The Final Good News

I saw a wonderful flyer promoting a contest for a home visit from the world famous author Robert Munsch. I thought the format they used was wonderful. So below you can see the format for the contest and after that looked how I adapted it.

THE GOOD NEWS
Robert Munsch could visit you at home.

THE BETTER NEWS
It’s for free!

THE EVEN BETTER NEWS
You get to invite eight to 12 children.

THE BAD NEWS
You can only enter the contest once.

THE WORSE NEWS
There is only one winner.

THE EVEN BADDER WORSE NEWS
It’s only on January 19, 2008.

THE REALLY BAD, EVEN WORSER, TERRIBLE, LOUSY NEWS
He’ll have to leave.

THE ALMOST FINAL GOOD NEWS
Your favourite public library or literacy group also gets a visit.

THE FINAL GOOD NEWS
Your family wins a trip to Great Wolf Lodge, Niagara Falls, Ontario.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

How to Create Your Own Blog Workshop

THE GOOD NEWS
You can learn how to create your own blog.

THE BETTER NEWS
You can make one in one short afternoon!

THE EVEN BETTER NEWS
It's free to come to this workshop.

THE BAD NEWS
There's only room for 12 people, so sign up now.

THE WORSE NEWS
It is only being held on one day, January 19.

THE EVEN BADDER WORSE NEWS
Only one person will win a customized blog consultation with the guru of blogs!

THE REALLY BAD, EVEN WORSER, TERRIBLE, LOUSY NEWS
We won't be running another one until May.

THE ALMOST FINAL GOOD NEWS
You get a free cd disc of artwork you can use on your blog.

THE FINAL GOOD NEWS
Lunch is on us, pizza, soda and pastries.


So you see how you can introduce new ideas and lure people in with this format.

Cool Inventions

Here are some of the coolest, funny inventions. See if you would actually use any of them. This might be good to illustrate creativity in your workshop.

My personal favourite:

LOCK-CUP

Lock Cup - Anti-Theft Coffee Cup. Are you tired of others stealing your coffee cup? Well now there’s a solution. The Lock - Cup has a hole which prevents most people from using it. Only the owner of the cup can use his/hers shaped key to close the hole.

Check out more of them at:

http://fwdemails.com/2007/11/24/cool-inventions/

Alternative Meanings

Once again, The Washington Post has published the winning submissions to its yearly neologism contest, in which readers are asked to supply alternative meanings for common words.

The winners are:

Coffee (n.), the person upon whom one coughs.

Flabbergasted (adj.), appalled over how much weight you have gained.

Abdicate (v.), to give up all hope of ever having a flat stomach.

Esplanade (v.), to attempt an explanation while drunk.

Willy-nilly (adj.), impotent.

Negligent (adj.), describes a condition in which you absentmindedly answer the door in your nightgown.

Lymph (v.), to walk with a lisp.

Gargoyle (n.), olive-flavored mouthwash.

Flatulence (n.) emergency vehicle that picks you up after you are run over by a steamroller.

Balderdash (n.), a rapidly receding hairline.

Testicle (n.), a humorous question on an exam.

Rectitude (n.), the formal, dignified bearing adopted by proctologists.

Pokemon (n), a Rastafarian proctologist.

Oyster (n.), a person who sprinkles his conversation with Yiddishisms.

Frisbeetarianism (n.), (back by popular demand): The belief that, when you die, your Soul flies up onto the roof and gets stuck there.

Circumvent (n.), an opening in the front of boxer shorts worn by Jewish men.

Details, Details

I think this poem would be great to show how spell check may not be as accurate as we think. Something as simple as accurate spelling shows how accuracy in the business world is important. I am sorry I don't know the source of this poem.

Eye halve a spelling chequer
It came with my pea sea
It plainly marques four my revue
Miss steaks eye kin knot sea.

Eye strike a key and type a word
And weight four it two say
Weather eye am wrong oar write
It shows me strait a weigh.

As soon as a mist ache is maid
It nose bee fore two long
And eye can put the error rite
Its rare lea ever wrong.

Eye have run this poem threw it
I am shore your pleased two no
Its letter perfect awl the weigh
My chequer tolled me sew.

Fake Fun

Here is an idea that will help people review facts or concepts. After you have introduced the main concepts give the participants a test. See if they can sort out the fake from the list below.

