1.

CONFIDENCE
True leaders are confident and know they can think – and act – outside the box to
take their companies to the next level. They know that leadership qualities like
openness, emotional agility and resourcefulness are often more important leadership
traits than being able to make a sale or wow a group of investors.

How does one display the confidence necessary to be a good leader? More than half
of human communication comes from nonverbal cues. Know how to set the right tone as
a leader by letting your confidence show. Confident leaders win over and inspire
others because everyone else wants to embody confidence, too. Practice strong non-
verbal communication by standing tall, making eye contact and learning to control
your fidgeting. When you appear confident – even if you don’t actually feel
confident – others will be more likely to follow your lead and believe in your
authority.

2. FOCUS
Have you learned how to really focus in on what you want? Those who embody strong
leadership qualities keep their eye on the prize. They are very organized and plan
well ahead while still remaining spontaneous enough to handle unexpected
challenges. Like a grandmaster in a chess game, a good leader thinks out each
strategy and understands how each of his or her actions will affect the rest of any
given scenario.

Distractions can be one of your biggest business saboteurs, but those who display
strong leadership traits don’t let them intrude. This is one of the key leadership
strengths because, as Tony always says, where focus goes, energy flows. Limit
distractions by creating an environment that is conducive to focus. For example,
your office can have an open door policy between certain hours so your team can
freely communicate, but make it known that you will not be as available during your
“focus times.” This helps you get deeper into your work without having to deal with
the many moving parts of your business.

Keep your endgame in sight by cultivating your ability to focus. Having a clear
purpose allows you to not only achieve your goals, but to foster leadership among
your staff as well.

3. HONESTY
Many people believe that successful business and political leaders are inherently
dishonest, but great leaders treat others just as they expect to be treated – in an
honest fashion. Being honest is not only one of the leadership traits that will
allow you to lead your business with integrity, but it’s the only real way to make
strong connections with others. Whether you’re trying to lead your business or your
family, the truth is that every single person you interact with looks to your own
honesty and code of ethics to set his or her own bar. Make sure each member of your
team or household knows what your culture and core expectations are, and show them
how much you value honesty in your everyday interactions with others through
setting a valuable example. Don’t sugarcoat information, but find a way to deliver
honest comments and feedback in a direct and compassionate manner.

4. POSITIVITY
One of the leadership qualities of truly great leaders is the sense of abundant
positivity that energizes everyone around them. It’s not that they never have
moments of frustration or disappointment, but that they’re able to take a positive
approach to tackle challenging issues. Inspiring leaders know how to turn setbacks
into successes and make a point to display optimistic leadership traits on a daily
basis. Choose empowering beliefs that will propel you forward, not negative thought
patterns that will weigh you down. Seeing challenges as opportunities rather than
obstacles is one of the most important leadership qualities you can display to your
teammates. When you practice positive thinking, it becomes your powerful cognitive
habit and allows you to reassure and elevate those around you.

5. DECISIVENESS
Every single person in a leadership role of any kind sometimes has to make
difficult decisions. How you handle these decisions is one of the most important
leadership qualities. The ability to be decisive can mean the difference between
getting through a tough time or crisis and folding under pressure. Making these
kinds of calls doesn’t always mean you will be well-loved, but when you use good
judgment to make decisions, it will earn you the respect of others. Even if you
make a wrong decision and need to correct it, showing decisiveness during tough
times is a better leadership quality than waiting around for something to happen or
letting others make the decision for you. An effective leader is one who makes the
decision that is right, not the decision that is easy.

6. ABILITY TO INSPIRE
We all bring natural gifts to our careers. Discovering what your natural leadership
traits are is an excellent way to inspire others to also find their own strengths.
One of the secrets to wild success is honing your leadership vision and
communicating it to others. Inspiration is what pushes people to plow through
difficult times – and to work on achieving their goals even when times are
undemanding. You define yourself with your identity, or in business, your brand.
Refocus and sharpen your identity often so you will inspire those on your team.

7. EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION
Knowing your team’s – and your own – communication styles is one of the leadership
qualities that will strengthen your business the most. Great leaders don’t just
communicate information to their team – they also know how to communicate goals and
their vision to get their team excited.

You can’t underestimate the power of words. The best leaders know that words
transform emotions and lead to breakthroughs. Like many important leadership
qualities, being an effective communicator is often more about what you don’t do
than what you do. Constructive communication often means closing your mouth and
opening your ears. Deep listening and asking thoughtful questions shows that you
care about your employees’ contributions.

8. ACCOUNTABILITY
As a leader, you’re going to make mistakes. While handling them with positivity and
a growth mindset is one of the key leadership qualities you must possess, you must
also take responsibility for those mistakes. Blaming others, justifying your
actions or pretending like mistakes never happened erodes trust among your team and
will discourage them from being accountable for their own mistakes. Great leaders
take more than their share of blame and less than their share of credit, which
creates an organizational culture of trust and humility. When you’re accountable,
you can also hold your team accountable for their actions, ultimately creating a
sense of responsibility that will keep them continually striving for their personal
– and your business’ – goals.

Powerful leaders have a clear sense of purpose and are able to take their teams in
the right direction. Additionally, as they lead their group, they utilize strong
leadership qualities to create a supportive sense of community for all who are
involved. Becoming an empowering leader is about not only creating something that’s
better for the group, but encouraging those around you to embrace their strong
leadership traits as well.

9. EMPATHY
What are the qualities of a good leader – and is empathy one of them? According to
the U.S. Army, it is. As Forbes reports, the Army Field Manual on Leadership
Development states emphatically and repeatedly that empathy is essential for strong
leadership. As surprising as this may seem, the logic is straightforward. When
you’re trying to reach someone, having empathy allows you to discern whether you’ve
gotten your message across. When you’re able to see another person’s perspective,
you’re able to predict the effect your words and actions will have on them. Without
empathy, the reverse happens and you risk alienating the very people you’re
attempting to create connections with, whether they’re your customers, employees,
colleagues or competitors. Cultivating empathy is the precursor to almost every
other “soft skill” required for leadership, from self-awareness to critical
thinking.

10. HUMILITY
Humility is one of the oft-misunderstood leadership qualities that’s actually
critical for heading any type of team. As the Huffington Post reports, humility is
one of the most important leadership traits, but it doesn’t mean being a doormat.
Humility shapes your character so that you’re able to embrace your own weaknesses
without losing confidence. From this place of self-respect, you’re receptive to
others’ feedback, which opens you up to new ideas and solutions. Humility also
softens you to genuine connections with other people, since humility makes you
approachable. You’re able to interact with your team, customers and colleagues from
a place of shared humanity, which breaks down communication barriers.

What are the qualities of a good leader, and how can you develop them? Getting to
know yourself is your first step. Learn which of the six human needs drives you
with Tony Robbins’ quick assessment. From there, you’re on your way to developing
the leadership traits that will take your business – and your life – to the next
level.
If you’re an employer who wants to develop your own leadership development program
akin to Amazon or perhaps Harvard, you have to consider how your leadership program
should be organized. There are excellent training providers out there such as
Lessonly that offer ways to create and tailor your leadership training lessons to
your workforce. Components of a leadership development program should include the
following:

Outlines leadership goals and objectives

Addresses a variety of leadership styles
Helps your leaders learn and improve key leadership skills
Focuses on leadership at different levels of your employees’ career development
Fosters teamwork and communication within a company
Let’s take a closer look at each of these best practices.

Outlines leadership goals and objectives

Before you start designing a leadership training course, it’s important to
understand what you want your leaders and future leaders to gain from it. This
requires outlining your current objectives for employees. If you simply want your
employees to learn leadership development fundamentals, it’s important that you
understand what those fundamentals are and how they impact your employees’ work.
Courses that fail to clearly define objectives often leave employees confused as to
what the actual takeaway items are in the course. The more clearly you can define
the goal of the course, the more likely your employees will learn from it.

