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High-Performing Teams Do This Well

Over the past three months, clients – in a variety of industries – have expressed an interest in a session called “Developing High Performing Teams.” While discussing this option, I typically hear something like, “We really like each other, but things are hard right now. We have a lot of new team members, too many vacancies, and most of us are not in the office full-time. We feel stuck.”

I love helping groups discover what their stuckness is rooted in.

Last week, I had two separate clients ask two different - yet similar - questions. One asked, “What have you noticed that high-performing teams consistently do?”

Culture, team buildingMolly GrishamOctober 31, 2022CultureComment

He Built Them a Pond

Growing up, my family never traveled outside of the Midwest. While I was fascinated by the vastness of the world, I had not experienced much of it firsthand.

In my mid-20s, I was presented with an opportunity to spend a summer with a group of Americans in the Philippines. This was an easy yes for me! I had never seen the ocean, been on an airplane for more than a few hours, or needed a passport. I was ready to experience new things.

Upon arrival in Manila, I found myself taking it all in. The unique architecture, the sounds of a different language, the taste of a mango right off the tree, and the smell of diesel were all foreign to me. There was an overwhelming sense of newness which forced me into a constant learner mindset.

leadership developmentMolly GrishamOctober 18, 2022leadership developmentComment

I Don’t Believe in Failure

I walked outside, reached into the mailbox, and pulled out a fancy envelope. It was made of thick brown paper, sealed in wax, with my name and address written in calligraphy. I was intrigued. By the look of things, I was going to be a special guest at an invitation-only event.

I carefully opened the envelope and felt disappointed to realize this was an invitation to attend a preschool graduation ceremony followed by a catered, themed after-party.

All this just for surviving preschool?

Graduations, celebrations, and parties for every basic life milestone are just not my thing. However, at the other end of the spectrum, we find the opposite mindset.

peronal growthMolly GrishamOctober 3, 2022personal growthComment

Presence and Proximity

This is a painful story to write.

Over the last couple of years, I have put pen to paper at least half a dozen times trying to bring this story to life. With each attempt, I realized the timing wasn’t right.

I believe that some things are not meant to be shared. There are experiences in my own life that were meant just for me, and me alone. I hold tightly to those moments.

Additionally, there are experiences with individuals and teams behind closed doors that are simply not my story to tell. I recognize in these moments that the main character gets to decide how, when, or if they will publicly share their story.

leadership development, peronal growthMolly GrishamSeptember 18, 2022personal growth, leadershipComment

The Drama Triangle

In 2005 I needed life-saving surgery. After six days of tremendous pain, significant weight lost, and incorrect diagnoses, my medical team finally discovered the issue. The prognosis was scary, the next steps were going to be challenging, and I would need months to heal, but I was relieved.

Naming the issue meant we were solving the right problem. No longer would I depend on short-term Band-Aids because we were going to address the root cause. Correctly naming an issue matters.

Conflict Resolution, Team-buildingMolly GrishamSeptember 5, 2022teambuildingComment

Absolute Understanding

I was standing in line waiting to board my flight when I first noticed him. He was wearing a sweatshirt and jeans, a USA hat, and holding a long white cane. He was a few feet away from me in the area where the pre-board passengers had gathered.

Another woman soon joined him. She asked why he had been traveling. He shared that he had been on the east coast trying out for the USA Hockey Team.

Her jaw dropped.

Culture, peronal growthMolly GrishamAugust 22, 2022personal growth, CultureComment

Anchors Aweigh

A few months ago, the President of a successful company reached out to me. He shared the following, “The ship is sinking. We need help!” He told me their industry was rapidly transforming but his people were not onboard with doing things differently. He wanted guidance from a neutral, outside party, and he was hoping my skills could be of use.

After listening to him, I asked a very direct question, “What will happen if your company doesn’t change?”

leadership development, CultureMolly GrishamAugust 7, 2022leadership development, CultureComment

The Things that Haunt Us

For several decades, a friend group of mine has talked about visiting Waverly Hills in Louisville. Waverly Hills – a former sanatorium – is believed to be haunted. They offer late-night group tours as well as overnight paranormal experiences. For the last 20 years, we were big talkers, but that all changed last weekend.

From 1910 to 1961 Waverly Hills – with over 400 beds – was home to Tuberculous patients. The campus was designed as a self-contained community. They grew produce and raised animals to be slaughtered, had laundry facilities, and well as a water treatment plant. The grounds included their own post office and unique zip code.

