Connecting the Dots

How can you tell if your team is on the path to high performance or stuck in dysfunction? In this episode of Connecting the Dots, Ryan Gracyalny and Steve Tech continue the Red Flag Series, breaking down the stages of team development and the red flags that signal trouble.

Why do some companies thrive while others struggle with chaos and dysfunction? In this episode of Connecting the Dots, Ryan Gracyalny and Steve Utech continue the Red Flag Series, exposing three major organizational and leadership traps that can stall company growth and create workplace dysfunction.

Are you in the right company for your career growth and work style? In this episode of Connecting the Dots, Ryan Gracyalny and Steve Utech kick off the Red Flag Series, exploring how organizational size and structure impact job satisfaction, leadership dynamics, and cultural fit. From startups to enterprise corporations, they break down the key factors that determine whether you should stay and grow—or start looking for a better fit. Learn how different company stages shape leadership expectations, team collaboration, and career progression. Plus, discover the hidden red flags that may signal it's time for a change. Whether you're an HR/OD leader hiring for long-term success or a coach/consultant guiding professionals through career transitions, this episode offers crucial insights into workplace dynamics. Tune in to uncover the truth about company fit, leadership misalignment, and what it really takes to thrive in different organizational cultures.

The final episode of 2024 builds on the discussion of family systems theory by highlighting one of Murray Bowen's key tenets: the impact of birth order on family dynamics. To gain deeper insight into this topic, Ryan and Steve bring on Dr. Donna Marino, a family business psychologist out of Chicago, to learn how birth order impacts personality and sibling dynamics in business. Dr. Donna shares her clinical and consulting experience to highlight key patterns and traits she observes in her practice of working with family business transitions. It's a must listen for anyone who is interested in working on their own family dynamic and/or works in a family business. In this episode, we explore: - How birth order influences personality traits - The nuance of birth order and gender - Navigating family business dynamics as a family and non-family member #donnamarino #murraybowen #familysystems #personality #naturevsnurture #familydynamics #birthorder #siblingposition

In part 3 of their series on team dynamics, Ryan and Steve continue to explore the family systems perspective on group behavior. This episode focuses on the concept of differentiation of self that was pioneered by Murray Bowen. Ryan and Steve lay out some core principles related to gaining more emotional freedom in your relationship as well as share approaches to increase your own levels of differentiation or individuation so that you can be more effective in working with people and teams. Key topics of this episode: - why systems have a drive to reinforce the status quo - the importance of being triggered and seduced by system dynamics - how feedback can help get you unstuck - reflection exercises to reduce your emotional reactions and be more intentional with your behaviors and work with people

In the second part of their team dynamics series, Ryan and Steve expand on the understanding of human systems when working with teams by introducing the concept of triangles. Triangles aren't just about triangulation. Triangles are actually the primary mechanism for how energy and anxiety are managed in relational systems. The more one can understand how triangles work in healthy and unhealthy ways, the easier it is for leaders to create more cohesive and productive teams. In this episode you'll learn: - Why triangles are the building blocks of relationships - What are the most common types of triangles and which are more stable and which are less stable - How to make best guess predictions about relationship dynamics through understanding triangles - How to identify common roles in a conflict triangle and what are more helpful roles to play to ensure positive team dynamics We hope you enjoy this latest episode as we dive deeper into the underlying emotional process behind teams and other human relationships.

Ryan and Steve start the Team Dynamics series by introducing concepts from Murray Bowen and family systems theory, namely understanding group behavior as an emotional process. The series is designed to deepen your knowledge of group dynamics to increase your self-awareness and social awareness so you can arrive at deeper and more meaningful change when working with teams. This episode covers: - The role of tension and anxiety in teams, groups, and families and how our response to anxiety creates behavior patterns, roles, and individual identities - The 5 signs and levels of unresolved tension in groups: Reactivity, Blame Orientation, Quick-Fix Mentality, Emotional/Physical Cut-off, Disengaged/Avoidant Leadership - How tension/anxiety can activity dysfunctional patterns in individuals and groups - Steps on how to bring great awareness to individuals and teams about their patterns of behavior

Have you ever wanted to improve employee commitment, support employee wellbeing, improve employee retention, while also improving performance? You're in luck! In this episode, Ryan and Steve walk through the researched PsyCap protocols to strengthen mindsets of leaders and employees. There are four 2-hour micro-interventions designed to increase hope, optimism, self-efficacy (confidence) and resilience. These are practical learning and development sessions that any organizations can implement on their own. In this episode you'll learn about: - Why improving psychological capital needs to be a part of employee development - Building up hope through goal setting and the creation of multiple pathways to achieve - Creating realistic optimism by exploring pessimism - Reinforcing confidence by building up internal resources and setting micro-goals - Fostering resiliency by taking an honest look at setbacks and taking action on what is in your control vs. what is not

