We started off reminiscing of a team day we had in May, where we were discussing our sense of belonging, which involved an exercise completing two statements: I may be... but I am not... So, mine was 'I may be from Buckinghamshire, but I am definitely not posh!' We each shared our versions, which included 'I may be from Somerset but I'm not a farmer' and 'I may be a mum but my job isn't to do a mothering role'.
We swiftly moved this onto relating to our Facet5 profiles, avoiding the word we had chosen but adding a positive spin on our profiles and what it can add to our team dynamics. As a team, for each factor we have people varying in their low-range, mid-range, and top-range scoring.
(Tip: Using the word cloud on the front of your profile starts this exercise off well - the larger words are the clearer strengths.)
Many people within our business know how high my Energy is but also that I have high Will. If you take a look in the factor guide, this is described in such ways as 'engages quickly' and 'provides input and direction' and 'will be a positive and motivating influence'... which I hope my team find valuable! I am also aware that this is quite different to many of them, who have lower Will and Energy, and what the risk of this might be. Lower on both factors means ideas might need to be encouraged or invited and that people may be at their best when working independently which is quite different to me. I am very careful about managing this.
Thankfully, spending time with my Facet5 profile and my team doing TeamScape has made me realise where I need to use the strengths of these factors and engage the team in my thinking and allow the space for people to air their thoughts. When having team members varying on the Energy scale it can be seen for those with higher energy to over-talk and disrupt those with lower energy. It's crucial here to be mindful of when your energy gets even more heightened and allow people to take the mic and be involved within the conversations. If it's involving decisions too, allow people time to reflect and revisit the conversation later.
5 Top tips for managing differences between factors:
- Get curious; have a conversation around strengths/risk/frustrations/challenges with somebody who has a different profile to you (clue: look at the ‘working with’ pages of a TeamScape report)
- Use your profile; where you have strong scores (low or high) rate yourself against the behaviours of the opposite tendency to your own e.g. if you are high Energy, how do you fare against the low Energy descriptors?
- Log into myFacet5.com (you will need to set up an account) and use the share & compare features to explore differences.
- Generate a Spotlight Coaching Affinity report based on you and a colleague’s profiles.
- Take a ‘time out’ during a meeting to observe the different behaviours at play and mix things up when holding discussions or making decisions.
As I now sit typing this on the train back home, I'm feeling appreciative of how the day has gone and how as a team we all support one another. I'm thankful of how our day has gone, and how mine and Tash's high Energy has oozed on to those with a lower Energy and we all left with a little pep in our step! So flipping it into our team day, belonging-styli, I have high Affection and it means I want us all to be included! Now tell me, what's yours?
