Right-Minded Teamwork Series

Right-Minded Teamwork (RMT) is an intelligent and empowering teamwork system that guides teams to overcome interpersonal challenges, improve processes, and work together seamlessly to achieve business goals. With RMT, your team can compassionately address interpersonal conflict, regain focus, and produce astounding results. What Is This Book About? Written for team leaders and team facilitators ready to create positive, lasting change in their teams, this book teaches two significant Right-Minded Teamwork (RMT) concepts. First, you will read the Right-Minded Teamwork Myth, a short parable illustrating RMT’s underlying teamwork philosophy, followed by the RMT Process, a step-by-step approach for implementing RMT in your team. Reason or Ego? The Right-Minded Teamwork Myth is a short, simple story that illustrates what “right-minded” thinking and behaving look and feel like. Following three characters, Reason, Ego, and the Decision-Maker, found in each of us, the Myth illustrates the aspirational thought system behind RMT. It advocates for teammates to turn away from Ego’s disastrous advice to seek separateness and selfishness and instead follow Reason’s path to oneness and shared interest. The RMT Process is a practical, deliberate, and reliable approach for implementing Right-Minded Teamwork in any team. It includes a set of seven, interconnected, team-building methods. As the first in RMT’s eight-book series, this book will teach you how these seven RMT methods form a self-perpetuating, continuous improvement system with the power to transform even the most challenged team. The Problem with Team Building Most team-building programs have a problem. They do not address or resolve a team’s real issues. There are many common team-building practices, like education, games, and social events, but as far as real team building goes, none of these approaches is effective. Not one of them produces proven, reliable results. Still, many well-meaning team leaders continue to use these ineffective tactics. Usually, this is because they do not realize there is a better way: a real-world approach to team building. Do No Harm. Work As One. Right-Minded Teamwork is a real-world, team-building process that actually works. It is an intelligent, empowering system suitable for teams of all sizes and dynamics. It is the most reliable way to achieve and sustain high-performance teamwork because it directly addresses real issues in a non-confrontational, compassionate way. Apply RMT, and improve work processes while strengthening teammate relationships. Apply RMT, and help your team achieve 100% customer satisfaction. Apply RMT, and make the world a better place. A Note from Dan Hogan, Creator of RMT As I write this, RMT is, to my knowledge, the only model of its kind. However, I pray it is not unique. I hope one day real-world methodologies like RMT become the prevailing team-building approach around the world. I'm optimistic this future is on its way because I know I’m not alone in wishing for it. Though I’m now retired from active facilitation, for decades, I served teams around the globe as a Certified Master Facilitator, and I repeatedly heard my clients express the same desire I had: That this kind of approach to team-building would become commonplace, for the betterment of everyone. They were changed by our work together and what they learned, and many of them went on to share RMT’s concepts and principles with others. Through them, the ripple effect began. Through you, it can continue. Together, with the help of RMT, we will build teams that do no harm, get work done, and work as one. Dan Hogan, CMF

If you’ve been wondering how in the world you can lead your teammates to actual collaboration and true team effectiveness, you’re in the right place. Right-Minded Teamwork (RMT) is a proven methodology to achieve better teamwork. This book explores RMT’s “9 Right Choices” and the thought system that successful RMT team leaders and facilitators use to create and sustain teams that work as one. Is This Book for You? This fast read is an excellent Right-Minded Teamwork primer. In this book, RMT’s 9 Right Choices are defined, and practical leader and teammate exercises are provided for applying each one. This book teaches team facilitators, team leaders, and teammates how to incorporate these 9 Right Choices to build unified teamwork that makes achieving team goals inevitable. Right-Minded Teamwork’s 9 Right Choices At a glance, RMT’s 9 Right Choices look like this: 1. Make the Right-Minded Choice: Choose Reason 2. Oneness or Separateness? Choose to Behave as One 3. Right-Minded Communication: An End to Separateness 4. Meaningful Vision: Make Your Dream Come True 5. Work Agreements: Bring People Together as One 6. Critical Few: Complete Important Tasks First 7. Mistakes Happen: Correct Them; Don’t Punish People 8. Conflict Happens: Go to the Classroom, Not the Battleground 9. Recognition: Make It Easy to Keep Going These nine teamwork choices are universal, self-evident, and self-validating. With these choices in your mind, you no longer have to wonder what you should do in any team situation. The answer will always be, “Do no harm, and work as one.” How to Apply the 9 Right Choices in Your Team There is no single right way to apply the 9 Right Choices. But there are two possible scenarios that lend themselves well to team application. The first option is to ask all teammates to read this book and complete the survey at the end. You will then compile teammates’ scores and