Now in this case my topic is Warning Labels. One of these is a fake, see if you can figur out which one.

Windex
Do not spray in eyes.

Bowl Fresh
Safe to use around pets and children, although it is not recommended that either be permitted to drink from toilet.

Dremel Electric Rotary Tool
This product not intended for use as a dental drill.

Arm & Hammer Scoopable Cat Litter
Not to be used for toddlers and young children.



Little Ones Baby Lotion
Keep away from children

Hair Coloring
Do not use as an ice cream topping.

Wet-Nap
Directions: Tear open packet and use.

Dial Soap
Directions: Use like regular soap.

Stridex Foaming Face Wash
May contain foam.

Sleeping Pills
Warning: May cause Drowsiness

Christmas Lights
Warning: For indoor or outdoor use only.

Bic Lighter
Ignite lighter away from face.

So which one was it? Either way you probably had fun reviewing the warning labels and trying to figure out which one was fake. I think the use of fakes in lists is a way to make what could be dull a lot more enjoyable. So if you aren't sure, it is the cat litter one that is a fake. Other topic I think this could be used for would be: signs of pest problems, headache symptons, most common customer complaints, rules or guidelines for (what have you)

Let's Talk

Here's an icebreaker that should work with a large group.
People basically go around the room and talk to anyone they like for a few minutes.

You, the facilitator, call out the words "Let's Talk". At that point each person finishes one of the statements from a handout and elaborates a bit. When you give an audio signal, they say goodbye and find someone else. The participants need to choose a different statement to share each time they meet someone new.


A place I love to go is .......

Two things I value in a friend are ..........

I love music that .................

My favourite type of gift is..............

The best advice I ever got was ............

The bravest person I ever knew was......

A book that influenced me in life was ........

A sport I would never play is ....................

My idea of a perfect day starts with ...........

You can also add a few statements that reflect your workshop or presentation:

The best team I ever saw was.......

I love email because ........

The most valuable thing I learned from one of my elders was.......

Kids taught me ........

I would love to try working in (another country) because .....

You get the idea

Diseased Thinking

I have seen this great little plush figures around Science World for quite some time. They are basically diseases, but I figured, why not just rename them to fit your own presentation.

What about calling them:

negative thinking
gossip
harsh criticism

or

stubborness
vanity
ego
selfishness

Really, these little monsters can represent anything in your message. They are colourful and rather different and will bring an element of creativity to your presentation.



http://www.thinkgeek.com/geektoys/plush/6708/images/

Match Up Madness

I found this idea in a little town newsletter. I think I would give it as a warm-up exercise, see which team could figure out the answers the fastest. I would start with an example:

10 cards = 1 decacards

Now try to figure out the rest


1 million microphones =

2000 mockingbirds =

1 millionth of a fish =

453.6 graham crackers =

10 rations =

2 monograms =

8 nickels =

2 wharves =

Any luck.

Here are the answers....


look way down.....





1 megaphone

two kilomockingbirds

1 microfiche

1 pound cake

1 decoration

1 diagram

2 paradigms * bonus marks for this one

1 paradox

What's In A Name

As an icebreaker, it is fun to let your participants play around with their names, perhaps introducing themselves with one of the following monikers.


Your Real Name? Deb

2. YOUR GANGSTA NAME: (first 4 letters of real name plus izzle) Deboizzle

3. YOUR DETECTIVE NAME: (fav color and fav animal) Fuschia Cat

4. YOUR SOAP OPERA NAME: (middle name, and childhood street): Ann Richmond

5. YOUR STAR WARS NAME: (the first 3 letters of your last name, first 2 letters of your first name, first 3 letters of mom's maiden name) Caldegra

6. YOUR SUPERHERO NAME: (The, 2nd favorite color, drink) The Teal Mocha

7. YOUR BLUES SINGER NAME: (The mood you are in now, and the last name of any President) Tired Jackson

8. YOUR WITNESS PROTECTION NAME: (grandmother and grandfather's first name) Mary Edgar


9. YOUR GOTH NAME: (black, and the name of one your pets) Black Jackson

Are We Clear?

http://www.factmonster.com/spot/memory1.html

Now here is an interesting activity that I think can lead to a really good learning point.

Try the activity and we will talk a bit more.

Don't read any further until you have done the activity please.
















