I went to a workshop about “corporate team building” and found the general discussion was centered around how to “get into” delivering corporate programs.  As the discussion went around the room, I was beginning to connect the dots.  I realized that most (not all) of the people in the room represented organizations that were either non-profit or small organizations that had some kind of financial struggle going on.  Most organizations were trying to attract this new clientele because they believe they can charge higher fees for the services they provide.  In other words, “let’s charge them more because they can afford to pay it”.  Now, in their defense, these organizations are looking at this as a way to subsidize the programs that are barely breaking even but are having an impact on those they serve.  Is this wrong?  No, and I can think of a number or businesses that would gladly pay extra to help an organization continue to deliver their programs to those that need support.

So if it’s not wrong, why am I writing this?  Because I believe that if an organization is going to charge more for the same service they provide to others simply because they can, they should be fully transparent and let the client know that the higher fee is subsidizing other programs but the program itself and the facilitators delivering it are essentially the same.    A better solution however would be to develop a new program and train facilitators so they can deliver a program that is distinctly different, based clearly on the stated outcomes of the client, and is actually worth the money the client is paying.  This additional training and program development would also go a long way in helping the organization continue to develop, change and not become stagnant.

As an organization that does deliver corporate team building programs, I want to maintain the integrity of our industry and the work we do with our clients.  I’m a firm believer that this idea of charging more because you can will catch up with you sooner or later and it doesn’t serve our industry as a whole.  In fact, I am such a firm believer in this idea that I continually put myself out there to small and non-profit organizations in our industry to help them understand this and offer any support I can…free of charge.

I currently work with the YMCA of Honolulu and offer my time and consulting services for free.  I have worked with Sacramento State University and shared our resources with them at no charge and just last week spoke to a guy affiliated with the military in San Antonio that called, a bit worried, because he had been charged with delivering a 2-hour team building program to a group of 100 soldiers and he had never done anything like this before.  I offered to go down there and deliver the program for him for no fee and then stay an extra day and help train him and his staff so he could learn to deliver a program like this in the future but the timing didn’t work out.

So, if you are a corporate customer, you might consider asking questions to further clarify the qualifications of the organization and facilitators that will be delivering your program.  If you are non-profit or struggling organization that wants to work with more “high paying” groups, give me a call.  I’ll be happy to share my experience with you.

The post Beware of team building companies picking your pocket. appeared first on Signature Team Building.

We believe that experiential learning is truly the most effective way to facilitate learning.  It acknowledges that learning is a process—one that we all experience naturally given the right context, conditions and support.  As I have posted previously,  the very thing that has always been one of our greatest strengths and differentiators has also made for a bit of an uphill business climb, given the negative connotation that ‘experiential learning’ has for some—that is, until they experience ‘the experiential difference’ and become converts to Signature Teambuildings approach!  So, let’s put experiential learning into context; what it is, and what it’s not:

Experiential Team Building IS…

1. A LEARNING ACCELERANT
2. LEARNING THROUGH DOING
3. A POWERFUL TEACHER
4. A RISK-FREE PROVING GROUND
5. MEMORABLE
6. MULTI-FACETED AND HOLISTIC
7. HIGHLY TARGETED
8. PREDICTABLE IN ITS OUTCOMES
9. SELF-PERPETUATING

Experiential Learning IS NOT…

• GOOFY, UNCOMFORTABLE, ONLY SUITED TO THE EXTROVERT
• ACTIVITY FOR ACTIVITY’S SAKE
• PROP-BASED DEMONSTRATION
• HIGHLY PHYSICAL, UNNERVING CHALLENGES WITH LOOSE BUSINESS PARALLELS AT BEST
• ENTERTAINMENT

The experiential learning model we use is a cyclical process that guides and supports the learner on their journey of self-discovery, often taking them by surprise, and systematically delivers them to a “Point of Choice” – they had the experience, they see the opportunities and they know what to do to change their behaviors, enhance their performance and create different results.

Experiential learning is truly the most effective and efficient way to engage your people, improve performance and drive business impact. In mere hours it can deliver insights, motivation and practical skills that could otherwise take days, weeks and months to acquire via traditional or ‘on-the-job’ training. Add to this that it’s fun, memorable, immersive, targeted, transformative, predictable, holistic, risk-free, self-perpetuating, proven, powerful…and how we all learn—and the case for experiential learning seems every bit as strong today as it was when we got our start in 1980!

