Here is an idea I got from Guy Dauncey, a specialist in Global Climate Change and Sustainability.
He role played receiving a letter from a friend who had died (not really) and had been able to return in the future. The dead friend described a scene on the a street of the future, portraying a lot of positive changes for the environment.
It really captured my attention because:
1) it gave a positive picture of what is to come
2) it was full of details about the picture.
How Would I Use This
Of course, it would be great for environmental workshops, but how about a picture of the future of a corporation? How about a picture of the future of a relationship, a partnership or a team?
What is so much fun is that it is written in the form of a letter, so there are lots of personal touches.
Guy is an intriguing fellow with good ideas and techniques to get his message across in a way that engages the audience. Here is his book Stormy Weather http://www.bookfinder4u.com/detail/0865714215.html
Thursday, March 30, 2006
Tuesday, March 28, 2006
Snuff the Candle
Just when an obstacle seems inpenetrable you find the way in.
That's how I would work this next trick into my presentation.
Get a candle in a holder. Light it.
Then hold a glass in front of the candle, so that the glass is between you and the flame. Hold the glass up to this height or stand it on something.
Make your point and do your talk here.
Then blow on your side of the glass. The flame on the other side of the glass will magically go out.
It's a science thing basically, called a drafting effect. Air is going around the sides of the glass to blow out the candle.
How I Would Use This
When there is a barrier in your way, if you can't go through it, simply go around it. Perhaps this would be a good demonstration to use for problem solving.
I am sure there are many more ways to use this trick, but I haven't thought of any of them yet. If you think of one yourself, make a note here please.
That's how I would work this next trick into my presentation.
Get a candle in a holder. Light it.
Then hold a glass in front of the candle, so that the glass is between you and the flame. Hold the glass up to this height or stand it on something.
Make your point and do your talk here.
Then blow on your side of the glass. The flame on the other side of the glass will magically go out.
It's a science thing basically, called a drafting effect. Air is going around the sides of the glass to blow out the candle.
How I Would Use This
When there is a barrier in your way, if you can't go through it, simply go around it. Perhaps this would be a good demonstration to use for problem solving.
I am sure there are many more ways to use this trick, but I haven't thought of any of them yet. If you think of one yourself, make a note here please.
Sunday, March 26, 2006
Crows on a Fence
I recently read this snippet and it stayed with me. I am sorry, but I just can't remember where it came from. If you recognize it please let me know.
Here's the question.
There are five crows sitting on a fence. Two decide to fly off. How many are left sitting on the fence?
Think about it
Don't look at the answer yet.
Think some more.
Okay here's the deal. There are five crows still sitting on the fence. There is a big difference between deciding to do something and actually doing it.
Here's the question.
There are five crows sitting on a fence. Two decide to fly off. How many are left sitting on the fence?
Think about it
Don't look at the answer yet.
Think some more.
Okay here's the deal. There are five crows still sitting on the fence. There is a big difference between deciding to do something and actually doing it.
Thursday, March 23, 2006
Pocket, Purse or Pack
Here is an icebreaker/warm-up I have used many many times.I ask people to get into pairs and introduce themselves to the group using something they can find in their pocket, purse or pack.
I make two exceptions: no credit cards and no money can be used in the introduction.
I ask them to find something that personifies, in a prop, something about their lives that they want to share with the group.
People pick things like daytimers, YMCA membership cards, kids photos, keys or really anything.
Then we share the highlights. It is an easy, lively, humorous way to get things rolling.
Tuesday, March 21, 2006
I recently got an idea from a woman I met on a message board. She is called Alicia Castillo Holley and can be found at http://www.wealthing.com/
As a fun and interesting way of introducing non-verbal communication, ask people to look around them, find a partner and communicate with that partner using only one finger. Just let them go for it. They can move around, get closer or remain distant. But all they have is that one finger for communication.
I can see how useful this would be for really large groups. In the debrief it might be interesting to see if that one finger also included one very animated face, or other body movement
Sometimes we speakers and trainers are looking for a simple, quick activity for a big group. I think I just found mine.
