Make It a Great Day

The other week I blogged about using everyday language to define client outcomes. What about the everyday language that defines your outcomes? How are you achieving success?

Right before I left for vacation I had one of my best days at work; I created the opportunity for a group to come together and develop a tool. If you saw my sewing room area at home you would see how much I love tools! There were two things which made this day great. First, the group of team members who met were all passionate about the people we support; and we shared many stories and our hopes shined through — throughout the day. Then we tackled a challenge to create a tool that would make life easier for staff; outcomes more exciting for the people we support; and also help us build our capacity to do good work.

My contribution to the day was the vision; the shared leadership with others who also wanted to make work life simpler, and at the same time have a positive impact. I got to watch talented minds kick around ideas and make strides toward this goal. We produced something which we could test; and once we test it, we can cue it up for production in our software.

I could already imagine the benefits and so could the others at that meeting. We will have a tool which will give us data that will help us see what we can improve. The data will also show the successes that the people we support are having.

How do you define a great day? Even more important what can you do to set yourself and others up for success? Here are some ideas, which ones resonate with you:

· I have a plan for what I want to achieve

· I have routines and rituals to keep me focused

· I make sure to express my thanks to others for their good work

· I make sure I start the day with a smile

Do you have others? Feel free to share them with me, and make today a great day!