From this point in the book, Mendes proposes a number of exercises with the implicit goal of enforcing a relationship with either the facilitator or with other students. In my current position, I don't think much of this is applicable, but I do think it could be that way in a differen tposition.
The exercises in this chapter are geared around pairing people up. I'll summarize the exercises briefly:
1. What's Up? - Pair people off and allow each participant to talk for 60 seconds about whatever crosses their mind. Each listener should note non-verbals, emotional "flavor" and content.
2. - Highs and Lows - This time each member discusses their highest high of the week and lowest low.
3. Walk & Talk - In this set-up, each pair goes outside for a ten minute walk to discuss a topic of their choosing. Mendes makes a really odd note how this is particularly helpful for males, who like movement, as if it weren't just as beneficial to women. So, ignoring that, movement was something we covered in 624 as a helpful factor in learning retention - engaging the body while learning is shown to be a cognitive trigger.
4. Animals, Plants, or Machines - This activity actually is more topic-focused, so I found it more currently relevant than the others - it asks each member of a pair to pick one of the three things to describe how they feel with a process they just learned. I thought about ways I might answer - in some classes, I think I was like an elevator - needing to stop at each floor and reflect before being able to move on.
5. 3 Question Focus - This might be useful for a group that meets on a regular basis - kind of a reflective and proactive process. The three questions - What did I learn yesterday?; What am I thankful for right now? ; What do I promise for today? - kind of a past/present/future review with a partner.
As far as technical training goes, I think the first two might be a good icebreaker within a group of students, and the last one might be a good closer for a session. I think #4 is a creative way to get at any issues a user might have.
I'm not familiar with the technical field, but I think I can see where the points in this book are geared more for education. My book is focused on a business perspective - so we each have to adapt the reading to fit our needs.
ReplyDeleteOn brief modification on this that I have used at work is that at the end of your day everyone states on good point or thing that happens. This really helps the staff relax and not bring work home with them. We found that it worked best with our phone technicians who have been working with clients for 7 or 8 hours handling a variety of calls which bring up so many emotions and challenges. I had one staff member that would stimulate this conversation every night before she left. It was a great exercise.
ReplyDeleteIt's funny that you mention this because this is my nightly routine with my son. Each night, we share two good things that happened during the day. It's a nice reminder that every day has some slice of positivity in it. My son gets really agitated if I try to skip that part of our routine. :)
DeleteWe had the same routine with our kids. I guess we never grow out of it :)
DeleteErin, what a good way for your co-workers to relax. I'd like to implement this technique professionally as well.