Here is my thought on this one.
It is interesting how the first time around when we look at the picture, we don't really know what we are looking for. I mean our goal isn't clear. But after answering the question it is clear that we would have done better if we knew what to focus on.

This is a lot like learning and training. Let's help the participants learn what to focus on before we start throwing information at them. Let them understand what they need to learn and then help them learn it.

TimeSavers

We all know how time is valuable in our lives. But just how much time do we waste on tedious activities like peeling eggs and tying shoes. Find out at this lively website

waitless.org

My personal favourite is the quick way to soothe a crying baby.

Have fun.

Dinner Demonstrations

http://www.interactives.co.uk/hearts_dinner.htm

Dinner science. Now this is a really fun set of demonstrations that can even take place at the dining room table.

Mixed Up Message

Saw this the other day in the paper. It was an ad, and it really caught my eye. There is a lot clever people like us could do with this.

"Shnoppig 4 a nuw Mttasres?

Matsrets shpponig is vrey cnofunisig.
Lkie tynrig to slove a pzuzle. Waht to loko 4, and how to kown wihch noe is bset?

You see, even though the above words are confusing, chances are you eventuallly understood what they meant. But, it was harder than it had to be. At Parker's Mattress Factory we don't try to confuse you with complex jargon and technical construction details. We present comparisons and recommendations in an easy to evaluate and understand manner."

So why not try the same idea with your message and show people that there are ways to clarify their words and intent.

I think this would be a real attention getter.

This experiment will shock you

I found this unusual experiement online and thought it would be really interesting to see how it could be used. I don't want to give too much away though, so just watch the video and try the experiment and see what you come up with.


http://gigglesugar.com/349186

Enjoy

Obituaries As Communication

Here is an excerpt from a book called, The Death of Common Sense by a man called Howard.

What struck me about this was the idea that you could write obituaries for all kinds of concepts: the death of local retail, the death of the family, the death of work ethics and so on.
Read the way he writes it. It is amusing, but makes a great point.

My parents told me about Mr. Common Sense early in my life and told me I would do well to call on him when making decisions. It seems he was always around in my early years but less and less as time passed by. Today I read his obituary. Please join me in a moment of silence in remembrance, for Common Sense had served us all so well for so many generations.

OBITUARY: Common Sense

Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, Common Sense, who has been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was since his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape.

He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable lessons as knowing when to come in out of the rain, why the early bird gets the worm, life isn't always fair, and maybe it was my fault.

Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don't spend more than you earn) and reliable parenting strategies (adults, not children are in charge). His health began to deteriorate rapidly when well intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place. Reports of a six-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate; teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after lunch; and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition.

Common Sense lost ground when parents attacked teachers for doing the job they themselves failed to do in disciplining their unruly children. It declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer Aspirin, sun lotion or a sticky plaster to a student, but could not inform the parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion.

Common Sense lost the will to live as the Ten Commandments became contraband; churches became businesses; and criminals received better treatment than their victims. Common Sense took a beating when you couldn't defend yourself from a burglar in your own home and the burglar can sue you for assault.

Common Sense finally gave up the will to live, after a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot. She spilled a little in her lap, and was promptly awarded a huge settlement.

Common Sense was preceded in death by his parents, Truth and Trust; his wife, Discretion; his daughter, Responsibility; and his son, Reason. He is survived by three stepbrothers; I Know my Rights, Someone Else is to Blame, and I'm a Victim. Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone. I

f you still remember him, pass this on. If not, join the majority and do nothing.

Mental Math

Try this little activity by reading it out to someone. It doesn't work as well if you actually see the numbers on the page.

Take 1000 and add 40 to it. Now add another 1000. Now add 30. And add another 1000.
Now add 20 to it. Add another 1000. Now add 10. What do you get?

Look down the page for the answer.















If you got 5000 you are with most people. Nearly everyone gets 5000.
But in reality, the answer is 4100, go ahead, check the math, it really is 4100.

How I Would Use This

There are two ideas that come to mind:

1) Always check and double check the details.

2) Once a pattern has been set up in your head it is hard to break from it.

Diamonds Are Forever: Cutting into Communication

In his Monday Morning Memo (online) Roy H. Williams, speaking of advertising, compares ads to diamonds. He suggests that the best ads, like the best diamonds have been cut to perfect angles to show the words and the sparkle off in the best light.

I thought this was a great analogy and think the diamond could be used in a number of ways.
A well cut diamond could be like:

-a well thought out memo
-creating the right tone
-finding the essence of the idea

Diamonds are forever.