As a fun and interesting way of introducing non-verbal communication, ask people to look around them, find a partner and communicate with that partner using only one finger. Just let them go for it. They can move around, get closer or remain distant. But all they have is that one finger for communication.
I can see how useful this would be for really large groups. In the debrief it might be interesting to see if that one finger also included one very animated face, or other body movement
Sometimes we speakers and trainers are looking for a simple, quick activity for a big group. I think I just found mine.
Wednesday, March 15, 2006
Hawaiian Cheese and Little Loans
Working with a colleague this morning the topic of misunderstood words came up. He told me that when he was young he heard this phrase quite a lot.
"We haven't got enough coffee for everyone here, little loan, the people outside.
Of course, little loan was really let alone. But that's what he heard.
He also was surprised how often his parents ate Hawaiian food. Regularly they would get together with friends to have
Hawaiian Cheese. I imagine you can figure this one out.
As for me, I thought the song, Get Off Of My Cloud, was really
Alphabet Clown. We probably all have examples of our own and I would love you to share some of them here.
How I Would Use This
How is it that we mishear things so well. I think it all has to do with making meaning out of life. All we have to go by, sometimes, is what we know of life. So we take ideas with which we are familiar and link them to unfamiliar ideas. So Hawaiian Cheese made a lot of sense to a little boy who understood what cheese was, and probably thought the Hawaiian variety was what was so attractive to adults.
When we introduce unfamiliar ideas and concepts it is powerful to link them to something we already know. Tomorrow I will share my idea on the Swiss Army Knife and how it links to technology.
So, for now, take a moment and scribble down the things you misheard in your life and share it with us.
"We haven't got enough coffee for everyone here, little loan, the people outside.
Of course, little loan was really let alone. But that's what he heard.
He also was surprised how often his parents ate Hawaiian food. Regularly they would get together with friends to have
Hawaiian Cheese. I imagine you can figure this one out.
As for me, I thought the song, Get Off Of My Cloud, was really
Alphabet Clown. We probably all have examples of our own and I would love you to share some of them here.
How I Would Use This
How is it that we mishear things so well. I think it all has to do with making meaning out of life. All we have to go by, sometimes, is what we know of life. So we take ideas with which we are familiar and link them to unfamiliar ideas. So Hawaiian Cheese made a lot of sense to a little boy who understood what cheese was, and probably thought the Hawaiian variety was what was so attractive to adults.
When we introduce unfamiliar ideas and concepts it is powerful to link them to something we already know. Tomorrow I will share my idea on the Swiss Army Knife and how it links to technology.
So, for now, take a moment and scribble down the things you misheard in your life and share it with us.
Tuesday, March 14, 2006
Playing With a Full Deck
Tonight my friend and colleague, Ken Bellemare, introduced me to the wonders of playing cards used with a group. He gave everyone a playing card when they came into the room. Then he started his icebreaker.
It was simple really. First he asked everyone to join up by their number, all sixes together, all two's together and so on. We had nice little groups of four and we all introduced ourselves to each other.
Then he had us organize by suit, all diamonds together, all spades together and so on, and had us start a new quick discussion.
Last we divided into red and black on opposite sides of the room to go forward for a new activity.
These playing cards were wonderful and were used a few more times in the evening. On each card Ken had stuck a small sticky label with the date of the next event on it.
So versatile and so simple. There are many more ways to use cards with a group, but as an icebreaker, they are inexpensive, fun and get people moving.
Try it.
It was simple really. First he asked everyone to join up by their number, all sixes together, all two's together and so on. We had nice little groups of four and we all introduced ourselves to each other.
Then he had us organize by suit, all diamonds together, all spades together and so on, and had us start a new quick discussion.
Last we divided into red and black on opposite sides of the room to go forward for a new activity.
These playing cards were wonderful and were used a few more times in the evening. On each card Ken had stuck a small sticky label with the date of the next event on it.
