The Balancing Act

I am a huge fan of "Season 25: Oprah Behind the Scenes" on the OWN network.  And I'm not even a regular Oprah viewer.  What I loved about this series was that it was all about her team and how they delivered incredible television during a year when they were in full transition mode. 

Season 25 was the end of the Oprah Winfrey Show, and that meant many, many people within the Harpo "family" would be looking for new employment.  And while a year's notice is more than most will ever receive, if you watch the behind the scenes episodes you'll come to realize that it will probably take them the whole season to get their heads around the fact that "the best job ever" is going away.

Here's the Preview Clip for the season:  http://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/Preview-Season-25-Reality-Show-OWN-Video

What strikes me about this clip, and what I noticed when I watched the show, is what I'd call The Balancing Act - the highs balancing out the lows.  And of course, maybe that's just good editing on their part, but it's what we'd all strive for with our own teams. 

We make mistakes, we present ideas that get shot down, and we disappoint the boss.  But if it's balanced, we also create awesome final results, and we celebrate them together as a team and the boss joins in. 

Under highly stressful and emotional conditions, Oprah's Teams in Transition elevated the show's final season to a level of quality they'd never even attempted before.  And the leader of those teams, Oprah, knows it, appreciates it, and expresses it for all to hear and see.