Addresses a variety of leadership styles

Just as no two employees are alike, no two leaders are alike. But leaders do have
certain leadership styles and qualities that can be categorized. It’s important for
you to address many of these leadership styles, both good and bad, so leaders and
potential leaders learn good styles and know how to avoid becoming “that boss” or
“that coworker” everyone despises. By addressing multiple effective and “good”
leadership styles, your leaders and potential leaders can glean ideas from the
course, which in turn, makes them better leaders.

Helps your leaders learn and improve key leadership skills

Always come up with good suggestions that leaders can immediately put to work to
improve their key leadership skills. A leadership development program example might
be teaching your leaders to communicate more effectively with their employees and
coworkers, so there is less confusion about the tasks they need to perform. Giving
them concrete examples will further help your leaders understand how they can put
their leadership skills to work immediately.

Addresses leadership at different levels of your employees’ career development

Not everyone is going to benefit from a one-size-fits-all approach to leadership
training. Some employees will be new leaders. Other employees may be in upper
management or event executive officers. No matter what level of leader, each group
of employees has its own requirements for leadership development. You need to
tailor each training program to suit the people you are addressing.

Fosters teamwork and communication within a company

Communication and teamwork are two very important components of leadership
development. Without either, a company will quickly fail. This is why it is
important to address these two issues in your leadership development program.
Again, providing concrete examples and takeaways will help the employees understand
why these two skills are important and why they need to incorporate them into their
leadership skills.

Core Leadership Values

Values are the guiding principles in our lives. Leadership occurs within the
context of core values. Leaders guide and facilitate others to make a positive
difference in their own lives and to contribute to a larger good. Values inform
the application of leadership qualities as the competencies of leadership are
activated – learned, developed, and practiced – within the set of core values. By
focusing on what people believe and value, and then positively building on this
understanding, we have the potential for impact far more wide reaching than if we
approached leadership development as a problem-solving activity.

1. Respect

as demonstrated by self respect and respecting others regardless of differences;

treating others with dignity, empathy and compassion; and the ability to earn the
respect of others.

2. Making a Difference

as demonstrated by personal efforts that lead to making a positive impact on

individuals, systems, and/or organizations or positively affecting outcomes.

3. Integrity

as demonstrated by moral courage, ethical strength, and trustworthiness; keeping

promises and fulfilling expectations.

4. Authenticity

as demonstrated by consistency, congruency, and transparency in values, beliefs,

and actions; integrating values and principles to create a purposeful life and to
contribute to the growth of others.

5. Courage

as demonstrated by possessing a strength of self to act with intention on behalf of

the common good; taking a stand in the face of adversity; acting boldly in the
service of inclusion and justice.

6. Service

as demonstrated by commitment that extends beyond one’s own self interest; personal
humility for the sake of a greater cause.

7. Humility

as demonstrated by a sense of humbleness, dignity and an awareness of one’s own

limitations; open to perspectives different from one’s own.

8. Wisdom

as demonstrated by a broad understanding of human dynamics and an ability to

balance the interests of multiple stakeholders when making decisions; can take a
long term perspective in decision-making.
short notes

1. Communication
As a leader, you need to be able to clearly and succinctly explain to your
employees everything from organizational goals to specific tasks. Leaders must
master all forms of communication, including one-on-one, departmental, and full-
staff conversations, as well as communication via the phone, email, and social
media.

A large part of communication involves listening. Therefore, leaders should

establish a steady flow of communication between themselves and their staff or team
members, either through an open-door policy or regular conversations with workers.
Leaders should make themselves regularly available to discuss issues and concerns
with employees. Other skills related to communication include:

Active listening
Articulating
Business storytelling
Clarity

2. Motivation
Leaders need to inspire their workers to go the extra mile for their organizations;
just paying a fair salary to employees is typically not enough inspiration
(although it is important too). There are a number of ways to motivate your
workers: you may build employee self-esteem through recognition and rewards, or by
giving employees new responsibilities to increase their investment in the company.