Leaning Tower

A great prop is that family game in which your group builds a wooden tower and then proceeds to take turns taking pieces out of the tower. Eventually, someone will take the wrong piece and the whole thing will fall.

I think this would make an effective visual in front of your audience. You could talk and remove pieces from the tower as you bring up your topic, then let teh blocks fall. You could have two people representing sides of the room take the tower apart one piece at a time to see who can remove blocks without breaking the tower.

Whatever you do with this tower there is lots of room for connections.

How I Would Use This

Customer service - represents the last straw that the customer puts up with before he snaps

Downsizing - you can take some of the team away and it will still survive, but take too many away and you have disaster.

Relationships - are built on a series of elements including trust. Take the trust away one time too many and the relationship can't survive.

You get the idea.

Tips to Secure More Sales

I saw this in a little book called "Jumbo Shrimp" by Warren S. Blumenfeld.

I like the way the author promotes his book, which is fairly inexpensive, while having a chuckle with the reader.

The last page of the book invites the reader to tell the author which sections they liked the best, then at the end you read,

"I probably will definitely buy one or more copies of the next Oxymoron book:

__maybe
__firm maybe
__firm maybe
__firmest maybe
__unqualified maybe (be less specifice, if at all possible):
_________________________________________________________-

Here Is A Method to Get Your Groups Laughing

I'm a Lemon Meringue

A quick and easy way to divide your group is to get them choose one of four or five desserts and gather together. Choose five desserts that are popular in your area. Tell each person they HAVE to choose one of the desserts, even if it isn't their total favourite.

For today here are the four I chose:

Ice Cream
Cake
Pie
Pudding
Pastry (other than pie)

Once everyone has commited to a dessert have them spend a little time getting to know everyone in the group. Choose questions that reflect the topic of your workshop, but be sure to include "What EXACT dessert in this category is your favourite and why?"

This is an activity that will get people talking and laughing all around, while establishing common ground.

Communication and Context

What familiar phrase or title does each of the lines represent?

You have to say each one outloud for it to work.

1. Egg, no, rinses, blitz
2. False, Peter, head
3. Echo, redig, curried, hog
4. Dad, mental, note, ales
5. Abe, eyesore, kill, belt, fat, who

Got em. They can be tricky, because you have to adjust your pronunciation to fit the line.

How I Would Use This

Context. Out of context we don't know what we are looking for. But hints that give us context help us prepare to work out the puzzle. When we set people up for learning by setting the scene, learning can be a lot faster.

Hints - use only if you are stumped.











1. Ignorance is bliss.
2. Full speed ahead.
3. Hickory, Dickory Dock
4. Dead men tell no tales.
5. A bicycle built for two

It's All In How You Look At It

Punctuation is Powerful

An English professor wrote the words:
"A woman without her man is nothing"
on the chalkboard and asked his
students to punctuate it correctly.

All of the males in the class wrote:
"A woman, without her man, is nothing."

All the females in the class wrote:
"A woman: without her, man is nothing."

Punctuation is powerful.

Marketing Spin

We all know that presentation is important, whether it is for a good meal or a good proposal. One way to show the range of what can be changed or modified is to get your participants to look at the pictures featured on this website.


I find these pictures remarkable.

http://thirdeyedumb.com/2007/04/the_power_of_makeup_different.html



How I Would Use This

I would show participants a handful of these pictures and ask them to match the girl with the job:

For example:

Secretary
Lawyer
Teacher
Cabaret Singer
Housewife and Mom

etc. You make up the categories.
I would not tell them that this is the same model in each picture.

Build to a discussion about how spin and marketing and presentation affect how we feel about things.

Famous Nay-Sayers

"Everything that can be invented, has been invented."
-Charles Duell, Director of US Patent Office, 1899

"Who the hell wants to hear actors talk?"
-Harry M. Warner, Warner Bros. Pictures, 1927

"Sensible and responsible women do not want the vote."
-Grover Cleveland, 1905

"There is no likelihood man can ever tap the power of the atom."
-Robert Millikan in 1903 - 1923 Nobel Prize Winner in Physics

"Heavier than air flying machines are impossible"
-Lord Kelvin, President, Royal Society, 1895

These are fun arent' they?

