Email this page to a Colleague
	Print this Page

Unleashing Your Remarkable Potential
Issue 4.41 - October 8, 2007 - ISSN: 1551-6571

In Kevin's Own Words

The Power of Belonging

Before you read any further, get a pen and a piece of paper. Write down all the groups you belong to. I’ll help you get started.

• I am a member of the human race.
• I am a male/female.

Keep writing until you have at have at least 10-15 groups on your list.

Now that you are back, let’s review your list. 

I’m guessing that you will notice some groups that you are a member of without even making a choice, like the two I gave you to start your list. You also will likely notice that some of the groups are so important that they define who you are. For example, I’m guessing at least a couple of these groups would be things you would say in any short introductory conversation about yourself – like where you work and where you live. Some of the groups on your list will be groups that you consciously join – perhaps even pay to be a part of (a college fraternity/sorority, a civic organization or a country club for a few examples), and many others you are a part of without even thinking about it.

All of this should illustrate something to you. We want to belong. In fact, as human beings, we need to feel a sense of belonging. A sense of belonging provides meaning, context and value in our lives. It provides a feeling of comfort and security that can’t be found in many other ways.

So we’ve established the importance and power of a sense of belonging. Which begs an interesting question:

How can we as leaders use this basic human need to create more productive individuals and more successful results?

Five Ways

Here are five ways you can use the principle of belonging to create better results for your team and organization.

Give people a chance. If people like to join, give them a chance to join! Invite people to volunteer their time or ideas. Encourage a team to share the results of their project to date and invite others to participate, offer comments and insights. Think inclusion, rather than exclusion.

Give people a choice. When do you feel more engaged, when you choose something or when something is forced on you? Rather than picking people for a team, give people the latitude to join the group, project team or study group that they want to join. While you might have to persuade some people to move to a different team for balance, experience or other reasons, it is hard to overlook the value of people making choices related to belonging. People will be more excited about the work at hand and therefore more committed to the outcome.

Give people options. College alumni associations have figured this out. They have learned that people’s loyalties aren’t just to their alma mater, but to their academic department, housing unit, extracurricular club or more. Smart alumni associations have created multiple ways for people to be involved, be connected and feel that sense of belonging. We can take a tip from this example. As a leader you can look for a variety of ways for people to be involved and make a contribution. Think of new ways yourself, but more importantly (and more powerfully) invite others to suggest how they could contribute and how they would like to belong.

Give people time to join. Think about any major change effort. Not everyone is going to agree with or support the change immediately. Be patient and give people time to join, to come on board.

About The Kevin Eikenberry Group

We help organizations, teams and individuals reach their potential through a variety of products and services including: - Consulting / Coaching - Speaking - Training - Products to support the development of your potential. To learn more click on the links above or call 888.LEARNER or 317.387.1424.

Make it attractive. If you have a team, are leading a change, and/or want people to be more excited, make it attractive to be a part of the team. Create a sense of pride and accomplishment. Look for ways to make the team an environment where people want to belong. This could be with tangible things (team members have t-shirts) or intangibles (people feel a sense of community; people enjoy or have fun belonging). Think about what would make it attractive to belong from the perspective of potential members – remember that they will be drawn to the group for their reasons, not yours.

Reading these five steps might lead you to think that I am proposing you build cliques or exclusive groups of people. While you certainly want to do what you can to help people feel a sense of belonging – for the passion, energy and engagement that comes with it – the focus shouldn’t be to create one “in” group to the exclusion of others. Rather the idea is to create multiple ways for people to feel a part, to be involved, and to know that they belong.

Potential Principle - We all want to belong – regardless of how independent we want to be. As a leader, once you understand this fact you can use the need to belong to create greater energy, passion, excitement and engagement for people at work. When you create these things, both the individuals and the organization will benefit.

Kevin

Kevin's Recommends

The Passion Test
The Effortless Path to Discovering Your Destiny
by Janet and Chris Attwood

Have you ever wanted more energy and passion in your life? Have you ever wondered what you were really meant to be doing with your life?

If these questions have ever crossed your mind, then this book is for you. This book has been available for some time but is now being re-released in hardcover. I know the authors, and this is a fine book to help you think about the questions above.

The book has a “test” that helps you discover some things about yourself, then goes on to help you build a path towards your passions – creating more space and opportunities for those things in your life.

It is a well written book that is enjoyable to read. It is filled with examples and stories that will help you understand yourself and the book’s messages more clearly.

Learn more and purchase at Amazon.com.

Home | About Kevin | Archive | My Subscription | Contact Us

If you find this information valuable, please pass it on to a friend. You can forward them the email or go to http://www.kevineikenberry.com/uypw/tell.asp to use our Tell A Friend tool.

If you received a forwarded copy of this newsletter and would like to subscribe for yourself, go to: http://www.kevineikenberry.com/uypw/subscribe.asp.

For information on reprinting any of this information included in this issue of Unleashing Your Remarkable Potential, go to: http://kevineikenberry.com/uypw/reprints.asp

© 2007 The Kevin Eikenberry Group – All Rights Reserved

The Kevin Eikenberry Group
http://www.kevineikenberry.com
7035 Bluffridge Way
Indianapolis, IN 46278