So versatile and so simple. There are many more ways to use cards with a group, but as an icebreaker, they are inexpensive, fun and get people moving.
Try it.
Wednesday, March 08, 2006
A Bunch of Good Ideas
How to Add a Little Wizbang to Your Presentation Wizbang is something that adds spice to your style, perks up your presentation and wakes up your audience.
It can be a prop, a story, a hook, an activity, a game or even a joke. It gets your audience involved and out of their seats. It reinforces your key message and makes your presentation memorable. 10 of my Favourite Wizbangers and how I use them.
1. Plain as a rock - Open by showing the audience a geode (looks like a
rock). Discuss how plain and rocklike it looks (it is fairly dull looking). Open the geode (these are cut at rock hound stores) and show how glorious and spectacular it is inside. It isn't always obvious what people around us have to offer until we look a little deeper.
2. Choose and Move - When you want to review a few facts with your group place two chart papers, one at each end of the room, with Yes and No, or True and False. You pose the question to the group; each person goes to the end of the room to match their answer. Keep playing until there is only one person left.
3. Personalized Websites - At the end of a workshop, when the participants know each other fairly well, I ask them to conclude by creating a website address for a partner. The site should illustrate something special and positive about that person and how they came to know him or her in the workshop. Some ideas www.chattygal.com, www.scientistwithoutacoat.com, www.foreveryoung.com , www.helpinghand.com. (these aren't real websites, I think)
4. Opening the Door - I ask small groups to come up with 5 jobs that didn't exist 15 years ago. Share the lists. This opens a discussion on how anything is possible, and the importance of staying open to change. To enhance this activity I use a crystal ball (glass fishing lure).
5. Cheese Stands Alone - I hand out pieces of a puzzle to the whole group or small groups to put together. The glitch is that one person is holding an extra piece that looks like it fits in the puzzle but it doesn't. This activity leads into a discussion about inclusion
6. Stuck On Me - I saw speaker, Polly Lee, use this technique in a Toastmaster's Contest in Vancouver. As she talked about the negative messages that were in her head, she stuck onto her body, one by one, cardboard signs that held negative words. I used this in a similar way to illustrate how we set limitations on ourselves. My signs had Velcro on one side and showed such words as too old, too inexperienced, too stupid, not wanted.
7. Weighed Down - I saw this at a retreat years ago, and unfortunately cannot give credit. The leader asked us to write a list of things we had left unfinished in our lives, anything from cleaning the bathroom cupboard to getting a divorce. Then we chose 8 of the items. At this point she gave out black balloons and told us to inflate them. But she warned us only to inflate each balloon to the size proportional to the problem; for example, a divorce would likely be bigger than a cupboard cleanout (but not necessarily). Then she asked us to tie them onto strings and loop the strings around our necks. She made us wear them for the next few hours. The key learning point? How unfinished business takes energy from us and robs us of freedom.
8. Rock of Ages - I saw a scientist open a presentation by passing around a rock that was thousands of years old. He talked about what was happening on earth when that rock was around and how the rock was still here all those years later. In that opening, he used that prop to reel us all in to the amazing history of rocks, and opened up our minds to listen to him. I try to use props like this to focus the group right from the very opening.
9. Name Ten Parts - For a lighthearted moment I suggest that the group tries an activity I did with a bunch of kids, to see if they can do it faster. I tell them I want them to name 10 parts of the human body that have three letters. Someone always offers "bum" up halfway into the activity, and I tell them I will reserve it if they don't get 10. The group can usually get about 8, but they cannot get 10 until they see the human body from a different perspective, from the inside and start adding parts like rib and gut. This activity makes them laugh, gets them to work together and shows them that there are turning points in learning.
10. Yours Truly - There is nothing like sharing a personal story with the group. You can always remember it because it is yours and it can be funny, warming or even alarming. Some of my best stories come from my file called "The First Time" - I got a kiss, had a job, lit my kitchen on fire, wore high heels, cooked for my mother in law, said I love you, went to high school, took the bus alone, got my hair permed. These stories are filled with exciting and disastrous attempts at life. I recommend you look at some of your "First Times".