The post Experiential Learning is Team Building appeared first on Signature Team Building.

The Search for The Lost Dutchman’s Gold Mine

This is a fast-paced game played at tables in teams of six.  It involves risk-taking, strategic planning, communication, goal setting and teamwork.  All teams start in the small town of Apache Junction.   Teams will choose one of three different routes to and from the Mine and each has a different level of risk. Each team is outfitted with supplies are limited but sufficient resources for their journey.  Teams use resources each and every day and must plan well for the route they choose to take to the Mine.

The goals for the teams:

• Work Together
• Get to the Mine
• Mine as much Gold as We Can
• Return to Apache Junction
• Have Fun!

The journey takes 20 days and each day takes 2-minutes!  Along the way, teams will encounter changes in weather and other variables that will force them to consider their resources and make appropriate decisions to ensure they can mine as much gold as they can and return to Apache Junction safely.

Benefits:

• Focus on inter-team collaboration
• Improved teamwork
• Tangible ideas for better communication
• New views on leadership

Location:

This program can be conducted in any large indoor space anywhere in the world!  The room is set up with tables and chairs for 6 people per team.  AV projector and a few additional tables are necessary in the room.  Specific room layouts are available.

Number of participants:  18 – 300

Time Commitment:  3 – 4 hours (The game plays in about 2.5 hours and then additional time is needed for debriefing and processing the experience.)

Cost:  $50 per person (minimum charge is $1500)

The post New Team Building Activity Added to Signature Teambuilding List of Programs appeared first on Signature Team Building.

Here’s a new way to accomplish the same thing but is a way that is more effective, hands-on and interesting.  I’ve been using this activity in our team building programs for years.

 Set Up

• Have participants stand in a circle.
• One 15 ft. long piece of webbing or string

Briefing

The title explains the activity. Begin with a segment of webbing. One person in the group begins wrapping the webbing around their index finger or hand, and while doing so, provides the group with some information about themselves (where they were born, family members, school experiences, childhood pets, dreams, goals, favorite foods, etc.). The goal is for this person to continue talking until the webbing is completely wrapped around their finger or hand. When they reach the end, they can allow the webbing to unwind and pass it along to the next person in the group or hand it to someone else randomly.

This particular technique allows a bit more time for folks to talk about themselves, and also provides a kinesthetic activity coupled with a vernal activity for exploring some of the multiple intelligence opportunities, and whole brain learning possibilities.

Safety

• Watch that participants don’t hurt their fingers by wrapping too tightly or getting stuck in the webbing.

Rules

• Participants must share information with the group for the entire length of time that it takes to wrap their finger with the webbing.
• Participants should not purposefully wrap the webbing extremely slowly or extremely quickly.

Facilitator Options

• There is also a popular theory that for folks that may be a bit shy about speaking to even a small group in public, the speech center becomes less inhibited, and more information is typically shared when you introduce the idea of wrapping and rapping at the same time.

Some facilitators ask specific questions that participants must answer during their “talking” time, like “What do you hope to get out of this day?” or “What is the one thing that you do in your job that is not in the job description but is critical to the job?

The post Free Team Building Activity – Wrapped Around My Finger appeared first on Signature Team Building.

A friend of the family works at a dentist’s office and once a year they go on an outing together that they refer to as team building.  She has suggested Signature Teambuilding and Challenge Discovery in the past but the dentist thinks it is too expensive and the other people in the office think it might be too “hard.”  I can hear what you are saying right now…you have a problem with how people perceive your business.  There might be some truth to that and I’ll get to that in another post.

So for this dentist’s office team building event they chose to go to a local establishment (name withheld) that advertises itself as an art studio that also sells or pours wine so basically you can get together with a group of friends and drink some wine or spirits and do some painting or other art project.  Kind of an interesting idea.  I can imagine people in our area enjoying something like this on a Friday night with some friends, etc.  Heck, I might even enjoy trying it sometime.  The problem is here is how they present themselves…this comes directly off of the website:

No risky rope swings. No boring seminars. No ridiculous games. Your newest team building exercise involves creativity, relaxation and art. Yes, art – even for those who think they can only paint by numbers (or not at all).