comments and distribute the overall results to all teammates. As a full team, you will discuss the results and identify which Choices to apply in your team. The second option is to openly discuss, in a team meeting, just the first two of the 9 Right Choices. By the end of the meeting, teammates will have chosen several of their own “right” attitudes and work behaviors that they want to live by going forward. These team-wide “right choices” are captured in team Work Agreements that everyone agrees to follow. No matter which approach you choose, remember it is really about the dialogue. These 9 Choices are undoubtedly important, but they are secondary to your team’s discussion of them. Regardless of your preferred approach, every application should include a healthy, functional, and empowering dialogue that moves your teammates towards acting and behaving as one unified team. Praise for Right-Minded Teamwork’s 9 Right Choices A fast read that takes you straight to the root of team dysfunctions and gives you proven, step-by-step tools to improve team function and deliver results. I have paid thousands of dollars for team trainings and workshops that are better summarized here. I am glad to be reminded to choose Reason over Ego and stay in my right mind. Robin Hensley, VP IT, UPS The author of this guide is all-knowing and has clearly and in a pithy way documented the nine steps to bringing a team together. Togetherness and one-mindedness are key elements to an average team doing extraordinary things. [This book] provides a roadmap to use in building a team that works. Alan Kleier, Former GM/VP, Chevron

Ready to see your team shine? With Right-Minded Teamwork (RMT), your team can compassionately address interpersonal conflict, regain focus, and produce astounding results. What Is This Book About? RMT is an intelligent and empowering teamwork system that guides teams to overcome interpersonal challenges, improve processes, and work together seamlessly to achieve business goals. It is a business-oriented, psychological approach to team building where acceptance, forgiveness, and adjustment are teammate characteristics, and 100% customer satisfaction is the team's result. RMT produces positive business results by allowing your team to work together as one, do no harm, and get real work done. In this book, you will learn about RMT's core framework of interlocking teamwork components, called the 5 Elements: 1. Team Business Goal: Achieve 100% Customer Satisfaction 2. Team Psychological Goal: Commit to Right-Minded Thinking 3. Work Agreements: Create & Follow Commitments 4. Team Operating System: Make It Effective & Efficient 5. Right-Minded Teammates: Strengthen Individual Performance First, we’ll take an in-depth look at each of RMT’s 5 Elements. Then we’ll review a proven implementation plan consisting of three, team-building workshops conducted over a six-to-12-month period. Once your team completes their third workshop, you will move into a 90-day, continuous improvement operating plan that allows the team to achieve their goals, do no harm, and work together as one. Is This Book for You? This book will teach you exactly how to implement Right-Minded Teamwork in your team. It is primarily intended as a resource for team leaders and facilitators. But it is also much more than that. The content you will find here can positively benefit everyone, everywhere, on any team. RMT is a universal, self-evident, self-validating process with the power to transform even the most challenged team situations. Real-World Team Building Most team-building programs do not address or resolve a team’s real issues. There are many common team-building practices, like education, games, and social events, but as far as real team building goes, none of these approaches is effective. Not one of them produces proven, reliable results. Right-Minded Teamwork is the most reliable way to achieve and sustain high-performance teamwork. It is a real-world approach to team building that directly addresses team issues in a non-confrontational, compassionate way. Apply RMT, and improve work processes while strengthening teammate relationships. Apply RMT, and help your team achieve 100% customer satisfaction. Apply RMT, and make the world a better place. A Note from Dan Hogan, Co-Creator of RMT As I write this, RMT is, to my knowledge, the only model of its kind. However, I pray it is not unique. I hope one day real-world methodologies like RMT become the prevailing team-building approach around the world. I'm optimistic this future is on its way because I know I’m not alone in wishing for it. Though I’m now retired from active facilitation, for decades, I served teams around the globe as a Certified Master Facilitator. I repeatedly heard my clients express the same desire I had: That this kind of approach to team-building would become commonplace, for the betterment of everyone. They were changed by our work together and what they learned, and many of them went on to share RMT’s concepts and principles with others. Through them, the ripple effect began. Through you, it can continue. Together, with the help of RMT, we will build teams that do no harm, get work done, and work as one. Dan Hogan, CMF

