Once in a Blue Moon -- and Other Things Worth Paying Attention To

This past Sunday, there was a Blue Moon.

Not the beer. Not the song.

An actual Blue Moon -- the second full moon in a single calendar month. It only happens every two to three years.

CC and I were out walking when it rose over the intercoastal.

She stopped. Looked up. And just... sat there for two whole minutes.

Honestly? Same.

Because there is something about a rare thing that makes you stop and pay attention in a way you forget to the rest of the time.

And that got me thinking about teams. About the moments leaders describe as once-in-a-blue-moon moments.

And about how they really, truly, do not have to be that rare.

This week we are talking about:

•       What rare team moments are actually telling you -- and the framework that fixes it

•       Finding the gift in every challenge with Positive Intelligence

•       Why belonging is a performance strategy, not a soft initiative

•       Four open roles we are actively recruiting for right now

Let's get into it.

---

ONCE IN A BLUE MOON: WHAT RARE TEAM MOMENTS ARE TRYING TO TELL YOU

Here is something I hear from leaders all the time.

"That kind of clarity? Happens once in a blue moon."

"A team that actually trusts each other? Once in a blue moon."

"Accountability that sticks without me having to chase it? Once in a blue moon."

And every time I hear it, I think the same thing.

It does not have to be rare.

It feels rare because most teams are missing the conditions that make those moments repeatable.

Not because the leader is bad. Not because the people are wrong. Because the conditions were never intentionally built.

That is exactly why I built the CLICK Framework.

I introduced it in my first book -- Build Teams That Click™. It is a quick read. Fifteen minutes and you have the whole model. I wrote it that way on purpose.

Leaders do not need more theory. They need something they can use Monday morning.

And they need to stop talking themselves out of it before they ever try it.

I say that with love. Because I have watched incredibly smart leaders run the mental math on every possible obstacle before taking a single step forward. They imagine the resistance. They wait for the perfect moment.

The perfect moment is not coming. Monday morning is.

Build Teams That Click™ is available on Amazon -- link at the end of this edition.

Here is what CLICK stands for -- and what it looks like when it is actually working.

 C — Clarity of Roles

People cannot perform at their best when they are not sure what they own. Most of the time the confusion is not about effort -- it is about definition. And it costs more than you think. In time, in rework, in frustrated people quietly updating their resumes.

L — Leverage Strengths

When people are in roles that match how they are naturally wired, they stop draining energy and start generating it. Every day. This is also where your spend gets smarter -- the right people in the right roles stop costing you and start paying you back.

I — Intentional Communication

The conversations that matter most are often the ones that never happen. Not because people do not care -- because nobody made them a priority. Intentional communication closes that gap on purpose, not by accident.

C — Culture of Trust

Trust is not a personality trait. It is a team condition. When you build it deliberately, people stop covering their backs and start watching each other's.

K — Keep Accountability Visible

Accountability without visibility fades faster than a full moon. When commitments are tracked and results are seen by the team -- not just the manager -- follow-through becomes the norm. Not the exception.

The next Blue Moon is a few years away.

The next opportunity to build a team that actually clicks? Today. Not when the timing is perfect. Not after the next reorg. Today.

WHAT IF YOU LOOKED AT THIS MOMENT AS A GIFT?

Stop asking who is to blame. Start asking what the gift is.

Here is what I love about a Blue Moon.

Same moon. Same sky. Same night.

But because it is rare -- because it only happens every two to three years -- people stop what they are doing, walk outside, and actually look up.

They do not see it as a problem. They experience it as a gift.

What would change if you did that with your own challenges?

That is the whole premise of Positive Intelligence. Developed by Shirzad Chamine, PQ is a mental fitness framework built around one powerful idea: every challenge -- every setback, every conflict, every "this is not going the way I planned" moment -- contains a gift if you are mentally fit enough to look for it.

I am a certified Positive Intelligence Coach. And I will be honest -- this is the work that changed how I lead. Not just how I coach others.

I work with individuals, groups, teams, and organizations on this.

And every format teaches me something different.

The highly successful individuals I work with -- leaders who by every measure are already winning -- are often the ones carrying the heaviest invisible weight. PQ gives them a language for what is happening inside, and a practice for responding differently. The results are profound and very personal.

Group coaching -- people who come together from different organizations and industries -- is something I find deeply fulfilling. There is something remarkable that happens when a room full of leaders who do not know each other realize they are all navigating the same invisible saboteurs. The shared discovery accelerates everything.

And teams and organizations? When a whole group goes through this work together, the dynamic shifts in ways that are hard to describe until you have seen it. People stop interpreting each other's stress responses as personal attacks. They start having the conversations that needed to happen six months ago.

So what does finding the gift actually look like in practice?

PQ gives you three moves for unlocking the gift and opportunity inside any challenge.

Knowledge -- finding the gift in what is real. What is actually true here? Not the story your brain is spinning at 2am. Not the worst-case scenario your inner saboteur has already written, produced, and cast. What do you actually know right now? When you separate fact from fear, you often find the gift was hiding behind the noise the whole time.

Strength -- finding the gift in the struggle. What does this challenge make possible? A Blue Moon is rare -- and BECAUSE it is rare, it is beautiful. What if the hard thing you are navigating right now is making you stronger, smarter, more connected in a way the easy stretches never could? The gift is not despite the difficulty. It is inside it. This is not toxic positivity. This is strategic perspective.

