The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

Yesterday, on my lunch break, I finished up Patrick Lencioni's The Five Dysfunctions of a Team. Much like Death by Meeting, the fable did a great job of making you connect to the characters in the story. I also like the fact that the main character, Kathryn, has a connection to Casey and Will in Death by Meeting.

There are five dysfunctions, Lencioni addresses; (1) Absence of Trust. (2) Fear of Conflict. (3) Lack of Commitment. (4) Avoidance of Accountability. (5) Inattention to Results.

At the end of the book, he provides a survey for your team to take that will help identify a few areas that may be or are problem areas for your team based on the 5 dysfunctions. My teammates humored me and took it. It was interesting and thankfully we appear to be a functional team.

However, here's the irony. On one of the questions, our team said that rarely do our "team members call out one another's deficiencies or unproductive behaviors." That means, we are either all very productive and efficient and there is rarely anything to "call out" or we were all scared to "call out" others on the survey, making the whole survey inaccurate. Hopefully it is the first reason.

This is another good read. Check it out.

Wikipedia Critisicm

You may find this interesting. Wikipedia is host to its on criticism.

Brain Food

Here is some trivia for you. I received these via email but I have not had a chance to verify all of them. I question a few, but most of them I have heard one time or another. Enjoy.

• The liquid inside young coconuts can be used as a substitute for blood plasma.
• No piece of paper can be folded in half more than seven times.
• Donkeys kill more people annually than plane crashes.
• You burn more calories sleeping than you do watching television.
• Oak trees do not produce acorns until they are fifty years of age or older.
• The first product [purchased] to have a bar code was Wrigley's gum.
• The King of Hearts is the only king without a mustache.
• American Airlines saved $40,000 in 1987 by eliminating one olive from each salad served in first-class.
• Venus is the only planet that rotates clockwise.
• Apples, not caffeine, are more efficient at waking you up in the morning.
• Most dust particles in your house are made from DEAD SKIN!
• The first owner of the Marlboro Company died of lung cancer. So did the first "Marlboro Man."
• Pearls melt in vinegar.
• The three most valuable brand names on earth: Marlboro, Coca Cola, and Budweiser, in that order.
• It is possible to lead a cow upstairs...but, not downstairs.
• A duck's quack doesn't echo, and no one knows why.
• Dentists have recommended that a toothbrush be kept at least six feet away from a toilet to avoid airborne particles resulting from the flush.
• Turtles can breathe through their butts.

There you go. Do you feel smarter? Are there any of these that you know for a fact, aren't true? Are there any other fun facts you would add?

Frustration

My homepage is set to open up to my blog, but it seems that my blog can't be found. How frustrating? I can add new posts but I can't read my blog! I hate 404 not found!

Tennessean Handgun Permit Poll

There is a bill on capital hill that if passed, will allow Tennesseans with handgun permits to carry their guns inside public parks. So, today the Tennessean put up a poll asking the following question.

Should Tennesseans with handgun permits be allowed to carry weapons in public parks and on playgrounds?

...and on playgrounds? I guess we know where the editors at the Tennessean stand on the issue. At the time I voted, nearly 87% of voters voted "yes" anyway.

I bring all of this up because Shorpy's blog posted a very funny picture today. A kid carrying a gun and a smoker's pipe from 1938. View it here. I got a kick out of it.

Do I look like Matti Vanhanen?

I went over to Stars in You to find out which famous person I look like. It's a neat site, but can be a little slow. Basically, you need a picture of yourself to upload, and the site will show you several stars that you resemble. According to the site I look 76% like Matti Vanhanen. Who is Matti Vanhanen?

I had no idea who Matti was until today, but apparently I look like the Prime Minister of Finland. I'm not going to tell you who is who below, but I am sure you can figure it out if you know me or know who Matti is. If you don't know either of us, I think you can still figure it out.


Now, do you think we look a like? At least 76% worth?

The One Minute Manager

This weekend I read Ken Blanchard's The One Minute Manager. It was a quick read and a very simple approach to managing others and yourself. From setting one minute goals, to one minute praisings, to one minute reprimands, I was reminded of the phrase people in our company use often. It is to "catch somebody doing something right."

I enjoyed the book.