How I Would Use This

1. I think I would take the dates off and the authors and see if the group could get them into chronological order.

2. One thing I notice is that the comments are made by people who are "in the know", experts in their field, so to speak. I think that makes an interesting point about how sometimes we get too close to the action to ever be able to visualize a different outcome.

Open With A Bang

A great way to start a presentation is to connect your topic with something that happened on this day in history.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page

This site is a good place to get ideas. Let's look at April the first.

1991 - First female Premier of a Canadian province takes office. Rita Johnston succeeds William Vander Zalm, who resigned, as Premier of British Columbia.

So here is an idea. I am giving a talk about stress. I see the above information and turn it into a point I am making about how being the first to do something new and different can be exciting but can be stressful too. I talk about Rita, "imagine her feelings", "the first woman in the job" etc.

Then I connect the point that stress doesn't have to be something negative to affect us. Sometimes it is just something new or a change.

Get the idea.
Ramble through the days in history to dig for new ideas. Give the brain a kick start.

Change the Type - Barriers

What's new in a keyboard? Everyone is familiar with the regular keyboard, but do they know the Dvorak keyboard ? Hand out pictures of this keyboard to small groups. Have them examine the keyboard and make comments within the group. Then hand out pictures of the standard Qwerty keyboard.

Assign half the group the job of describing the benefits of changing to the Dvorak keyboard.
Assign the other half the job of coming up with reasons why people don't want to make the change.

How I Would Use This
The list of why people don't want to make the change could act as a model for how hard it is for us to try something new.

Energize Your Group - Taco Time

This is a lively way to get things going.
Put a sticky label on people's backs as they come into the room. Each label will have one of the ingredients of a taco on it. (you could use other foods if you want) For example: some people would have meat, others cheese or shell.

Each person has to figure out what it says on his or her back by simply asking questions that can have a yes or no answer.

When everyone has an idea of what they are, explain how a taco is built.
Shell, meat, cheese, lettuce, peppers, tomato, salsa, sour cream (or what have you)
Then cry out the words TACO TIME and everyone scrambles to get in the right order for a taco.
Expect chaos.

Team Thinking Game

Here is a simple game that gets teams working together.

Answer the questions below and use all the brainpower in your small team to come to the right answer:
What do you call:

The pointy, curved end of the handle of a chef's knife?
a) tang
b) slub
c) neb

The rounded, top portion of a key
a) tooth
b) gum
c) bow

The small, curved end of a suit hanger that looks like a C
a) turnback
b) switchback
c) peacock's eye

The abrasive surface on a matchbook
a) drag strip
b) igniter
c) friction strip

The little metal band around a pencil, below the eraser
a) ferrule
b) squeezer
c) circumflex


Apart from seeing how many the teams can figure out, I challenge each team to come up with a different name that they think is even better.

Okay here are the answers
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
neb
bow
turnback
friction strip
ferrule

Secrets of Setting Up Collaboration in Teams

A fun activity that focuses on the power of collaboration.

How many world leaders can you identify?

You can use slides or hold up pictures if the group is small.

Show the world leaders one by one and have each person write down their names if they know them. Ask how many most people most people wrote down.

Ask the group to pair up and see how many world leaders the pair could identify.

Finally put the group into small groups of 4 or 5 and try again. See how many world leaders they could identify in the end.

Your list might include:

Martin Luther King
Ghandi
Queen Elizabeth
Khomeini
Chairman Mao

and so on.
They don't all have to be current leaders.

Mythbusters

Here is a bit of fun. I think you could make this into a game for a workshop. It basically takes common ideas and myths and confirms or debunks them.
For example you can find out whether a tooth dissolves when left in a glass of cola overnight.
Lots of possibilities here.


http://www.drivl.com/myths

Common Sense

I have found that you can ususally make good activities from ideas about the senses; how they work, how you can trick them and so on. Have a look at this website to see if you can adapt any of the quiz items for your presentation.



http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/humanbody/body/interactives/senseschallenge/

Common Sense

I have found that you can ususally make good activities from ideas about the senses; how they work, how you can trick them and so on. Have a look at this website to see if you can adapt any of the quiz items for your presentation.



http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/humanbody/body/interactives/senseschallenge/

Sarchasm and More Words

Gift from the internet.
I often ask people in workshops to adapt words to suit their own purposes.

