck style and have everyone bring in their favorite things to share.

Agenda and Presenters

Prepare an agenda and communicate it ahead of time. Determine estimated times for each topic as well as presenters or facilitators. Give the presenters and facilitators ample time to prepare their content and return it to be organized appropriately.

Be sure the agenda includes a good mix of fun activities and productive discussions and that these are alternating on the agenda throughout the day. If all the fun happens in the morning, the audience will be bored by lunch time.

Technology

Of course, ensure that all technology works appropriately. Confirm that a laptop, projector and all cords are available for use.

Be sure to incorporate technology into the day too, when possible. This can be in the form of polls, quizzes or games on a mobile phone, videos or interactive iPad activities. Don’t set “no cell phone” rules, please! It’s almost 2017! Use their phones to your advantage to engage them!

Learning and Activities

Plan learning opportunities and activities into the day. There should always be some sort of professional development to help the team gain new insights, knowledge, skills or experiences.

Be sure that learning opportunities are interactive, not one-way. Don’t lecture!

Celebrate

Don’t forget to celebrate! Not only is it a long day but if it is productive as planned, the team deserves some down time. Take them out for a happy hour. Informal team building is just as good as formal team building!

Be sure to thank the team for their participation and engagement throughout the day.

It’s planning time! Dive in and plan a first or next in-service day to increase employee engagement and team building.

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Never Settle for Less – Commit in 2015!

We’re about to approach a new year. With that comes New Year resolutions that often fail. Even the most measurable goals tend to fall by the wayside come March. This year, I’m going to try a new kind of New Year resolution!

I’m keeping it simple – one goal, one resolution. That is, I will commit to never settling for less in 2015. It might sound oversimplified or generic but it’s an important concept that too many people lose sight of when they’re busy trying to accomplish all of the other goals in their lives. They focus so much on the end result that they forget to reflect on whether or not they are even going down the right path.

I’m committing that in 2015, I will consistently ask myself if I’m settling for less or not – in my work, relationships, personal goals and other life activities. If the answer is yes, I know I will have to reevaluate and choose a different path.

I’ve learned the hard way that when I settle for less, I’m giving up so much that I could and should have in my life. So, how do you know when you’re settling?

  • When you become satisfied rather than passionate about something in your life, you know you’re settling.
  • When you feel robotic in what you’re doing rather than feeling excited, you know you’re settling.
  • When you find yourself constantly complaining rather than raving about something, you know you’re settling.
  • When you have to make excuses to convince yourself and others that something is the right decision, you know you’re settling.
  • When you don’t do something simply because of fear, you know you’re settling.

Take the time this next year to be intentional about reflecting upon your experiences, decisions and goals. Evaluate whether or not you are settling for less and commit to redirecting yourself if you find that you are headed down a path that results in something less than you deserve.

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Ignite Their Passion!

I wrote a post a while ago about how passion makes our work worth doing. There was a pattern in some of the comments and emails I received that broke my heart. People asked, “What do I do if my manager doesn’t support my passion?”

There are a lot of options to answer that question and each person has to do what’s best for them at the time. My response is more so directed to all the leaders out there that these employees are referring to: start paying attention to what you’re employees’ passions are and empower them to do great things with those passions.

It all starts with simply talking to people. Formal leadership may not be for everyone. It’s for those who understand how to connect with people and push them to achieve the best possible things in work and in life. Leaders care about employees on a personal level and assume the responsibility of helping them reach far and high.

Once you know what your employees are passionate about, try to empower them to use their passions to take risks at work, try new projects and make decisions. When they succeed, fight for them to grow within the organization so that they can continue the momentum rather than let their passion and energy go stale.

Don’t diminish people’s passions and don’t let them go to waste. People who are passionate about their work are out to make you look good as much as they are out to make themselves look good. It’s a win-win situation that too many leaders miss out on because they’re afraid of failure, pushback and employees passing them up in the race to the top.

Now, level of passion and how passion shows up is going to be different for everyone and that should be respected as well.

Things are changing at lightening speed these days and there are plenty of people willing to leave a leader or organization that won’t allow them to succeed. I maintain my belief that passion makes our work worth doing but we also need great leaders who allow us to continue our passion for our work. Luckily, there’s a great way to keep our teams energized, motivated and inspired and that’s to ignite their passion and don’t let the flame burn out!

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