Team Building and Creative Thinking

Entrepreneur School Chelmsford with Speakers Yvonne and Rachel Morton from whYaRe Inspired Ltd

whYaRe Inspired Ltd are Mother and Daughter team Yvonne and Rachel Morton who were the guest speakers at Entrepreneur School Chelmsford on 16th of September 2009.

Yvonne is an experienced management accountant, a qualified further education tutor and accredited coach. She has worked in both the private and public sector and run her own successful business.

Rachel is a qualified drama drama teacher with a BS (Hons) degree in Drama and Theatre Studies. She specialises in training from a drama perspective through her "Confidence in Drama" courses. Her courses not only help people gain confidencebut improve their presentation and vocal skills.

The evening was a little different to what ES Chelmsford had experienced in previous meetings with audience participation being the order of the day! The event split into a number of groups and were given two tasks. Here are the two exercises whYaRe inspired hosted on the evening's event.

Team Building – Creative Play

With Rachel Morton

The following was read out by one member of the group with a bag containing a number of items to make a costume from.

To be read by one member of the group

Task

• One member of your team is to be the 'superhero' and is to be dressed in the costume.
• Another member of the team is to be an 'outside observer'. They are to use the sheet provided to observe the goings on during the activity. At no point during the activity is the 'observer' allowed to interact with the rest of the team they must only take notes.
• You have a maximum of ten minutes to complete the task.

When the ten minutes are up the 'superhero' and one member of the team is to present their superhero to the other groups.

The team member must tell the other groups:

• 1.The Superhero Name
• 2.How they became a superhero
• 3.Super power
• 4.Arch enemy
• 5.Weakness
• 6.And describe what their costume entails.

Remember:

• Never apply sticky tape to skin, hair etc.
• Do not draw on skin, clothing etc.
• Ensure the 'superhero' is happy with what you are doing to them.
• The 'superhero' is a part of the team and can contribute ideas throughout.
• The outside observer must not interact with group during the ten minutes.
• Be imaginative, be creative.
• Most of all have fun!

Following ten minutes of frantic activity each group brought their Superhero to the front to talk about their them. Some were very good, some were very bad and some were rather naughty! But the point was made that everyone lost their inhibitions and mucked in.

After a short break for coffee and networking the groups reassembled to take on the second task presented by Yvonne

Creative Thinking

The objective of this exercise is to help your brain think in different directions. We can get too bogged down in the day to day running of our business and its work that we miss opportunities or ways to improve.

Points to remember:

FEAR OF FAILURE STIFLES INNOVATION & CREATIVITY

Do not be afraid to get things wrong

THERE ARE NO BARRIERS ONLY THOSE IN YOUR OWN MIND

In this exercise forget about things like lack of money, people will laugh or planning permission etc. Just put down your ideas however wacky or impossible they may seem.

ANY IDEA IS VALID IGNORE YOUR CRITICS

Don't listen to people who tell you it's a stupid idea or they don't like it. It is your idea and valid.

SPOT THE GORILLA (THE HIDDEN OPPORTUNITY), this is from a short film where you are asked to watch some people playing basket ball and to count how many times the people in white t-shirts pass the ball. At the end you are asked if you saw anything unusual. Most people don't. During the film a person in a gorilla costume strolls through the action, but as you are concentrating on the white t-shirts and the ball you miss the gorilla. In business it could be missing that opportunity because you are so focused on what you are doing you don't see the wider picture

The exercise:

Each group was given a basket with different objects in it and asked to relate these to problems or business – it was left open to the individuals as to whether they wanted to do this as a team or as individuals. They were asked to write down the thoughts that came into their heads.

The objects included:
acrobats, boxes, dog, cow, goldfish, frog, pine cone, paint brush, pipe cleaner, clothes pegs, candle, light bulb, whistle.

There is no right or wrong answer but some of the thoughts that come from this are as follows:

• Candle to light bulb – this was a huge move forward in its time
• Acrobats – the need to support each other
• Frog – makes leaps forward
• Ring box – partnerships
• Paintbrush – do my premises need redecorating, are they customer friendly?

The groups were given 15 minutes to complete this exercise.

This exercise would normally take place over the space of a morning or afternoon session and would include, amongst other things, visualisation techniques to start with and a moving forward on the strength of ideas to conclude. The brief evening taster session did not allow for this.

We would all like to thank Yvonne and Rachel for an evening that was not only fun but made us all think in a different direction and show us how approaching a task from a different direction to the way we are used to can reap rich rewards!

Contact whYaRe Inspired Ltd

57 Rylstone Way,Saffron Walden, Essex. CB11 3BL.
Tel: 01799 526661
W: www.whyareinspired.co.uk
E: whyareinspired.co.uk