The Washington Post's Mensa Invitational once again asked readers to take any word from the dictionary, alter it by adding, subtracting, or changing one letter, and supply a new definition. Here are this year's winners:

1. Intaxication: Euphoria at getting a tax refund, which lasts until you realize it was your money to start with.

2. Reintarnation: Coming back to life as a hillbilly.

3. Bozone (n.): The substance surrounding stupid people that stop bright ideas from penetrating. The bozone layer, unfortunately, shows little sign of breaking down in the near future.

4. Foreploy: Any misrepresentation about yourself for the purpose of getting laid.

5. Cashtration (n.): The act of buying a house, which renders the subject financially impotent for an indefinite period.

6. Giraffiti: Vandalism spray-painted very, very high.

7. Sarchasm: The gulf between the author of sarcastic wit and the person who doesn't get it.

8. Inoculatte: To take coffee intravenously when you are running late.

9. Hipatitis: Terminal coolness.

10. Osteopornosis: A degenerate disease. (This one got extra credit.)

11. Karmageddon: It's like, when everybody is sending off all these really bad vibes, right? And then, like, the Earth explodes and it's like, a serious bummer.

12. Decafalon (n.): The grueling event of getting through the day consuming only things that are good for you.

13. Glibido: All talk and no action.

14. Dopeler effect: The tendency of stupid ideas to seem smarter when they come at you rapidly.

15. Arachnoleptic fit (n.): The frantic dance performed just after you've accidentally walked through a spider web.

16. Beelzebug (n.): Satan in the form of a mosquito, that gets into your bedroom at three in the morning and cannot be cast out.

17. Caterpallor (n.): The color you turn after finding half a worm in the fruit you're eating.

And the pick of the literature:

18. Ignoranus: A person who's both stupid and an asshole.

Keyboard Garden

Well I can't help myself. Here is a fabulous practical joke for April Fool's Day. Seems you can create a garden in someone else's keyboard.

http://www.nada.kth.se/%7ehjorth/krasse/english.html

Gotta try it with an old keyboard.

Cat's Meow

Just for fun watch this video of cats talking.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6036658873440327262

I laughed out loud when I saw it, but it really made me think of this about communication:

It's not always what someone says, it is how you heard it. It's all in the interpretation.

Entropy and Life

Entropy - I would start by asking people if they had heard of the word.
Perhaps some had, but to define it you can go back to the world of science.
Entropy can be described as the fact that all matter tends to disorder in the absence of constructive energy.

I like this idea. So how could this apply elsewhere in the world?

In the world of business - unless some constructive energy is added, disorder will remain.

In the real world - an ice-cube won't stay an ice-cube, it will become disordered and turn to water unless some constructive energy, in this case, in the form of cold and freezing is added.

I just enjoy the picture this word creates. Watch for good words, you can build big ideas around them.

Visit this blog http://sixdisciplines.blogspot.com/2006/08/small-business-organizational-entropy.html
to read other ideas about business and entropy.

Bet I Answer All Your Questions

I have been doing a particular seminar for years. One part of the seminar I cover the basics of how a process works; kind of a who, what, when, where, why section. I have a handout with those words listed and ask participants to fill in info they find interesting.

So, after all these years I tried to do something a bit different and it worked out really well.
I asked the participants to write down a question about the process. Something they had been wondering about was what I was after. Example: How many volunteers are in this program?

Then I challenged my colleague:

You know, Jennifer, I bet as we work through this information we will answer every single one of the questions that people wrote down on their sheets.

I played it up a bit, a bit of macho strutting, we can do it, etc. Then we covered the information.
At the end I said:

"Well, I am sure we have covered every question you had, right?" Set up time.
Of course we hadn't. People were now pleased to present their questions in a kind of "stumped the panel" part.

It worked out well and I will repeat it every time. I think I might even get chocolates for those who have questions left after our talk.

The key is to ask them to write down their questions at the beginning without telling them they are trying to stump us in any way.

Three Things About Me

A simple and interesting way to introduce yourself to your group.

Write three things on the board.

1. Dorchester

2. 1967

3. sushi

Now the group gets to guess which 3 questions about you these might be answers for.

In my case:

Dorchester, England is where I went to school.

I became a Canadian citizen in 1967.

My favourite food is sushi.

Get the point. Very simple, easy to remember. Try it.

You might like to let the others in the group try it within small groups.

