Extraordinary Team Tips

Kristin J Arnold

Audio and video tips to help team leaders and team members to achieve extraordinary results collaboratively.

  1. 5d ago

    Why Your Smart Team Acts Dumb in Meetings

    Ever notice how smart, capable people somehow become strangely cautious and predictable once a meeting starts? You're not imagining it. In this episode, Kristin Arnold explores why intelligent teams often produce shallow thinking in group settings — and why the issue usually isn't the people. It's the meeting design. You'll learn how subtle meeting dynamics shut down independent thought, encourage groupthink, and reward safe agreement over rigorous thinking. More importantly, you'll discover practical ways high-performance teams structure conversations to draw out better ideas, stronger dissent, and smarter decisions. In This Episode: Why smart people don't automatically think well together How meetings unintentionally create groupthink The hidden power of "Think First, Talk Second" Why leaders should often speak last How better questions improve team thinking Why dissent is essential for high-performance teams Memorable Moments: "You're not hearing the best thinking. You're hearing the safest thinking." "Meetings are not just conversations. They are systems." "You start with gold and somehow end up with oatmeal." Powerful Question to Ask Yourself: "Is my meeting design encouraging independent thinking… or just faster agreement?" Read the original blog post here: https://extraordinaryteam.com/why-your-smart-team-acts-dumb-in-meetings/ For more tools and strategies on facilitation, strategic conversations, and building high-performance teams, visit ExtraordinaryTeam.com.

    16 min

  2. 09/08/2025

    Facilitating Strategic Planning: 7 Things Most Leaders Get Wrong

    Strategic planning facilitation is one of the most high-stakes activities any leader will take on. Get it right, and you'll rally your team around a clear, inspiring direction. Get it wrong, and you'll end up with a glossy binder of plans that collect dust while the organization drifts (I call that "credenzaware!"). Here are seven of the most common mistakes and how to avoid them.

    7 min

  3. 08/09/2025

    Why Offsite Meetings Fail and How to Make Yours Work

    High-stakes meeting facilitator Kristin Arnold shares why offsite meetings fail and how to improve them with strategic meeting facilitation.

    8 min

  4. 08/08/2025

    3 Ways to Prioritize Strategic Initiatives

    High-stakes meeting facilitator Kristin Arnold shares how to prioritize strategic initiatives AND create an interrelationship digraph.

    7 min

  5. 08/06/2025

    How AI is Transforming Meetings & How to Capture Its Potential

    With all of the invisible help joining our meetings, are meetings becoming more effective?  Or less human?  Here's how I see AI transforming meetings and a quick tip to explore it's potential with your team.

    6 min

  6. 07/25/2025

    Meeting Makeover: Turn a Monday Moan Fest Into a Power Session

    With a few intentional shifts, a ho-hum meeting can become a high-impact ritual your team actually looks forward to. Here's a "before and after" look at one team's transformation from dreaded meeting to dynamic power session.

    6 min

  7. 07/03/2025

    10 Micro-Habits of Teams That Consistently Deliver Results

    I was talking with a client about "the small stuff" that makes magic happen. Those seemingly inconspicuous rituals, behaviors, and mindsets that, when practiced consistently, drive extraordinary results. Here are 10 micro-habits I've observed in high-performing teams I've worked with.

    5 min

  8. 07/02/2025

    How to Run an Effective Brainstorming Session

    Great brainstorming isn't magic—it's well-structured messiness. When you design your session like a sandwich (start with clarity, move into freeform ideation, and close with purposeful evaluation), you give your team the space and structure they need to generate and act on truly original ideas.

    5 min
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About

Audio and video tips to help team leaders and team members to achieve extraordinary results collaboratively.

Information

  • Creator
    Kristin J Arnold
  • Years Active
    2013 - 2026
  • Episodes
    100
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2016 Quality Process Consultants, Inc.
  • Show Website
    Extraordinary Team Tips