Administrative Lessons from Esther 8

Over at my Break Time Bible Study site, we are going through the book of Esther. Chapter 8 is fantastic for noting the value of teamwork and effective administration so I am sharing the content here that will appear there later this week. Enjoy! - Beth In chapter 8, some excitement occurs in the story of Esther. It is at this point that the king makes a decision to "approve" Esther's request that her people, the Jews, be saved from destruction. Isn't that great? Yes, but... What if the king's scribes didn't respond quickly to write the edict? (v. 9) What if people didn't know all the individual languages, to be able to write in that language, for all the various provinces? (v. 9) What if the "sealing" of the edict hadn't happened properly,...

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There is No "I" in TEAM, Or Is There?

There is a well-known quip that there is no "I" in team. After all, team is spelled  TEAM. One catalog for team building materials uses TEAM to mean "Together Everyone Achieves More." Ain't that special? In real life though, quips, mugs and posters don't automatically lead to a team working the way a couple of employees of a local firm described their team to me, as running "like a machine." It takes time, effort, and understanding to truly relate as a team. Because of that, yes, there is an "I" in team, because teamwork starts with YOU. Teams are only as good as the individuals that make them up. Yes, the whole is greater than the parts, but if the parts are defective, the team will be affected. (Hey, that sounds like another quip! "Parts...

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Teambuilding Activity: I Scream Day

Part of teambuilding is having fun together. From time to time I will give you a suggestion for a team building activity to do with your staff. You'll need: Pre-scheduled visit from an ice cream truck Cards and pens Covered box to drop cards in Give each team member a card and ask them to complete the sentence"I scream inside when..." on the card. Allow them to anonymously write out a pet peeve such as "I scream when Joe listens to his voice mail messages using the speaker phone.""I scream when the AC is set too high and I have to wear sweaters all summer.""I scream when I have to fill out three forms just to have some staples ordered." You get the idea. After the employees have put their cards in the box, invite them outside to get a free...

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