Savvy business owners, corporate HR directors and nonprofit execs are engaging XXXXXXXX  for hands-on team building sessions.

Participants pick up a paint brush and follow easy-to-understand steps from a knowledgeable facilitator who guides the intersection of work and art. Through the team process, colleagues begin to break downs walls, build up camaraderie and share fulfillment of a job well done—all with the right mix of humor and fun. And as a lasting memento, each has their own “masterpiece” to take back to the office.

OK, so maybe I take offense to the “risky rope swings” comment.  Bottom line this IS NOT how it goes.  My friend described it this way (and by the way, she has never been a participant in our programs at Signature Teambuilding or Challenge Discovery), “They poured each of us a glass of wine and there were some snacks.  They gave everyone a paintbrush and canvas and we tried to paint something.  There was no interaction, no guided experience, no purpose.  I couldn’t figure out how this was supposed to be a team building event.”

I wasn’t surprised.  As I’ve said before, anyone can do just about any kind of an event and call it team building just to attract the corporate dollar.  So after thinking about this for a little while I started to think about how it actually could become a team building event.

1.  What if people were blindfolded and instructed to paint something that was being described to them?  How effective was their communication process?  How could it have been better?  What are the communication challenges at work that are similar to being blindfolded or giving instructions?

2.  What if everyone was given the opportunity to paint or draw anything they want for 5 minutes and then after time was up, they pass the painting to the next person and they contribute something for 5 minutes, etc.  How do everyone’s contributions add to the collective whole?  What happens when everyone doesn’t share the same mental model?

3.  What if everyone painted a part of something that would end up being much larger than their own individual piece.  Perhaps creating a mural of some kind.  How does your piece fit into the big picture?

These ideas, these questions, this kind of thoughtfulness is really what creates a worthwhile team building program.  It’s not really about the activity, although I’m sure I have seen more lives literally changed through our ropes course experiences than this studio will ever see changed with a paint brush and a glass of wine.  It is truly about the intent to design activities that help people re-think the way they do their work and interact with other people on a team.  It is about becoming acutely aware of your own behavior and how it affects your work and the people you work with.

So, I continue to be frustrated by these companies that loosely throw around the word team building and I will continue to fight for the purity and value of what I believe real team building experiences are and what they are intended to do.

p.s.  I hope they read this and incorporate my ideas into their corporate events.  I am not trying to squelch the competition, I am just trying to maintain the value of team building experiences.

The post And You Call That Team Building??? appeared first on Signature Team Building.

Set Up

• In a large open area everyone is asked to form a circle
• Each person is issued a Polyspot or bandana to be used as a marking spot
• One Polyspot is to be placed in the center of the circle

Briefing

The facilitator stands on the center spot and gives the instructions that the person on the center spot asks a question that begins with, “Have you ever….” The question must be true of the person asking. If it is also true of anyone in the circle, they must change spots, but not with their immediate left or right neighbor. The person in the center would change spots with any of the vacated spots within the circle.

Safety Concerns

• The participants are told the particular environmental risks of the game such as wet grass and uneven ground. Be cautious when moving to another spot.
• The game is not meant for the participants to run full tilt to another spot. You might ask they maintain a fast walk in order not to have any accidental slips.
• The game is not a contact sport so be careful not to knock people down in an attempt to gain a spot.

Rules

• The question must be true of the person in the center
• The question must be true of anyone moving within the circle
• You cannot move to a spot either left or right of you
• You cannot knock anyone off of a spot

Facilitator Options

• You can also have two people join arms and move when the question is true of either one of them. This is effective when you have a rather large team. If you do this, you could also say that the question must be true for both partners.
• When a new person is on the center spot you may ask them to give their name to the team and have the team greet each new person.
• If you have a really large group or want to use this as an opening, change the question to be “I’d Like to Know.” The question asked of the group is “I’d like to know how many people have _____?” If it is true for you, come into the center of the circle and high-five the people in the center. If it is not true for you, stay on the perimeter and clap for everyone. Plan out several questions that will get everyone engaged to come to the center. Tell the participants you will ask the first few questions but then you want them to ask questions that they want to know about. You can always end with “I’d like to know how many people are ready for the day?” and get everyone into the center.

The post Free Team Building Activity – Have U Ever appeared first on Signature Team Building.