CultureMolly GrishamJuly 20, 2022CultureComment

Heroes and Helpers

A few months ago, I was on Zoom wrapping up a Group Coaching series I had been co-hosting. Over the course of a few weeks, I witnessed the participants grow in ways I had not anticipated. Each Tuesday night I looked forward to hearing insights and reflections of growth from the group.

On this night, we were closing with affirmations. Some people might call this a mirroring exercise – a process of reflecting back to others on how they show up in the world. In a protected space with boundaries and trust in place, mirroring can be a powerful tool for personal growth. The insights are often honest, unfiltered, and life-giving.

peronal growthMolly GrishamJuly 12, 2022personal growthComment

The Teamwork of Leadership

If I could see into the future, I would love to read what historians will write about this time in history years, will humanity be surprised to know that until 2020 most Americans left their homes every day and drove to work at an office building? Will they be stunned to hear that when it snowed children got the day off rather than participating in online school? How will they comprehend the fact that we used to believe it was a good idea to let someone blow out candles on a birthday cake and then share the cake so everyone could enjoy that person’s germs!

leadership developmentMolly GrishamJune 24, 2022leadership developmentComment

Coast, Climb, & Rest

Last week on a beautiful summer day, I found myself enjoying a long walk. In this particular location, the footpaths and bike paths sometimes run parallel to each other, and in other places they crisscross in a weaving pattern. While walking, I noticed a young girl riding a bike, she was maybe five years old. We were in a section of the park where our paths were intersecting, so I saw her several times.

As I watched her ride – with her dad jogging alongside and cheering her on – I realized this was a good mental picture of how my life has felt over the last two years.

peronal growthMolly GrishamJune 12, 2022personal growthComment

Leadership, Mistakes, & Ice Cream

Last week, while visiting a new city, I stopped in a quaint local ice cream shop, and it trigger a positive memory for me.

A few years ago, I was in Central America. I had spent the day on a city tour with a small group of people. Our local bilingual guide, Jose, was a gem of a human. It had been a full day and everyone else from my tour had retreated to their hotel rooms for the night. However, Jose asked if I wanted to take a drive to the countryside. He said he knew where we could get some homemade ice cream and he thought I would enjoy it.

leadership developmentMolly GrishamMay 28, 2022leadershipComment

Maximizing Your Personal Growth Experiences

Earlier this week while recording a podcast and I was asked, “Why do you believe people need to do personal growth in a group? Don’t most people do that alone?”
I love this question. I am a big believer that personal growth in the context of a community is a transformative experience. Working on ourselves while others are present creates two critical opportunities.

peronal growthMolly GrishamMay 14, 2022Comment

Square Windows Are Deadly

Every single day my work is a little different. I may start the week with a college athletic team, then facilitate a Zoom session with leaders in the biomedical space, later shift to an online group coaching session comprised of individuals from all industries, and finally close the week leading educators in a face-to-face session on personal growth. While the participants may vary, there are some themes that often come up in these sessions.

leadership development, CultureMolly GrishamMay 1, 2022leadershipComment

The Worst-Case Scenario

A little more than five years ago it was publicly shared that I was leaving a career in college athletics and starting my own business. This decision came as a surprise to most people in my life and the responses from well-meaning friends were very telling. Within 10 minutes of the press release being posted, I received a text from a friend that said, “I heard the news … but what if you end up homeless?”

leadership development, peronal growthMolly GrishamApril 16, 2022

Good Grief

These were not the words I planned to write. This was not the blog I was going to post. This was not the story I intended to tell. But I believe that writing is often a process of co-creating. We must be present and at the same time let something else flow through us. When we put pen to paper, we may be surprised at what comes out.

peronal growthMolly GrishamApril 2, 2022personal growthComment

The Other Side of the Fence

When I hear someone say that language is the most powerful path for human connection, I cringe. I have a visceral reaction to those words. For that statement to be true, two people must speak the same language. An English speaker and a Portuguese speaker are going to face some challenges in connecting through language.

team buildingMolly GrishamMarch 20, 2022teambuilding, Culture, leadershipComment

A Question for Milli Vanilli

The work I do generally starts with a team, but it often leads to other specific areas of growth. After we unpack how the group is doing, we may discover a need to invest in developing the leaders, establishing team culture, resolving conflict, or prioritizing personal growth. One of my favorite sessions that connects with several of these themes is called,

team buildingMolly GrishamMarch 7, 2022teambuildingComment