Plan Joe's Trip

Here is an activity that you can adapt to pen and pencil. It is basically a
"what should I include in my pack" activity, in which you pick what you should bring and why.

http://plancanada.ca/joetraveller_425x600.swf

I have used this type of activity for the following topics:

Needs and Wants and sustainable living
Emergency preparedness
Planning a staff retreat
Surviving on a team

Just another idea for your toolbox. Adapt it and make it your own.

Famous Last Words

Here is a fun quiz that will have people working together.
Give them several last lines from well-known movies and have them match them with the movies they are from.

• “In spite of everything, I still believe that people are really good at heart.”

• “What did he just say?”- “He said there's a storm coming in.”- “I know.”

• “Sometimes, now and then, couldn’t we just talk?” “I tell you what. You talk. I’ll listen.”

• “Out there. That-a-way.”

• “Meine Damen und Herren... Madames et Messieurs... Ladies and Gentlemen. Where are your troubles now? Forgotten? I told you so. We have no troubles here! Here, life is beautiful. The girls are beautiful. Even the orchestra is beautiful. Auf wiedersehen! A bientot.”

• “What are your legs? Springs. Steel springs. What are they going to do? They're going to hurl me down the track. How fast can you run? As fast as a leopard. How fast are you going to run? As fast as a leopard. Then let's see you do it.”

• “Do I still have to sleep in the cupboard?”

• “Goodnight, you princes of Maine. You kings of New England.”

• “Okay, folks, everything's all right. Nothing to worry about...Okay folks, nothin' to worry about. Just a little illness. We'll be in Miami in just a few minutes.”

Here are the movies they are from. But which one goes with which one.

Cabaret (1972)

Gallipoli (1981)

Oh God! (1977)

Beauty and the Beast (1991)

The Terminator (1984)

The Diary of Anne Frank (1959)

Midnight Cowboy (1969)

Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979)

The Cider House Rules (1999

20 Things You Would Do....

Here is an idea I got from an article about living in the country that I saw in a magazine. In that article they posted 20 things you would change to make your life in the countryside better. They gave examples like:

-keep all traffic to under 40 kph
-make the internet access you were promised a true reality

and things like that. Now I don't remember the article exactly, but that is the gist of it. It combined good ideas with a bit of daydreaming and humour.

So why not ask your group to use the same humour to come up with 20 things that would make their office life better. A few groundrules, no naming names or making fun of people and whatever else you think would take away from the activity.

Here are a few I can think of:

-provide stick on labels for lunches that end up in the office fridge
-leave office umbrellas at the door for general use
-only include fresh coffee at meetings
-upgrade all staplers so they work
-give everyone an extra hour a month on their lunchhours to pop out somewhere.

So food for thought. Get the info but make it fun and lively.

Roommates

On Go, a program on CBC radio I heard a charming show about Roommates and how to sell yourself as a roommate.
This struck me as a fun way to introduce the idea of finding common ground. Here's my idea:

Take two very unlikely people, let's say:

Winston Churchill and Martha Stewart. Make them roommates. In your small group come up with a list of good things that would come about from such a partnership. How can each person benefit?

M.S. would be a marvellous cook and a cleaner.
W.C. is used to having someone cook and clean.
W.C. can get high profile guests to come to the home and that should amuse M.S.
W.C. has good manners on the whole.
M.S. should gain financially from this association.
M.S. could be surrounded by good legal advice.
W.C. could introduce M.S. into society and she could develop a line of home fashions for the Brits.

See how the game works. It is just a bit of fun, but really you are looking for the benefits of collaboration.

The Big Globe

http://www.hoberman.com/fold/Sphere/sphere.htm

The Hoberman's Sphere has to be one of the most useful and versatile props you can buy.

It is really worth it to buy the larger one, but the mini one can get you started.

I have used it in so many ways, and when it pops up big the audience always sort of gasps.

Here is one way I use it:

In my keynote "Nobody PowerWalked When I Was a Kid" I am talking about life's challenges. I pull up the small sphere and say,
"This is your mind." Then I jump it up to the huge size and say,

"This is your mind when it is stressed."

Then I kinda act like the sphere is running me down.

Anyhow, think about getting one.

Time Ain't On Your Side

http://beeks.eu/swf/handclock.swf

This is an amazing example of a clock. The last component of this clock is a hand-written number. I don't know how I would use this clock, but something to do with time being precious. Once it has gone it can never be recaptured.