Geoff and I really appreciate your enthusiasm for Extraordinary Groups. Louis, I’m not surprised to read your report on how the Group Needs Model worked with your group. The two of us have been having similar experiences. In the presentations and workshops that Geoff and I have been doing, we start by asking people to reflect on a group experience that they think was extraordinary (without any definition from us); then we ask them to identify factors that enabled that experience to be so outstanding. Next we ask them to pair up or form small groups to briefly share their experience and compare the identified elements. At this point, the whole session takes off! No one wants to stop talking! I’ve honestly felt that at times I could just leave and people would be satisfied to simply continue theire conversations with one another. After about 10-15 minutes, however, we interrupt and begin to share what we found from our field study, then move on to other concepts. Establishing this connection between their own experience and the key points in the book makes it very easy for people to take in the concepts and be motivated to start applying them.

Take care.
Jeremy

Before I report back, I have to say this was a special client: a brand new team: nine team members from about 6 nationalities (I say about because some had 2 and even three nationalities) with incredible professional lives and travels behind them, and a fabulous world-changing purpose, I’d love to share it but I guess I should not.

I was feeling a bit queasy about the model: those were very highly educated people with a heavy cognitive focus, those Argyris described as having a hard time learning. Not used to talking about their feeling. I had actually struggled to design my session. I didn’t always find the book easy to integrate, between the 8 extraordinary group indicators, the 6 needs, the four feelings of transformation. How do they play with each other, where does it start, etc.

Well, I won’t keep you waiting any longer. The session was a powerful success. They want more, beginning with another session in January. I actually showed them a couple of more analytical team models to explain why I had decided on the 6 needs model. What I found is that they could relate powerfully with their head and their heart to the 6 needs, not just from their work team experiences but from their lives. It resonated powerfully for them, and they found it easy to share why. They walk out of the session with little in the way of specific actions (except on communications, as they will be a virtual team) but a strong sense and commitment and a heartfelt understanding of what they needed to be successful.