Guidelines for using a Wizbanger
1. It must have a point that ties in with a key learning point.
2. Customize it to fit the group.
3. Make sure it is safe.
4. Don't give the learning point away too soon. Often it is more dynamic to let people come to their own connections.
Find out more about Wizbangers at www.wizbangers.ca
It can be a prop, a story, a hook, an activity, a game or even a joke. It gets your audience involved and out of their seats. It reinforces your key message and makes your presentation memorable. 10 of my Favourite Wizbangers and how I use them.
1. Plain as a rock - Open by showing the audience a geode (looks like a
rock). Discuss how plain and rocklike it looks (it is fairly dull looking). Open the geode (these are cut at rock hound stores) and show how glorious and spectacular it is inside. It isn't always obvious what people around us have to offer until we look a little deeper.
2. Choose and Move - When you want to review a few facts with your group place two chart papers, one at each end of the room, with Yes and No, or True and False. You pose the question to the group; each person goes to the end of the room to match their answer. Keep playing until there is only one person left.
3. Personalized Websites - At the end of a workshop, when the participants know each other fairly well, I ask them to conclude by creating a website address for a partner. The site should illustrate something special and positive about that person and how they came to know him or her in the workshop. Some ideas www.chattygal.com, www.scientistwithoutacoat.com, www.foreveryoung.com , www.helpinghand.com. (these aren't real websites, I think)
4. Opening the Door - I ask small groups to come up with 5 jobs that didn't exist 15 years ago. Share the lists. This opens a discussion on how anything is possible, and the importance of staying open to change. To enhance this activity I use a crystal ball (glass fishing lure).
5. Cheese Stands Alone - I hand out pieces of a puzzle to the whole group or small groups to put together. The glitch is that one person is holding an extra piece that looks like it fits in the puzzle but it doesn't. This activity leads into a discussion about inclusion
6. Stuck On Me - I saw speaker, Polly Lee, use this technique in a Toastmaster's Contest in Vancouver. As she talked about the negative messages that were in her head, she stuck onto her body, one by one, cardboard signs that held negative words. I used this in a similar way to illustrate how we set limitations on ourselves. My signs had Velcro on one side and showed such words as too old, too inexperienced, too stupid, not wanted.
7. Weighed Down - I saw this at a retreat years ago, and unfortunately cannot give credit. The leader asked us to write a list of things we had left unfinished in our lives, anything from cleaning the bathroom cupboard to getting a divorce. Then we chose 8 of the items. At this point she gave out black balloons and told us to inflate them. But she warned us only to inflate each balloon to the size proportional to the problem; for example, a divorce would likely be bigger than a cupboard cleanout (but not necessarily). Then she asked us to tie them onto strings and loop the strings around our necks. She made us wear them for the next few hours. The key learning point? How unfinished business takes energy from us and robs us of freedom.
8. Rock of Ages - I saw a scientist open a presentation by passing around a rock that was thousands of years old. He talked about what was happening on earth when that rock was around and how the rock was still here all those years later. In that opening, he used that prop to reel us all in to the amazing history of rocks, and opened up our minds to listen to him. I try to use props like this to focus the group right from the very opening.
9. Name Ten Parts - For a lighthearted moment I suggest that the group tries an activity I did with a bunch of kids, to see if they can do it faster. I tell them I want them to name 10 parts of the human body that have three letters. Someone always offers "bum" up halfway into the activity, and I tell them I will reserve it if they don't get 10. The group can usually get about 8, but they cannot get 10 until they see the human body from a different perspective, from the inside and start adding parts like rib and gut. This activity makes them laugh, gets them to work together and shows them that there are turning points in learning.
10. Yours Truly - There is nothing like sharing a personal story with the group. You can always remember it because it is yours and it can be funny, warming or even alarming. Some of my best stories come from my file called "The First Time" - I got a kiss, had a job, lit my kitchen on fire, wore high heels, cooked for my mother in law, said I love you, went to high school, took the bus alone, got my hair permed. These stories are filled with exciting and disastrous attempts at life. I recommend you look at some of your "First Times".