Leaders must learn what motivators work best for their employees or team members to
encourage productivity and passion. Skills related to effective motivation include:

Allowing employee autonomy

Asking for input
Assessing the interests of staff
Convincing
Mentoring
Understanding employee differences

3. Delegating
Leaders who try to take on too many tasks by themselves will struggle to get
anything done. These leaders often fear that delegating tasks is a sign of
weakness, when in fact it is a sign of a strong leader.

Therefore, you need to identify the skills of each of your employees, and assign
duties to each employee based on his or her skill set. By delegating tasks to staff
members, you can focus on other important tasks. Some skills that make a good
delegator include:

Accepting feedback from employees

Allotting resources for employees
Assessing employee strengths and weaknesses
Defining expectations
Evaluating employee performance
Identifying measurable outcomes
Matching the task to the right employee
Prioritizing tasks
Setting expectations
Teamwork
Time management
Training
Trust in employees
4. Positivity
A positive attitude can go a long way in an office. You should be able to laugh at
yourself when something doesn't go quite as planned; this helps create a happy and
healthy work environment, even during busy, stressful periods.

Simple acts like asking employees about their vacation plans will develop a
positive atmosphere in the office, and raise morale among staff members.

If employees feel that they work in a positive environment, they will be more
likely to want to be at work, and will therefore be more willing to put in the long
hours when needed. Some skills that help make for a positive atmosphere in the
workplace include:

Caring
Conflict management
Developing rapport
Diplomacy
Encouraging
Empathetic
Friendliness
Helping others
Humor
Interpersonal
Positive reinforcement
Respect
Social
5. Trustworthiness
Employees need to be able to feel comfortable coming to their manager or leader
with questions and concerns. It is important for you to demonstrate your integrity
– employees will only trust leaders they respect.

By being open and honest, you will encourage the same sort of honesty in your
employees. Here are some skills and qualities that will help you convey your
trustworthiness as a leader:

Ability to apologize
Accountability
Business ethics
Confidentiality
Conscientious
Consistent in behavior towards employees
Credibility
Emotional intelligence
Empathy
Honesty
Integrity
Moral compass
Reliability
Respectfulness
Standing up for what is right
Thoughtful
6. Creativity
As a leader, you have to make a number of decisions that do not have a clear
answer; you therefore need to be able to think outside of the box.

Learning to try nontraditional solutions, or approaching problems in nontraditional

ways, will help you to solve an otherwise unsolvable problem. Most employees will
also be impressed and inspired by a leader who doesn't always choose the safe,
conventional path. Here are some skills related to creative thinking:

Analytical
Cognitive flexibility
Conceptualization
Critical thinking
Curiosity
Embracing different cultural perspectives
Foresight
Identifying patterns
Imaginative
Innovative
Listening to others’ ideas
Making abstract connections
Observation
Open-mindedness
Problem solving
Sound judgment
Synthesizing
Visionary
7. Feedback
Leaders should constantly look for opportunities to deliver useful information to
team members about their performance. However, there is a fine line between
offering employees advice and assistance, and micromanaging. By teaching employees
how to improve their work and make their own decisions, you will feel more
confident delegating tasks to your staff.

Employees will also respect a leader who provides feedback in a clear but
empathetic way. Some skills for giving clear feedback include:

Being open to receiving feedback

Building confidence in employees
Clarity
Clearly laying out expectations
Coaching
Following up
Frequent feedback
Listening to employees’ responses
Mentoring
Positive reinforcement
Providing specific advice
Respectful
8. Responsibility
A leader is responsible for both the successes and failures of his or her team.
Therefore, you need to be willing to accept blame when something does not go
correctly.

If your employees see their leader pointing fingers and blaming others, they will
lose respect for you. Accept mistakes and failures, and then devise clear solutions
for improvement. Here are some skills and qualities that help leaders convey their
responsibility:

Acknowledging mistakes
Being open to customer feedback
Evaluating best solutions
Forecasting
Learning from past mistakes
Listening to feedback from employees and managers
Project planning
Reflectiveness
Resolving problems
Transparency
Trouble shooting
9. Commitment
It is important for leaders to follow through with what they agree to do. You
should be willing to put in the extra hours to complete an assignment; employees
will see this commitment and follow your example.