Personality assessments are only as useful as how they are used. Too often they are looked at once and rarely referenced again. In this episode, Ryan and Steve walk through a practical example of how to use the Big Five for leadership development discussions in your team or with clients. In this episode we cover: - Researched leadership archetypes that you can use to better understand leadership styles and strengths using the Big Five model of personality - How to look at people beyond their personality type by uncovering the story behind their results - An example of how to walk through someone's report to uncover meaningful information that can be used in the formation of a individualized development plan

In this episode, we are diving deep into the art and science of optimizing creative problem-solving within teams. Creativity isn't just about wild ideas; it's about turning those ideas into actionable, useful solutions. Join Ryan and Steve as they: - define what is creative and what isn't - breakdown the two types of thinking (divergent and convergent) to get the most out of your creative process - teach you how to identify individuals, using Big 5 personality traits, that will maximize divergent and convergent thinking - give you practical tips to stimulate dopamine production in your team, a critical neurotransmitter for creativity and motivation Don't leave creativity to chance as you do strategic and action planning. There are systematic things you can do to set your team and your organization to fully realize your creative potential.

When challenges arise around onboarding and retaining new hires, we often hear complaints about the workforce being lazy and uncommitted. There is definitely some truth to this, especially in the manufacturing sector. When leaders get stuck on generational stereotypes it does them a disservice because it limits the options to solve the underlying problem. In this episode of Connecting the Dots, the hosts reframe the generational problem and propose a research-based path forward focused on how to: - Hire, build, and design the right teams based on personality compatibility - Intentionally strengthen the mindsets of employees (new and old) using a framework called PsyCap (psychological capital) - Create a supportive and challenging work environment focused on employee development - Getting the right systems and processes in place to support employee success Every generation has its own developmental challenges. It's important to reframe the problem into one that is solvable.

Is it better for team members to be similar or different? Join Steve and Ryan as they delve into the impact of personality compatibility on team performance. In the research community, there are two main perspectives: one argues that similarities enhance team dynamics, while the other champions the benefits of diversity. Could both be correct? Discover how different situations call for different approaches to building effective teams. Tune in to the latest episode of Connecting the Dots to learn more about the nuances of personality compatibility.

In this episode, Ryan and Steve get a little neurotic! Tune in as they dig into the Stress Quotient (neuroticism) factor within the Big Five model of personality. Stress Quotient is broken down into multiple traits to provide you with a more well-rounded and nuanced understanding of this dimension of personality. Examples around how these traits are lived out are provided so you can better understand how stress manifests in your life and gain improved self awareness to find your own healing and wholeness.

In this episode, Ryan and Steve dig into the Conscientiousness factor within the Big Five model of personality. Conscientiousness is broken down into multiple traits to provide you with a more well-rounded and nuanced understanding of this dimension of personality. Examples around how these traits are lived out are provided so you can better understand the healthy and unhealthy aspects of Conscientiousness in both your personal life and in the workplace.

In this episode, Ryan and Steve dig into the Conscientiousness factor within the Big Five model of personality. Conscientiousness is broken down into multiple traits to provide you with a more well-rounded and nuanced understanding of this dimension of personality. Examples around how these traits are lived out are provided so you can better understand the healthy and unhealthy aspects of Conscientiousness in both your personal life and in the workplace.

In this episode, Ryan and Steve dig into the Agreeableness factor within the Big Five model of personality. Agreeableness is broken down into multiple traits to provide you with a more well-rounded and nuanced understanding of this dimension of personality. Examples around how these traits are lived out are provided so you can better understand the healthy and unhealthy aspects of openness in both your personal life and in the workplace.

In this episode, Ryan and Steve dig into the Openness to Experience factor within the Big Five model of personality. Openness is broken down into multiple traits to provide you with a more well-rounded and nuanced understanding of this dimension of personality. Examples around how these traits are lived out are provided so you can better understand the healthy and unhealthy aspects of openness in both your personal life and in the workplace.

In this episode, Ryan and Steve dig into the Extraversion factor within the Big Five Model of personality. Extraversion is broken down into multiple traits to provide you with a more well-rounded and nuanced understanding of this dimension of personality. Adaptive and maladaptive traits are discussed so you can more easily spot healthy and unhealthy behavior in your personal and work relationships.

Join hosts Ryan and Steve as they delve into the fascinating world of personality psychology in this episode of Connecting the Dots. In this installment, they introduce listeners to one of the most widely accepted models of personality traits: the Big Five. The Big Five personality model, also known as the Five-Factor Model, provides a comprehensive framework for understanding human personality. Ryan and Steve break down each of the five factors—Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Neuroticism (Stress Quotient)—and explore how these dimensions interact to shape individual behavior, thoughts, and emotions. Ryan and Steve illustrate how the Big Five model can be applied in various contexts, from workplace dynamics to personal relationships. They explore the origins of the model, its empirical support, and its implications for understanding human behavior across cultures and demographics.

Join us for our Pilot episode! Steve and Ryan introduce themselves, share why they decided to start a podcast together and give a little taste of what Connecting the Dots is all about: understanding the inner workings of personality, team dynamics, and organizational culture.