This is a challenging problem solving activity perfect for a fairly small group of about 10-20 people.  One of the nice things about this activity is that it requires no specific props.  You just need something to mark the spot where people are standing like a piece of paper.

Traffic Jam

Set Up

Briefing

Have your group line up all facing the same direction and place an object to mark their spot at their feet and stand on it.  Have one extra marking spot available and place it in the middle of the line but leave it empty.  One half of the team stands on the spots to the left of the middle spot, the other half stands to the right. Both teams face the middle, unoccupied spot. Using the following moves, people on the left side must end up in the places on the right side, and vice versa. 

Safety

• Caution participants about losing their balance

Rules

ILLEGAL MOVES:

• Any move backwards.
• Any move around someone facing the same way you are, i.e. you are looking at their back.
• Any move which involves two persons moving at once.

LEGAL MOVES:

• A person may move into an empty space in front of them
• A person may move around another person who is facing an empty space. 

This sounds simple but can be a very complex challenge for most groups.  If you have trouble visualizing the solution, email me and I’ll be happy to send you a diagram of the sequence of moves to solve the problem.

greg.huber@signatureteambuilding.com

The post Free Team Building Activity – Traffic Jam appeared first on Signature Team Building.

One of the activities at the ropes course is to climb up a twenty-five foot telephone pole, stand on top and jump off while protected and “belayed” (holding the rope for your teammate).  People that have never experienced this sometimes ask us “Why do we jump off poles?”  Of course we hear all of the somewhat sarcastic or real responses like “because it’s there” or “that’s just for adrenaline junkies.” Actually, there is a really good reason and a direct application to the work environment.  Before I give you my thoughts on this, ask yourself…”Do you work with or lead  associates are not reaching their potential?”  What if you could help them realize their own greatness?

Jumping off a pole is a critical moment in a learning exercise that all people should experience at least once in your life.  Doing so with the people you work with and rely on regularly makes it exceptionally powerful.  Climbing a twenty-five foot pole and jumping from a wobbly disk no bigger than a dinner plate can be frightening.  At first, some people shrink from the challenge.  But in the instant we commit and leap, we grasp a basic truth; Anything is possible.  The only real impediment is ourselves.

This is why we jump off poles.

The post Why do we jump off poles? appeared first on Signature Team Building.

Ah So Koh

Set Up

• Have participants stand in a circle.

Briefing

Teach participants the following commands and their movements.

• Ah – the person says “Ah” loudly, and takes their left or right arm across their chest, pointing at the person next to them

• So - the person says “So” loudly, and takes their left or right arm above their head, pointing at the person next to them

• Koh – the person uses their hand out in front of them in a Karate chop manner, and points to someone else, anywhere in the circle except to someone right next to them and says loudly “Koh”

The phrases must always go in that order, and each phrase needs its correct hand motion. You go when you are pointed at by someone next to you using “Ah” or “So”, or by someone across from you using “Koh”. The sequence then begins again.

After a couple of rounds, when everyone seems to have those three down, introduce this option:

• When you are “koh”ed at by someone you can either start again with “Ah” or put your arms up, crossing them over your chest to make an “X” and say “nooooooo.” If you say “noooooooo” then the person who said “Koh” has to start again with “Ah.”

Once the group has a good handle on it, introduce the elimination round, so if you mess up, you step out of the circle and walk around the outside trying to confuse people by shouting random words and heckling.

Safety

• Be aware of your environment, ensure there is no danger to those walking around the circle.

Rules

• The commands must go in order, Ah, So, Koh (or noooo)

• The commands must be accompanied by the correct gestures

• You cannot “Koh” someone right next to you

• If you make a mistake during the elimination round, you leave the circle and heckle the others

• Hecklers may not physically touch anyone else

If you have any questions about this activity or any others, please send me an email.

The post Free Team Building Activity – Ah So Koh appeared first on Signature Team Building.

John Akhwari was a marathon runner representing Tanzania at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City. During the race he fell, badly cutting his knee and dislocating the joint. Rather than quitting, he got up from the fall, bandaged his leg and continued to run. He finished hours after the winner and last among the 74 competitors. Asked why he continued to run when there was no chance that he could win, he replied, “My country did not send me 5,000 miles to start the race. They sent me 5,000 miles to finish the race.”

What can you do with this?

The post Just Finish It appeared first on Signature Team Building.