We believe play is the antidote to fear and uncertainty.

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We wanted to give back to our global community during COVID-19. So, in August 2020, we had 120 playful humans  sign-up to receive a daily playful challenge in their inbox.

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Here are our tips on how to get your team to start playing:

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• INVITATION: Remember that we can never force anyone to play, then it's not really play right!? Make this an invitation to have some fun. We often ask groups to think about the idea of PERMISSION..."What do we need to give ourselves permission to do or let go of to have some fun together?"

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• INTROVERTS: We often get clients concerned about their introverted colleagues, but we've learned after years of running playful experiences that EVERYONE wants to play. We have to remember the idea of "invitation" and that we never want to call anyone out. Many of the games we've included are for smaller groups or pairs which is much more accessible for our shy friends!

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• INSIGHTS: Play becomes purposeful when we have time to reflect on our experiences. This is a wonderful chance to get people to open up and learn something about themselves. Because while play is fun, it can be intimidating for adults who haven't used that muscle in a while. Create smaller groups or break outs where 3-4 of your colleagues can chat about how they felt, what they were thinking and if they learned anything about themselves by playing the game. You can ask questions like:

 

-"Did your confidence grow as you got more into the game?"

-"Did you find you wanted to be the best or do it perfectly?

Were you able to let that go and just enjoy without attaching to the outcomes?"

 

You get the gist...

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• CHECK-IN and CHECK-OUT: If you're planning to run a few exercises at once, it's a good idea to create a safe container to play. You can do this by putting your team into smaller groups of 3-4 and ask them how they're feeling to check-in to the space. You can great creative and ask questions like:

-"What's something that's inspired you lately?"

-"What's something that's brought you joy?"

This helps them get into the right mindset to play.

 

You can also check-out by getting them into smaller groups again and reflecting on how they're feeling in that moment and what they liked or took away from the session.

 

If you need any assistance with making these exercises successful, please don't be shy and reach out! 

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