One of the quickest ways to crush an employee's morale is by surprising her with feedback during the annual review that she never received during the performance year. I see this over and over and over again.

Difficult conversations are difficult because they are uncomfortable for most people. But, there are techniques that you can learn to provide feedback in a way that will help an employee improve without coming across as marginalizing.

I went ice climbing this past Sunday in Rocky Mountain National Park for the first time this season. And, as I was watching the video I made (see below), it occured to me that the key components of finding a good ice climbing partner are the same components of being on an effective team.

I just saw an advertisement for a training course. It was titled something like "Making Team Decisions by Consensus."

This is where team building gets a bad rap and experiences on the "ropes course" don't translate well into the real work environment. Making decisions by consensus is applicable to bowling outings and the summer picnic and that's probably about it.

Typically, teams never truly reach consensus anyway. Instead, they end up with an "aura of consensus" where one or two loud voices or big personalities speak for the group.

Ah the holidays. A time to enjoy family and friends, perhaps some time off from work, and even a chance to reflect on the year's past and what's to come.

The performance review process is your opportunity to reflect on your career, on your strengths, and on your plans for the future.

Here are a few ideas on how you can take ownership for your 2010 performance goals.

As I work with companies and organizations of all types, my biggest concern right now is the level of employee engagement. An even more important concern is the level of employee engagement among the best employees.

Generally speaking, people live up to the expectations that they have for each other. If expectations are low, performance tends to be low. If expectations are high, performance tends to be high.

On September 17, 2009 the Wall Street Journal featured an article titled "Soldier to Receive the Medal of Honor."

President Obama awarded Jared C. Monti a posthumous award for repeatedly braving enemy fire to rescue a wounded comrade in the Afghan mountains. The article went on to say that Sgt. First Class Monti twice ran into the open to try to retrieve the wounded man, only to be forced back by rocket-propelled-grenades and machine-gun fire.

He was killed on his third attempt.

Over the past few months we have been building a library of recorded webinars to help you maximize your team effectiveness. These are great opportunities to develop your skills while in the car or on the plane. Other teams have gathered in a conference room and listened/watched together.

Here are some brief descriptions of what's available for an immediate download: