Bring on the Festivus!
The airing of the grievances.
The official day of the Festivus is December 23rd, but in our office, we encourage the airing of the grievances in the moment. We are not talking about negatively expressing your opinions about projects or colleagues in a mean or demeaning way. We are talking about the routine airing of challenges that can stop projects from moving forward, or stop us from working as a collaborative team. The idea is that if we share a common vision and work towards achieving the same goal, disagreements are acceptable and expected. These "moments" help.
"Identify your problems, but give your power and energy to solutions." – Tony Robbins.
In order to have solutions, we need to discuss the problems we are trying to solve. Making the office conducive to disagreements breeds progress, and innovation is what we are all about.
Let’s face it, there are days where we feel as though we have survived a game of "The Feats of Strength."
It’s all about focusing on our common goal and having the courage to tackle the tough obstacles as they arise. In the end, opinions may differ, but as long as we share the goal of a solution, bring on the “airing!”
We have turned the “tracking of the moments” into a game. Having a moment is not a shameful event, it is an opportunity to overcome a fear. When you focus on solving problems and not just airing frustrations, the Festivus Miracle happens.
Small problems are being solved more quickly and large problems are discussed in a format that encourages resolution. Overall, everyone is more comfortable knowing they have the right team beside them, no matter their moment.
In the true nature of the Festivus, which is shared over a meal, the person with the most moments buys the team lunch.