Group games about change

Why it's useful: Illustrating the importance of gaining new perspectives can help people see the benefits of change. The more perspectives we have, the more opportunity we have to notice new and positive attributes.

Using a large poster or whiteboard, write one specific change you want to see or explore. Draw a line down the middle of your board and label the lefthand column "driving forces" and the righthand column "restraining forces.

Next to each force, write a score of 0 to 5 to indicate how much this force will impact the change positively or negatively. Brainstorm ideas on increasing driving forces and reducing restraining forces identified by the group.

Why it's useful: Understanding the forces that both drive your initiative forward and work against it will help you and your employees create the most effective plan to achieve the change. On a large poster or whiteboard, draw four columns and label each Project, Purpose, Particulars and People.

Ask participants to write down how they believe a specific change will affect each of the four categories, then write down each concern for the group. Discuss the concerns as a team. This can alleviate stress and reduce resistance to change.

Ask participants to write down five of their major life experiences, then pair into groups of two. Participants should share one life change with their partner, including why the change was difficult, how they felt at the beginning, how they overcame it and how they felt after the change.

Why it's useful: This exercise demonstrates that it's possible to overcome issues arising from change. Negative feelings may not always last once the change happens and time has passed. Divide into teams of three to five people, and give each team 25 index cards and a roll of tape.

Set a five-minute timer and ask the groups to construct the tallest tower they can with their materials. Measure which team had the highest tower, then ask them to destroy their towers. Give each team 25 more index cards and ask them to build another tower in five minutes — this time with no tape. Measure the new towers again. Why it's useful: Participants learn that challenges stemming from change can be mitigated through creative teamwork and support.

Split your group into teams of five to six and ask each to come up with an inventive business idea. Each group member should have a role, such as planner, designer and marketer. After the groups have strategized for 10 minutes, move a few participants around to other groups and introduce one new aspect the business idea must contain. Allow the new groups 10 more minutes to strategize with the new information. After the class gets situated and comfortable, the facilitator should ask participants to change seats.

If participants move back to their old seating arrangements after the exercise is over, ask the following questions:. This is what makes the exercise powerful. Another twist to this game might be asking participants to change seats frequently, which also can help them enhance their personal ability to deal with change.

Begin with the preceding questions. At some point participants will begin to refer to the changes made during the exercise. When this starts to happen, ask the following questions:. When providing instructions for this exercise, obtain agreement from the participants that they will maintain whatever changes are made until the exercise is over.

Prompt the group to think about and share their own personal emotions related to making changes. Some participants may make the point that these changes are not like changes being made in the organization.

Change is one of the most difficult things for humans to readily accept. If we can utilize games to better illustrate change, why not use them? While some adults see games in class as childish, as long as the games are not too ridiculous, many adults are willing to give them a try. I have been in a training similar using 3 exercise and it really helped me to think about how change affects everyone. The most interesting part was the leader also made changes along with the group he had everyone in the pair make the changes.

His point was the leaders must be ready to change as well. How many of us had changed back? That message hit home the hardest — may be easy to change temporarily, but not permanently. He still stood in front of us with a paper plate taped to his head. Nice article, I love the games you chose. Cheers, [email protected]. Emphasize that while change can seem scary, it is often for the best. One problem some people have during times of transition is the inability to focus on anything but the change.

This exercise helps remind your team of the importance of focusing in an ever-changing environment. To play, put everyone in a line and then tell the person on one side that she is number one, the person beside her is two, etc.

Tell everyone to not only remember her own number but also the number of everyone else in the game. Explain that when someone says her number, she needs to say the number of someone else who is still in the game. If she does not reply when someone says her number or she says the number of someone else, she is out of the game. The game lasts until only two people are left, each of whom remember one another's numbers. After the game is over, remind everyone of how important it is to pay attention and focus on your work, even when things are changing drastically and rapidly.

Jill Harness is a blogger with experience researching and writing on all types of subjects including business topics. She specializes in writing SEO content for private clients, particularly attorneys.

You can find out more about Jill's experience and learn how to contact her through her website, www. Ella Laine Roche , … amyl Breathwork Mechanics and Interactivity. On a mission to create , skilled jobs for African Digital Designers. Meaningful Gigs has built a strong community of African designers for Creative, Marketing, and. Please share Annual Life. Game Design Challenge launched!

Global Top Round conference applications ending soon! I wanted to post this here to inform those who might benefit from the information: Video. But we also need your help. Alice Project at Carnegie Mellon University is looking for a director. It's my first time posting here so apologies in advance for any mishaps!

I'm an. VR for high school physics students. Hello, Oz! Please, check out our VR games.