Similarly, when you promise your staff a reward, such as an office party, you
should always follow through. A leader cannot expect employees to commit to their
jobs and their tasks if he or she cannot do the same. Some skills related to
commitment in the workplace include:

Applying feedback
Commitment to company objectives
Determination
Embracing professional development
Following through
Keeping promises
Passion
Perseverance
Prioritization
Professionalism
Team player
Work ethic
10. Flexibility
Mishaps and last-minute changes always occur at work. Leaders need to be flexible,
accepting whatever changes come their way. Employees will appreciate your ability
to accept changes in stride and creatively problem solve.
Diversity allows people from a greater range of different backgrounds to join teams
and organisations, which theoretically sounds great. However, managers and
organisations make the mistake of believing that more equality automatically
translates into better performance.

The issue is that the majority of diversity policies focus on how organisations can
become more diverse rather than on how to manage that diversity, which requires a
whole different set of processes and actions. Specifically, managers who want that
diversity to work have to solve three major problems.

The first problem is that people who are different from each other often perceive,
experience and understand their work very differently, which makes it harder for
diverse teams to work effectively together. This means that members of diverse
teams may have more troubles agreeing on quite simple ideas, like how to interpret
data.

A second problem has to do with team cohesion. Cohesion emerges when a team remains
united while working to achieve a common goal. Being a cohesive team means that not
only are group goals met but team members feel that they have contributed to the
overall success of the group. In teams where diversity is high, we found that
cohesion tends to be low, which means that they don’t necessarily trust each other
and more likely to have conflicts. Which as you probably know is pretty disastrous
for productivity.

A lack of cohesion leads to the final and gravest problem. When organisations focus
on increasing diversity rather than on managing existing diversity, diverse teams
are often found to collaborate less effectively and are reluctant to exchange and
share ideas. This is crucial, as theoretically the only reason that diverse teams
should outperform non-diverse teams is because they have a greater range of views,
experiences and opinions. Anything that stops information sharing, in essence
sabotages the benefits of that diversity.

So, what can a manager or organisation do to solve these three problems?

Firstly, you need to encourage team identification. High team identification is

when members identify themselves as part of a group and feel proud to be a part of
it, employees feel that they are not working against each other, but for the same
team, the same future, goals and vision. My research has found that whether you see
diversity as a positive or negative depends on how you identify with the team as a
whole. The higher the collective team identification, the more likely team members
feel positively about diversity and are therefore more collaborative and
successful.

But to do this, managers need to make sure that people are not merely members of
different social categories such as gender or race, but to emphasise the
distinctiveness of each individual. It is not enough to just aim for diversity or
‘equal representation’. Instead, managers need to think about how people feel about
their differences.

I guess the paradox is that the practices which have helped increase diversity and
satisfy the need for greater equality, are the same ones that hinder organisations
from reaping the benefits of all that diversity. However, if you follow these
relatively simple steps you can really make a difference to your employees’ lives
and shape the effect of diversity for the greater good.

Forming stage
The forming stage involves a period of orientation and getting acquainted.
Uncertainty is high during this stage, and people are looking for leadership and
authority. A member who asserts authority or is knowledgeable may be looked to take
control. Team members are asking such questions as “What does the team offer me?”
“What is expected of me?” “Will I fit in?” Most interactions are social as members
get to know each other.
Storming stage
The storming stage is the most difficult and critical stage to pass through. It is
a period marked by conflict and competition as individual personalities emerge.
Team performance may actually decrease in this stage because energy is put into
unproductive activities. Members may disagree on team goals, and subgroups and
cliques may form around strong personalities or areas of agreement. To get through
this stage, members must work to overcome obstacles, to accept individual
differences, and to work through conflicting ideas on team tasks and goals. Teams
can get bogged down in this stage. Failure to address conflicts may result in long-
term problems.

Norming stage
If teams get through the storming stage, conflict is resolved and some degree of
unity emerges. In the norming stage, consensus develops around who the leader or
leaders are, and individual member’s roles. Interpersonal differences begin to be
resolved, and a sense of cohesion and unity emerges. Team performance increases
during this stage as members learn to cooperate and begin to focus on team goals.
However, the harmony is precarious, and if disagreements re-emerge the team can
slide back into storming.