Are adversarial choices keeping your team divided and in conflict? The Right Choice Model paves the way for teammates to do no harm and work as one. Share the Right Choice Model with your team, and teach teammates to make positive, productive choices that align with team goals. What Is This Book About? When difficult team problems occur, teammates have two options: become an ally, or become an adversary. When you are an adversary, you are a victim or a victimizer, always pointing the finger at others. When you choose to be an ally, you work collaboratively with your teammates to achieve team goals. You demonstrate positive and accountable work behaviors. This book and the Right Choice Model will guide you to create a team of productive, supportive, Right-Minded teammate allies. Is This Book for You? If you want to help your team achieve better teamwork, Right-Minded Teamwork can help. This book teaches team facilitators, team leaders, and teammates how to use the Right Choice Model to create powerful, effective, Right-Minded teams that do no harm and work as one. What Is "Right" in Right-Minded Teamwork? Right-Minded Teamwork (RMT) is a business-oriented, psychological approach to team building where acceptance, forgiveness, and adjustment are teammate characteristics, and 100% customer satisfaction is the team's result. The concept of “right” in Right-Minded Teamwork and the Right Choice Model has nothing to do with right-brain thinking or right-wing viewpoints. It is about what your team, together, decides is "right" for you. Your team's preferred way of being and behaving, identified as a set of collective teamwork choices, defines your team's Right-Minded attitudes and work behaviors. How the Right Choice Model Works Usually introduced during a team workshop, the Right Choice Model consists of an “upper loop” and a “lower loop.” Both are captured in the Model’s graphic illustration, explored in this book. The upper loop of the Model describes the cycle of successfully addressing problems using Right-Minded behavior and accountability. The lower loop describes the ineffective cycle of wrong-minded victimization. The Right Choice Model also contains an important, Right-Minded question for teammates to use when difficult situations arise. This crucial question can be distributed as a physical resource by handing out Right Choice cards, available at RightMindedTeamwork.com (see the Resources section of your book for instructions). On one side of the cards is the Right Choice Model’s crucial teamwork question; on the back is the definition of Right-Minded accountability. These cards give teammates a way to apply the Right Choice Model day in and day out to make positive, team-oriented choices. This book explores the key concepts behind the Right Choice Model and contains three approaches for integrating Model into your team. Praise for the Right Choice Model I’ve used the Right Choice Model for 20+ years and still live by the process today in my professional and personal life. It’s a great way to kick-start a new team or invigorate a seasoned one. - Ken McCall I have been using your Right Choice Model in most of my workshops since 2005. I enjoy it, am inspired by it, and find it very useful. For team-building activities, Right Choice is definitely highly recommended. - Teca Pedro I can tell you without a doubt that my team and I use the Right Choice Model all we can and we LOVE it! Our team has really grown and achieved a lot through the program. - Cindy Thomas

Is your team struggling to overcome interpersonal conflicts, poor performance, or process issues? Solve your challenges with Right-Minded Teamwork’s Work Agreements, and guide teammates to do no harm while working as one. What Is This Book About? Right-Minded Teamwork (RMT) is a business-oriented, psychological approach to team building where acceptance, forgiveness, and adjustment are teammate characteristics, and 100% customer satisfaction is the team's result. Work Agreements are the third of RMT’s five core tools, called the 5 Elements. Work Agreements are collective team pledges to transform non-productive, dysfunctional team behaviors into positive, constructive, team-based choices and actions. Work Agreements are not guidelines or ground rules. They are emotionally mature promises that guide a team to work collaboratively towards the shared goal of achieving customer satisfaction. With Work Agreements, your team can openly resolve issues that are already hurting or which have the potential to hurt team performance. This book will teach you how to successfully create and implement team Work Agreements. Strictly speaking, there is no one absolute right way to facilitate Work Agreement dialogues, but the fundamental principles for team transformation are captured in the 10 Steps covered in this book. Learn them, and you will succeed. Is This Book for You? This book is written primarily for team facilitators. However, team leaders and teammates may also follow these steps to create powerful, effective, Right-Minded Work Agreements that solve and prevent interpersonal and process problems. Work Agreements: Navigate Team Conflict If you’ve ever been part of a team, you know it is not a matter of if conflict will occur among teammates. It is a question of when. Like a complex machine without an operator's manual, if strong teamwork is not actively maintained, team performance will eventually degrade into separateness and egotistical self-interest. Work Agreements draw teammates back together again by transforming dysfunctional work behaviors into mature, behavioral teamwork promises that produce real results. It is far better to have Work Agreements in place before teammate disagreements happen because established Work Agreements can serve to mitigate and even make positive use of teammate clashes. However, even if your team is already in conflict, it’s still not too late (and will never be too late!) to create and actively live team Work Agreements. A Note from Dan Hogan, Co-Creator of RMT In the thirty-five years of my team-building career, I facilitated over 500 teams in varying states of conflict and dysfunction. Every team created some kind of Work Agreement and succeeded as a result. I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that Work Agreements work. They are right for every team, everywhere, forever. If you use them, I promise they will help make your team(s) and the world a better place. Let's get started right now. Dan Hogan, Certified Master Facilitator

