So, I have a new position at work, I am the Director of Training & Customer Relations Coordinator. I love it. I’ve been there for thirteen years and FINALLY the job I want (newly created!)
So anyways, tonight I go online looking for games that I can do at different seminars to make them more fun. I already do a Jeoparady game, which has been very successful, but now I want a little variety.
I am having no luck. So I turning to all you wonderful people for any ideas. Anything you have done while attending a seminar or training, or anything you do.
I cover topics such as customer service, food safety, positional training, hiring, management, as well as seminars that are specific to certain jobs within the company.
I remember having to do blindfolded taste tests once - we had to try and guess which brand of nuts we were eating and then we tried cola drinks. Can’t remember why we were doing it though, prolly something to do with branding.
One of the more interesting games I played at a seminar was this. The instructor had an extremely long pole (like 12 foot long). People got on either side of the pole and stuck out a finger on each hand.
The pole was placed on the outstretched fingers. The object was to move the pole to the floor without anyone losing contact with the pole.
It was fun, and harder than you can imagine.
(The pole was made from pvc pipes that were joined together - made so that the instructor could disassemble the pole and transport it easily)
If you have some sort of diversity training, you migth be interested in looknig up a game called Barnga. Basically its a simple card game, kinda like war. The 2 twists are that nobody is allowed to talk during the game and that each player is given a slightly different set of rules to start. For example one persons rules may say “highest card takes the trick” andother might say “aces are highest, not lowest” another might say that “hearts are a trump suit” etc. This leads to a lot of glaring and pent-up anger. Of course, then you talk about it afterwards, to get the point that different people see things differently.
My friend went through training with me where this game was used. He’s a competitive guy, and towards the end he got so irritated he literally stood up and refused to play any more. The instructors say it was the first time they’d seen anyone ever do that.
You can keep it simple – but create incentive. An outside software company came in to do some training for a co-promotion; their trainer asked questions at the end to re-emphasize key points. Correct answers got a silver dollar; interest levels were MUCH higher than normal for the conclusion of a presentation.