Plan Meet Repeat December 2019 PMR.Dec | Page 9

Team Building Rocks By Matt May This is the first of what I hope will be a regular article, shar- ing values, stories, anecdotes, and perhaps even humorous “mishaps” about the exciting and rewarding world of team building. I’ll attempt to provide clear, concise, and concrete information that is beneficial to you, while hopefully also being entertaining. Beware, I like alliteration, as just illus- trated, so you’ll probably see that, often. Some months may be written in the third person, some may be in the first per- son, while others may be a combination. It is my hope that the joy I feel sharing my passion for team building with you will come across, regardless of the writing “style.” Now, with- out further ado, for the first article: Team Building Rocks. . . because it pays back “dividends,” over and over, again! One of my favorite stories, that I repeatedly hear, in various incarnations, is how our team building programs organically create lasting relationships among colleagues. It’s a terrific testimonial when a client calls three, six, or nine months af- ter an event and an exchange along the lines of the following occurs: Client: You produced a philanthropic bike build team building program for us at the such-and-such hotel eight months ago. Matt: Yes, it was a terrific program and your group was so competitive. Everyone was exhausted, but invigorated at the end. Joe, who only knew Sally as a name and email address from the West coast office, prior to our team building event, picked up the phone, called her, and asked her to refresh his memory on how she handled the situation.  She did.  He tried that tactic with his situation, and it immediately solved the problem. Matt: That’s fantastic! Client: I never would have imagined that bringing our two offices together, and having them compete in a fun, energizing program where they built bikes for under- privileged children would find them communicating and collaborating all these months later . . . all due to them meeting in person, and bonding during the team building event! Ah, the power of team building! Matt May is the President of Premier Team Building®, pro- ducing and facilitating team building programs to companies and organizations nation-wide and abroad. This is not your grandfather’s team building! www.PremierTeamBuilding.com Client: That’s right! Well, I wanted to let you know that just this week, the effects of the program “resurfaced.” Matt: How so? Client: At the event, “Joe,” from our New York office, was on a team with “Sally,” from our Los Angeles office.  Earlier this week, Joe had a problem with a client and remembered that, while they were interacting during the team building program, Sally told a story of how she handled the same problem, several months prior. 9