Most team-building programs have a problem: They do not address or resolve a team’s real issues. That is because team games, outdoor exercises, and social events cannot produce reliable results. Right-Minded Teamwork (RMT) can. This real-world, team-building method addresses and resolves your team’s real issues in a non-confrontational, compassionate, and lasting way. What Is This Book About? Right-Minded Teamwork is the most reliable way to achieve and sustain high-performance teamwork. This book will teach you RMT’s proven, twelve-step approach to designing powerfully effective, team-building workshops. Teammates will actually want to attend these events because they know they will get real work done. NOTE: This book is part of a larger training package that includes a full online training class and customizable, reusable resources. You can find this package, which includes this 12 Steps book in ebook format, at RightMindedTeamwork.com. If you have already invested in the Design an RMT Workshop training program and would also like a paperback copy of this book, please purchase it from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or your favorite book retailer. Is This Book for You? Ready to create your own transformational, team-building workshops? This book will get you there. Whether you are a team facilitator, team leader, or teammate, Right-Minded Teamwork will guide you and your team to do no harm and work as one. An Overview of RMT’s Workshop Formula At a high level, RMT’s 12 Steps formula can be captured in three phases: 1. Contract: Designing the workshop (Steps 1-9) 2. Commence: Facilitating the workshop (Step 10) 3. Carry On: Keeping up momentum (Steps 11-12) As you can see, the initial Contract phase makes up a substantial portion of the 12 Steps process, covering Steps 1-9. During this phase, you carefully construct your workshop, incorporating teammate interviews to ensure active buy-in and participation during your workshop event. With the team on board, you enter the second phase and execute your workshop, facilitating team discussion in a Right-Minded manner. Steps 11 and 12 comprise the final phase, in which your team implements new learnings and teamwork processes from their real-world, team-building workshop. A Note from Dan Hogan, Co-Creator of RMT In the thirty-five years of my team-building career, I facilitated over 500 teams in seven countries. For every workshop I led, I used RMT’s 12 Steps. Though the teammates and team leaders I served weren’t always aware of the process we were following, they definitely appreciated the results. Today, RMT has improved the lives and teams of thousands of people worldwide. Though I no longer actively facilitate, leaving it to the next generation of team leaders and facilitators to carry on Reason’s message of oneness and shared interest, I will always continue to support those who believe in Right-Minded Teamwork. If you choose to add RMT to your team-building toolkit, I’ll be here, ready to offer direction. Of course, you can also blaze your own trail: All RMT’s tools and packages are openly available, with no licensing or certification requirements. The only thing you need to get started is an open mind and a willingness to apply what you learn. Better teamwork can be yours with Right-Minded Teamwork. Start today. Dan Hogan, Certified Master Facilitator

Do you desire a world... ... that you rule, instead of one that rules you? ... where you are powerful, instead of helpless? ... in which you have no adversaries, only allies? Even though some teams feel more like a battleground than a collaborative work environment, every person deserves to experience the magic that occurs when teammates do no harm and work as one. With Right-Minded Teamwork’s 7 Mindfulness Training Lessons, it is possible to rise above the battleground and enter the classroom, a place where challenging circumstances are transformed into fantastic learning opportunities. What Is This Book About? Right-Minded Teamwork (RMT) is a business-oriented, psychological approach to team building where acceptance, forgiveness, and adjustment are teammate characteristics, and 100% customer satisfaction is the team's result. These three key teammate characteristics are achieved through mindfulness, the conscious ability to monitor our thoughts in the present. When we are mindful, we calmly acknowledge and accept our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors, as well as those of others, instead of mindlessly reacting. RMT’s 7 Mindfulness Training Lessons teach you and your team how to shift your thinking and behavior so you easily accept, forgive, and adjust. With RMT’s help, you will soon find yourselves working together to successfully achieve team goals. A Brief Overview of RMT’s 7 Mindfulness Lessons These are the 7 Mindfulness Lessons of Right-Minded Teamwork: 1. I am not upset about this difficult situation for the reason I think. 