Performing stage
In the performing stage, consensus and cooperation have been well-established and
the team is mature, organized, and well-functioning. There is a clear and stable
structure, and members are committed to the team’s mission. Problems and conflicts
still emerge, but they are dealt with constructively. (We will discuss the role of
conflict and conflict resolution in the next section). The team is focused on
problem solving and meeting team goals.

Adjourning stage
In the adjourning stage, most of the team’s goals have been accomplished. The
emphasis is on wrapping up final tasks and documenting the effort and results. As
the work load is diminished, individual members may be reassigned to other teams,
and the team disbands. There may be regret as the team ends, so a ceremonial
acknowledgement of the work and success of the team can be helpful. If the team is
a standing committee with ongoing responsibility, members may be replaced by new
people and the team can go back to a forming or storming stage and repeat the
development process.

Team Norms and Cohesiveness

When you have been on a team, how did you know how to act? How did you know what
behaviors were acceptable or what level of performance was required? Teams usually
develop norms that guide the activities of team members. Team norms set a standard
for behavior, attitude, and performance that all team members are expected to
follow. Norms are like rules but they are not written down. Instead, all the team
members implicitly understand them. Norms are effective because team members want
to support the team and preserve relationships in the team, and when norms are
violated, there is peer pressure or sanctions to enforce compliance.

Norms result from the interaction of team members during the development process.
Initially, during the forming and storming stages, norms focus on expectations for
attendance and commitment. Later, during the norming and performing stages, norms
focus on relationships and levels of performance. Performance norms are very
important because they define the level of work effort and standards that determine
the success of the team. As you might expect, leaders play an important part in
establishing productive norms by acting as role models and by rewarding desired
behaviors.

Norms are only effective in controlling behaviors when they are accepted by team
members. The level of cohesiveness on the team primarily determines whether team
members accept and conform to norms. Team cohesiveness is the extent that members
are attracted to the team and are motivated to remain in the team. Members of
highly cohesive teams value their membership, are committed to team activities, and
gain satisfaction from team success. They try to conform to norms because they want
to maintain their relationships in the team and they want to meet team
expectations. Teams with strong performance norms and high cohesiveness are high
performing.

For example, the seven-member executive team at Whole Foods spends time together
outside of work. Its members frequently socialize and even take group vacations.
According to co-CEO John Mackey, they have developed a high degree of trust that
results in better communication and a willingness to work out problems and
disagreements when they occur.

What's the difference between an extrovert and an introvert?

"When I think about the words introvert and extrovert, I think about the ways in
which people relate to themselves, and the world around them," Chelsea Connors, MS,
NCC, LPC-A, Board Certified Coach and therapist said. She added that the biggest
difference between the two is in how each prefers to spend their time.

You may be an introvert if:

You enjoy spending time alone

You prefer quality time with one or two people over spending time with bigger
groups of friends
You need alone time to rest and recharge after a busy workday or period of activity
You can get lost in your thoughts easily and need time to process and think through
most things
You may be an extrovert if:

You prefer spending your time around other people and dislike being alone
You like crowds, parties and other gatherings with lots of new people
You need quality time with others to help you recharge
You're outgoing, talkative and like being the center of attention
"Typically introverts tend to enjoy more time to themselves, are very aware of
their internal thoughts and recharge more in solitude. Extroverts can be just the
opposite. Extroverts are often more outspoken, outgoing and absolutely love being
around other people. That's what really fills them up," Connors said.

You can also consider how you feel after socializing to help you decipher if you're
more introverted or extroverted. "We often see that extroverts feel refueled and
filled up after being with a crowd and connecting with more people, while
introverts may feel drained by that same experience," Connors said.
Can knowing if others are introverted or extroverted help your relationships?
So now that you know if you're more introverted or extroverted personally -- what
about the other people in your life? Finding out whether your friends, family and
coworkers are introverts or extroverts can help your relationships, Connors said.

