Low Initiatives
Participants are broken into groups of 10-20 people and are given a series of challenges to accomplish as a team.
Objectives and Outcomes
* To experience a situation in which we examine how effectively we draw upon our teams collective knowledge instead of becoming lost in a sea of leaders.
* To notice how and where true leadership emerges in stressful situations.
* To integrate the concepts of quality control and accountability into an experiential, 'hands on' setting where participants really 'feel' these important issues.
* To truely experience the concept of synergism and acknowledge the part that each individual plays in the end result.
Blind Square
The team is blindfolded and then asked to form a circle. The facilitator then enters the circle and places the rope on the ground in front of the team ( either crossed or not) and asks them to reach down and pick it up with both hands. He then leaves the circle and gives the team an objective shape (square, triangle, etc.) for them to form.
When the team feels they have completed the task they then lay down the rope and take off the blindfolds.
Rules:
* Everyone must agree to keep eyes closed or blindfolded throughout the initiative.
* Both hands must remain on the rope at all times.
Objectives and Outcomes
* Participants get to feel demonstration of failures leading to success.
* Participants gain insight on what they personally contribute in solutions of this nature in work and home situations.
* Participants get to see whether they acknowledge themselves or others at the completion of the initiative or if they criticize their efforts.
Blind Trust Walk
The entire team is split into pairs. The pairs decide who is to be blindfolded first and then the "leader" leads the blindfolded person through a flagged course. After they have gone halfway through the partners switch and a new "leader" leads the blindfolded partner through the rest of the course.
Rules:
* Leader must move the partner through the course without talking.
* Blindfolded partner may speak, but must leave blindfold on until instructed to take it off.
Objectives & Outcomes
* Leaders discover subtle ways of communicating and learn to adapt their style to their partners ability and the terrain.
* "Leaders" learn to hold partners as able...
* Blindfolded participants explore the little understood quality of being a good follower: trusting, being receptive to new experiences, and letting go of control.
* The exercise leads to a discussion of common blind spots of leaders, hesitation of followers, and the dynamics of team building based upon mutual trust and support.
Electric Wires/ Spider Web
The entire team is given a story that lets them know that they have a short period of time to get the everyone through the opening(s) in the Electric Fence / Spider Web. The object is for the entire team to get safely through the opening(s) without touching.
Rules:
* You can only pass people through the hole in the wires. Spider holes close up after being used once and can only be reopened after every hole is used.
* Once you go through , you must stay on that side.
* The first person must go through feet first.
* Spotting is crucial to safety and anything deemed unsafe by the Event Director may not be used.
* You have five minutes of strategy time and the event has a time limit overall based on the number going through.
* It's up to you as a team to call touches of the ropes. The Director will not make any calls.
* If the fence / web is touched , everyone needs to start over.
Outcomes & Objectives
* This event is about the issues of integrity and honesty. Participants get to notice how they deal in a team setting with these issues.
* Participants get to notice how the time deadline effects their performance.
* Participants see what their contribution is towards the solution.
Lava Pit
Entire team is given a problem to solve. They are given a group of boards and concrete blocks that are "treated" to resist the obstacle they are to cross. The object is for the entire team to get from one side to the other without falling in or touching anything in "The Lava Pit".
Rules:
* No one touches the ground.
* Boards can only touch the ground for 30 seconds total throughout the event- if they do they are then removed and can't be used.
* No more than four people on any given board at one time.
* If any limb touches the lava, that limb can no longer be used and the person starts over again.
* Team can talk throughout the event.
* The event is timed according to how many are participating.
Objectives & Outcomes
* This exercise is about flexibility- how does the team adapt when circumstances change throughout the event ?
* Participants get to examine what role they play, if any, in the solution.
* Participants get to examine whether or not they stay within the rules, or if they try to 'adjust' them to fit their needs.
T P Shuffle
The team divides in two teams and gets onto a log or telephone pole facing each other. They are then asked to change ends of the pole without touching the ground.
Rules:
* The event is timed.
* Every time someone touches the ground a 15 second penalty is assessed and added to the total time.
* The event is no completed until all members of the team have switched ends and are facing each other.
Objectives & Outcomes
* Team gets to examine how they deal with setbacks and if they blame others.
* Participants realize that creativity is the key to success.
* Participants begin to notice their feelings of wanting to make physical contact with 'strangers' or not and how it feels to let others into my 'space'.
* Participants begin to switch from "me" to "we" as they realize the power of team.
Retrival
Participants are given written instructions one sheet at a time and a number of tools to retrieve some 'magic items' to cure the needs of the team from the center of a 15' in diameter toxic waste dump. The team then decides how to best use their assets and complete the task.
Rules:
* Any strategy deemed unsafe by the event director can not be used.
* If rope is wrapped around a tree it must be done at least twice.
* All team members must remember any liabilities give them in the instructions and abide by them throughout the event.
* Anyone or anything touching the toxic waste will be assessed a liability for the completion of the time left.
* You have 20 minutes to complete the event.
Objectives and Outcomes
* The creativity and ingenuity of the team is challenged as they assess the situation and appreciate the complexity of the event.
* The team gets to examine how apparent liabilities become essential assests as the event unfolds.
* The power of synergism takes over when accessed by the team and propels them to completion with relative ease.
Jurassic Park
Participants are given a set of props and are to remove a cup 2/3rd full of liquid from the center of a circle about 15' in diameter without spilling any of the liquid in the zone.
Rules:
* No one may enter the circle at any time.
* Those participants holding on to the extraction device are blinfolded throughout the event. Everyone else on the team is mute.
* The team has 20 minutes to complete the event.
* The event is not completed until the liquid is removed and none of the liquid is spilled.
Objectives and Outcomes
* Participants get to experience the concept of balance in a fun, non confrontive way.
* Team gets to see how strategy works created by them and whether or not they contribute to the outcome.
* Team gets to express creativity in solutions.
Human Knot
Participants form a circle facing inward. They then drop their hands to their sides and step forward and take , with their right hand, someone elses right hand in the circle. They then take their left hand , and take the left hand of a different person in the circle. They then attempt to unwind the 'knot' to form the original circle.
Rules:
* No one may let go of the hands of anyone they are in contact with.
* The circle may not have everyone in the final solution facing the same direction.
* The event is timed- the team has 15 minutes to complete the event.
Objectives and Outcomes
* This event is about the issues of integrity and honesty. Participants get to notice how they deal in a team setting with these issues.
* Participants get to notice how the time deadline effects their performance.
* Participants see what their contribution is towards the solution.
Hyper Herbie
Participants are given various lengths and shapes of tubing and a small ball. They are then given a beginning and a finishing point are are instructed to get Herbie to the finish line without touching the ground by use of the tubing.
Rules:
* No one may touch the ball with their hands or they start over.
* If the ball touches the ground they start over again.
* The event is timed- the team has 25 minutes to complete the event.
Objectives and Outcomes
* This event is about the issues of integrity and honesty. Participants get to notice how they deal in a team setting with these issues.
* Participants get to notice how the time deadline effects their performance.
* Participants see what their contribution is towards the solution.
* Participants realize that creativity is the key to success.
* Participants get notice their reactions in the competitive mode of a race and examine how that fits into a team setting.