2. I accept and own my part in this situation. 3. It's impossible that my thoughts about this situation are neutral. 4. I forgive others and myself. 5. I will transform the effects of this difficult team situation. 6. I adjust my thinking and behavior. 7. I see every difficult team situation as a learning opportunity. By practicing RMT’s 7 Mindfulness Lessons, you become the ruler of your world. Instead of feeling tossed about by circumstances, you maintain your power of response. When conflict occurs, you avoid unnecessary Ego attacks and battles and instead seek moments of Reason. Your calm mindfulness guarantees you have no adversaries, only team allies. A Real-World Testimonial for the 7 Mindfulness Lessons Hi there! I’m Dan Hogan, Right-Minded Teamwork author and co-creator of RMT. I’m thrilled you’re considering RMT for your team. For over thirty-five years, I used tools like the 7 Mindfulness Lessons with hundreds of teams, and every time, they proved themselves effective. While working on this book series, I received a note from an RMT student who had actively applied the 7 Lessons to transform a challenging situation. She shared: “Recently, I was reflecting on a challenging interpersonal situation, and the first of the 7 Mindfulness Lessons popped into my mind. ‘I am not upset about this difficult team situation for the reason I think,’ I told myself. Immediately, I saw there was much more to the situation than the surface-level issue. I figured I might as well apply the next few Lessons, too, and as I did, I felt myself relaxing. In just a few moments, I was able to see the situation completely differently. “My inner resistance dissipated, and now the issue has, too. I had no doubt your methodology was effective, but I didn’t realize how immediately transformative it could be. Thank you and RMT for this breakthrough!” No matter what teamwork challenges you’re facing, Right-Minded Teamwork truly has the power to turn your team around. I hope you’ll give it a try today. Dan Hogan, Certified Master Facilitator

For an enterprise to achieve its vision, mission, and strategic objectives, every team within the organization must do its part. But without a Team Management System (TMS), it can be challenging to keep teams moving in the same direction. A strong TMS, like the Right-Minded Teamwork (RMT) model taught in this book, guides teams to operate more smoothly and efficiently. Your TMS ensures every team in the enterprise is working towards strategic goals with focused clarity, allowing your organization to achieve a higher percentage of its strategic goals year over year. By following RMT’s four-phase TMS rollout plan, you can create and deploy your own Team Management System, align teammate attitudes and work behavior with company values, and bring your entire organization together to work as one as you achieve your strategic plan. What Is This Book About? Right-Minded Teamwork (RMT) is a real-world, team-building method that teaches teammates how to successfully address and resolve issues in an accountable, lasting way. When interpersonal conflicts and process issues occur, Right-Minded teammates seek solutions that allow them to do no harm and work together as one to achieve team goals. In this book, you will learn the RMT approach to establishing an effective, enterprise-wide TMS. In addition to detailed guidance on implementing each of the four phases of RMT’s TMS model, you will also find operation agreements, charters, and specific actions to take for the first 90 days and beyond. Within the first six to 12 months, your RMT TMS will begin paying for itself, and within the first year, your TMS will demonstrate enterprise-wide gains. How RMT’s TMS Works: Four Phases RMT’s TMS operates much like your employee performance management system but on a team level. Every team in the enterprise sets performance goals that align with the enterprise’s strategic plan. Then, each quarter, teams measure and report their progress towards achieving their stated goals. To create and deploy your TMS, RMT recommends a four-phase approach: Phase 1: Executive Leadership launches the TMS In this initial phase, Right-Minded Teamwork is implemented in the executive team. RMT is adopted as the enterprise’s standard teamwork process, and leadership establishes a Steering Team that will launch and initially manage the TMS. Phase 2: Steering Team creates, organizes, and pilots the TMS Here, the newly-established Steering Team creates the enterprise’s startup TMS, chooses team facilitators, pilots the startup TMS in a few teams, and fine-tunes the TMS in preparation for a broader enterprise rollout. Phase 3: Teams measure and report performance; rollout expands to more teams Within three to four months after startup, the first quarterly TMS results are reported. The TMS is rolled out to more teams over the following 12 to 18 months. Within 12 to 24 months, TMS quarterly reports demonstrate beneficial enterprise results. Phase 4: Full rollout complete; TMS continues for growth and sustainability Eventually, the TMS is rolled out across the organization, and all teams participate. At this time, with the executive team’s support and guidance, the Steering Team is transformed into a stable growth and management phase. The entire organization continues to use and benefit from the TMS. When a single team within an organization works together as one, they are effective and productive, but when an enterprise works with the same level of synergy, it is exponentially more powerful.