"Awareness and information are key to creating meaningful change and fueling
powerful decisions -- this goes for relationships of all types. When we feel that
we better understand where someone else is coming from or how they experience the
world, it can be easier to empathize, relate and communicate effectively," Connors
said.

And this advice doesn't just apply to your friends, romantic partners, or family
members. Understanding if someone has a more introverted or extroverted personality
can be helpful for professional relationships too. Connors explained that
developing a sense of understanding with coworkers and their personalities is
helpful for things like giving and receiving feedback, creating a better work
environment, and navigating challenges.

Can you be both introverted and extroverted?

Not a fan of strict labels? You don't have to identify as solely an introvert or an
extrovert -- there's a spectrum. "There is so much middle ground here too where
we're now seeing people describe themselves as introverted-extroverts, etc. It's OK
to be somewhere in the middle here and to not feel that you fall in one distinct
category," Connors said.
For example, if you're an extroverted-introvert, you may feel that you're mostly
introverted in nature, but you don't always prefer being alone or in small groups,
and you can feel energized when you're around the right crowd at the right time.
Creativity relieves stress
More and more people are trying to incorporate creativity into their life because
of its calming effect. This finding has introduced new forms of counselling such as
Art or Dance Therapy which have proved to be very effective. When the workload gets
heavy in the office it may be difficult to set aside time for a calming creative
outlet, but having a supply of books, board games or crafts where employees have
lunch will help them switch off from the stress of work and come back from their
break ready to take on anything. A recent study by Taylor Francis Online gave forty
participants art supplies and asked them to create anything they wanted for 45
minutes. After this short creative session, 75% of this group found a decreased
level of Cortisol (a hormone that the body releases in response to stress).

2. Creativity supports innovation andimproves productivity

Industry and Businesses recognise the value of innovation, which is facilitated by
enabling people to play and to improvise. Working with different team members and
doing very different activities helps foster creativity which is the mother to
innovation. Routine can really damage productivity, mixing up the daily habits by
bringing in creativity into the office can really spark ‘excitement’ in the brain.
As soon as the brain is made to work in a different way, more thought patterns are
introduced, thus improving productivity.

3. Creativity encourages problem solving

The left side of the brain controls everything to do with logic, whereas the right
side controls creativity. If an individual is never exposed to creativity this
means half the brain isn’t being utilised properly. This in turn suggests they are
missing out on the creative thought processes such as intuitition which is very
beneficial for problem solving. Fast Company has actually conducted a poll where
they found CEOs said creavity was the most important leadership quality, followed
by integrity and global thinking.

4. Better team work and bonding

Many offices give their employees a creative team building activity because this
appears to be the most beneficial way to help members of their team work together.
Most forms of creativity are not competitive, which diminishes the idea of rivalry
in the workplace and encourages a team to work together.

Photo credit: Edubirdie

5. Increased staff morale

Its not rocket science to say that being creative simply makes people happy, and if
your employees are happy, they will work better and feel more invested in the
company. As stated in Havard Business Review ‘There is nothing more satisfying that
watching your people fulfill the human need to create and having their creative
contributions benefit the organization and the markets it serves.’

6. Creativity helps to find the success in failure

This is one of our favorite benefits of creativity. We all know that in business
not everything goes to plan. But why write this off as purely a failure when these
are the moments when we really start to learn what works in our company? As Picasso
said ‘I am always doing that which I can not do, in order that I may learn how to
do it.’

Founder of PopUp Painting, Phyllissa Shelton, with a career as a leading change

architect in healthcare, says: Everyone has entrepreneurial talents and can
innovate given the right environment and creative space. It is not the seeds of
creativity that are needed to be planted but the soil of organisations that need to
be fertile and tended regularly to enable individuals and teams to have time to
stand back, try new things, think differently and foster creativity.
If you want an easy, accessible way to get your team creativity and bonding, here
at PopUp Painting we have a range of corporate team building packages. We can
operate wherever suits you, whether it’s at the office or a local bar or restaurant
and even paint whatever picture you’d like! To find out more, please go HERE.