Action -- finding the gift in the next move. What is the best move available right now -- not the perfect move, not the move you would make if everything were different, but the best one you have today? When you are mentally fit enough to ask that question clearly, the gift reveals itself as momentum. PQ people do not spiral. They act. Clearly. Decisively. Together when they are in a group.

PQ for Teams and Organizations is a 6 to 8 month program that includes the 7-week PQ Foundations program, delivered through the PQ app.

Individual and group coaching are also available -- and if you are curious about what that looks like, it starts with a conversation.

Curious what this could look like for you or your organization? Keep reading -- I have included a simple next step at the end.

JUNE IS PRIDE MONTH. AND THAT MATTERS HERE

June is Pride Month.

And I want to say something real about it -- not a paragraph of carefully worded corporate language that says everything and nothing at the same time.

The best teams I have ever been a part of -- and the best teams I have ever helped build -- were not built on sameness.

They were built on belonging.

People who felt safe enough to bring their full selves to work. Who were valued for HOW they think, not just what they produce. Who did not have to spend one ounce of energy pretending to be something they are not just to fit in.

That is the Culture of Trust pillar in the CLICK Framework. And it is not a nice-to-have. It is the thing that makes everything else work.

When people feel like they truly belong -- not tolerated, not included on paper, but genuinely welcomed exactly as they are -- they engage differently. They take risks. They speak up with ideas they would have kept to themselves. They innovate in ways you cannot manufacture with a strategy deck.

Inclusion is not a soft initiative. It is a performance strategy.

So this June, I want to leave you with one simple question.

Do the people on your team feel like they belong here?

Really sit with that one.

Happy Pride Month. 🌈

CC'S CORNER 🐾 — THREE TIPS FROM THE CHIEF CULTURAL OFFICER

CC and I were out walking Sunday evening when the Blue Moon rose over the intercoastal.

She stopped mid-stride. Looked up. Sat down like she had somewhere to be but decided this was more important.

Two full minutes of just... looking at the moon.

Then she turned and looked at me like, "Are you getting this?"

I was.

Tip 1: Rare moments deserve your full attention.

When something remarkable happens on your team -- a real breakthrough, a genuine moment of trust, someone rising to the occasion in a way you did not expect -- stop. Put the phone down. Notice it. Name it out loud. Celebrate it. Do not let it pass like a moon in the night sky while you were looking at your inbox.

Tip 2: You cannot outsmart a bad team environment.

CC has been in rooms with very smart humans who were absolutely miserable because the pack dynamic was off. No amount of individual talent fixes that. You have to invest in the team itself -- not just the people on it. The environment matters as much as the talent.

Tip 3: Belonging is not complicated.

CC has never once sized someone up before deciding whether to sit with them. She does not run a background check. She does not wait to see how they perform in Q2. She just shows up, reads the energy, and makes people feel welcome. She also does not share her treats -- but that is a separate leadership conversation for another Tuesday.

...CC also attempted to howl at the Blue Moon Sunday night. It was one howl. Very dignified. She considers the neighbor's silence a standing ovation.

WE ARE RECRUITI NG

We are actively recruiting on behalf of some exceptional client organizations right now.

If one of these roles sounds like someone you know -- we would love to make the connection. Thoughtful introductions are always appreciated.

Plant Manager -- Food Manufacturing | Ohio (On-Site)

Senior Cybersecurity Engineer -- Computer Systems | Maryland (On-Site)

Supply Chain and Logistics Manager -- Manufacturing | Connecticut (On-Site)

Strategic Sourcing Manager, Proteins -- Food Manufacturing | Ohio (On-Site)

☕ NEXT STEP

If something in this edition resonated with you, do not overthink it.

Whether you are:

•       navigating a leadership challenge

•       building a stronger team

•       exploring the CLICK Framework

•       considering Positive Intelligence for your organization

•       thinking about talent optimization or procurement strategy

•       or simply looking for a sounding board

Start with a conversation.

No preparation.

No presentation.

No pressure.

Just an intentional 15-minute Iced Coffee Chat focused on where you are today and where you want to go next.

Sometimes clarity starts with a single conversation.

☕ Schedule your Iced Coffee Chat →

UNTIL NEXT TIME

That is a wrap on this week's People Powered Performance.

Blue moons. Team alignment. Finding the gift. Pride. Open roles. And CC howling at the moon like the professional she is.

Not a bad Tuesday.

If something in here sparked a thought -- hit reply. Seriously, I read every single one. Sometimes CC reads over my shoulder. She has opinions.

If someone forwarded this to you and you want in every other Tuesday -- subscribe below. CC and I will be here.

Lead with kindness. Build teams that click.

-- Meri

ABOUT MERI

Meri Stockwell is the Founder and CEO of Meritas Advisory Group -- and she is genuinely fired up about this work every single day. Thirty years of helping leaders align their people, their leadership, and yes -- their spend. Because great teams and smart strategy have to work together.

CC is her Cavapoo, Chief Cultural Officer, and the reason the morning walks happen at all.

LinkedIn  |  meritasadvisorygroup.solutions  |  Subscribe on Substack