FreezePoints eMagazine

The PMI Orange County (PMI-OC) community gathered on Tuesday, February 10, 2026, at the Back Bay Conference Center in Irvine, CA, for an insightful and high-energy dinner meeting. The evening featured Belinda Aleman, EOP Associate Director of Access and Retention at Cal State Long Beach, who delivered a powerful keynote titled, “Build High Impact Teams Through Giving”.

Aleman, who brings over 16 years of experience in higher education and 12 years in leadership, engaged the audience with her energetic presentation style. She centered her talk on the organizational psychology research of Adam Grant, challenging the room to reconsider how reciprocity styles impact team productivity and individual success.

Discovering Our Reciprocity Styles

The session began with an interactive deep dive into the three primary reciprocity styles:

• Givers: Individuals who prefer to give more than they get.
• Takers: Those who like to get more than they give.
• Matchers: People who operate on a "tit-for-tat" basis, striving for an even balance of favors.

To bring these concepts to life, attendees participated in Adam Grant’s Give and Take online assessment, allowing them to identify their own tendencies. The room buzzed with discussion as members analyzed how these styles manifest in their daily work environments and shared strategies for navigating interactions with "takers".

The Giver’s Paradox: Winners and Losers

One of the most striking moments of the evening was the presentation of data regarding who rises to the top. The results were, as many attendees noted, mind-blowing: Givers occupy both the bottom and the top of the success ladder.

Aleman explained this paradox by distinguishing between two types of giving:

• Selfless Giving: Givers with high concern for others but low concern for themselves often end up in "last place" due to burnout or being exploited by takers.
• Otherish Giving: Successful givers (those in "first place") maintain a high concern for others while also looking out for their own interests. These "Otherish" givers are more sustainable and impactful in the long run.

Practical Actions for High-Impact Teams

The presentation concluded with a focus on how to integrate "Otherish" giving into daily leadership. Aleman emphasized that giving isn't just about grand gestures; it shows up in small, everyday interactions.

Practical "small actions" recommended for the team included:

• The 5-Minute Favor: Offering a quick bit of help that is low-cost to the giver but high-benefit to the receiver.
• Seeking Help More Often: Creating a culture of reciprocity where it is safe to ask for assistance.
• Employee Recognition: Actively acknowledging the contributions of others.
• Starting a Reciprocity Ring: A structured way for team members to ask for help and for others to fulfill those needs.

As the evening wrapped up, the PMI-OC members left with a new perspective on leadership and team dynamics. Aleman closed by sharing the Simon Sinek quote: “Givers advance the world. Takers advance themselves and hold the world back”. The event served as a reminder that by fostering a culture of purposeful giving, project managers can build more resilient, productive, and high-impact teams.