Guidelines for using a Wizbanger
1. It must have a point that ties in with a key learning point.
2. Customize it to fit the group.
3. Make sure it is safe.
4. Don't give the learning point away too soon. Often it is more dynamic to let people come to their own connections.
Find out more about Wizbangers at www.wizbangers.ca
$50 on the Foot
A colleague reminded me of an activity that is featured in my first book, Presentation Wizardry, (find out more at www.wizbangers.ca).
The idea behind the activity is that it is a challenge to a volunteer.
Magic Ball
Try this trick: - Crush a piece of paper or foil into a small ball.- Tell the group the paper has magic powers.- Ask a volunteer to stand sideways against a wall with his shoulder and matching foot touching the wall.- Place the magic ball on his foot that is not against the wall.- Ask him to raise that foot.- He won't be able to do it.- Make the point that the magic ball and its power have paralyzed the volunteer.
How I use this:
There are many ways to use this trick to make a key learning point. Here is one. When I roll the ball up I talk about how it represents perfectionism. I talk a bit about it and ask if anyone can define it. The person who gives the definition becomes my volunteer. When I place the ball on his foot I indicate how heavy it is and how glad I am to give it to someone else. As he tries to lift his foot he finds that he can't. I make the point that perfectionism becomes a paralyzing factor in moving forward or achieving success.
Then put a $50 bill on the foot that is furthest away from the wall and challenge the person to lift that foot up. Say, "If you can lift that foot while you keep your shoulder and other foot touching the wall, you can have the money."
Your volunteer will try, but it is nigh on impossible to do. In order to lift the foot with the money on it up even a smidge, you have to be able to lean in the opposite direction. As you are jammed side on into a wall, there is nowhere to lean. This is a centre of gravity activity.
Now the real fun comes when you figure out what the money can represent. Or instead of money, put a different object on their foot. Perhaps a credit card, a wedding ring, or a small paper with a word written on it that has been crumpled up.
First make sure you know how to do the trick, then think about it a bit, then get down to trying it. You don't want to lose your $50 so work up to that one.
Good luck.
Thanks to Eric for this idea.
The idea behind the activity is that it is a challenge to a volunteer.
Magic Ball
Try this trick: - Crush a piece of paper or foil into a small ball.- Tell the group the paper has magic powers.- Ask a volunteer to stand sideways against a wall with his shoulder and matching foot touching the wall.- Place the magic ball on his foot that is not against the wall.- Ask him to raise that foot.- He won't be able to do it.- Make the point that the magic ball and its power have paralyzed the volunteer.
How I use this:
There are many ways to use this trick to make a key learning point. Here is one. When I roll the ball up I talk about how it represents perfectionism. I talk a bit about it and ask if anyone can define it. The person who gives the definition becomes my volunteer. When I place the ball on his foot I indicate how heavy it is and how glad I am to give it to someone else. As he tries to lift his foot he finds that he can't. I make the point that perfectionism becomes a paralyzing factor in moving forward or achieving success.
Then put a $50 bill on the foot that is furthest away from the wall and challenge the person to lift that foot up. Say, "If you can lift that foot while you keep your shoulder and other foot touching the wall, you can have the money."
Your volunteer will try, but it is nigh on impossible to do. In order to lift the foot with the money on it up even a smidge, you have to be able to lean in the opposite direction. As you are jammed side on into a wall, there is nowhere to lean. This is a centre of gravity activity.
Now the real fun comes when you figure out what the money can represent. Or instead of money, put a different object on their foot. Perhaps a credit card, a wedding ring, or a small paper with a word written on it that has been crumpled up.
First make sure you know how to do the trick, then think about it a bit, then get down to trying it. You don't want to lose your $50 so work up to that one.
Good luck.
Thanks to Eric for this idea.
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