CLICK HERE

8 Variations of Infinite Loops takes a fresh and creative approach to a common team building activity. Each variation can be used as a stand alone, or can be sequenced into an experiential learning and team building program. These variations all focus on creating better teams that are able to work together to solve problems and innovate solutions. To purchase all 8 variations Click Here

Partner Separation

Outcomes & Objectives:

• Get to know others
• Exercise in solution finding
• Developing resiliency
• Communicating lessons learned throughout the group

Materials:

• 1 Infinite Loop per/person. See How to make the Infinite Loop on page 7.

Group Size:

• Ideally 6 – 20 is a good size.
• Larger and smaller groups can accomplish this activity. With adjustments, this activity can be led for as few as two, or as many as 2000 or more.

Time Frame:

• 20 – 45 minutes, including processing.

Preparation:

Ensure that you know how to complete this challenge. Practice, practice, and then practice more. Simply reading this will not prepare you for the possible challenges and the questions you will get from the group.

Go through all of your Infinite Loops and check the knots. Always have more Infinite Loops than people you are expecting.

This activity can take place while people are sitting at a table and/or standing. Make sure that there is sufficient space for people to spread out and move around as necessary.

Instructions and Facilitator Script:

This can be confusing to many people and it should be, allow for confusion and frustration.

Here is one way to introduce the activity. You may choose to modify it for your needed outcomes.

“In a moment, we are going to be involved in a process of problem solving, and working with our brains and team mates to find solutions to complex problems. When working in teams and finding solutions, it doesn’t matter to your brain whether we are separating Infinite Loops, crunching numbers on a spread-sheet, or learning something new. To your brain, solving problems is solving problems. The more we can, as a team, solve problems and then discuss how we solved problems, what was learned and how to apply that back to our lives, the better equipped we will be when these challenges arise outside of here.”

At this point, have the participants get with their partner. There are many ways you can do this, you decide what is best. If there is an odd number of participants make one team of three people, the set up is the same.

Have these guidelines written on a flipchart paper or on a slide.

• The overall objective is to get everyone free from their partner so they can walk away.
• One partner places their wrists in the loops. The other partner then places one of their hands in one loop, takes the other end of the rope and intertwines once with the partner’s rope before placing the other wrist in their loop. You will want to physically show people how to do this.
• Once the partners are connected, the ropes must remain, at all times, on the wrists they started on.
• Partners cannot switch ropes, or take their hands out of the ropes.
• The knots must remain tied as they are and you cannot physically alter the ropes or knots or partners.

Allow a brief time for questions and clarification. Be careful not to reveal too much, this is supposed to be challenging.

As the activity progresses, walk around and observe the teams. Look for information and specific actions that can be brought up during the processing time. For example, if one team or one person knows the answer do they share and help the rest of the team or do they keep the information to themselves? The objective is for the information to spread and everyone to be free from their partner. This is when your judgment as a facilitator is needed. How much do you interfere with the team? When should you comment?

Allow the group to work on the task for about 10 minutes. Next, ask everyone to stop and gather around you.

Ask some initial questions:

• What is your initial reaction to this activity?
• What if anything is working so far?
• How are you measuring progress and setbacks?
• How might you act if you knew the solution?

“In a moment I am going to show you the solution. Following that, you are going to go back to your partner and practice for three minutes. Practice getting separated, then reconnect, then separate again. Even when you think you know it, keep practicing, we want to move your skills from rote copying to personal mastery of this process.”

Verbal Instructions this can be tricky, practice.

• Step 1: Partner and you face each other.
• Step 2: Grab the middle of your partner’s rope
• Step 3: Take your partners rope and it goes from your elbow UP your palm
• Step 4: Over your fingers
• Step 5: Down the back of your hand
• Step 6: A slight pull and you are separated!

Allow at least three minutes for practice and mastery. Walk around and offer tutoring and help as needed. Remind the teams to keep practicing this skill.

Following the three minutes for mastery, pull the team together for some processing.

Facilitator Notes:

As mentioned earlier, YOU MUST MASTER THIS.

Sometimes when separating, the ropes will wrap twice around each other this happened because you sent the rope to the wrong wrist. This explanation is often the most challenging to explain. Practice will make you a master at this.

Remember that this challenge is about finding solutions and developing resiliency. Let the team struggle. When you feel the energy dropping, you may supply some clues.

Potential Processing Questions:

· At what point did this activity seem impossible?

· What made you continue, even though it may have seemed impossible?

· What was the objective of this challenge?

· Did you notice that in the beginning everyone did the same thing?

· Why was that?

· On a scale of 0 – 10; with 0 being “give up easily” and 10 being “never give up” where would you place yourself?

· If you were two points higher on the same scale, how would you approach problems differently?

· Do you currently approach anything like that already, even a little bit?

· Looking at what you accomplished so far, what lessons can you take with you?

· How might you apply those lessons outside of here?

This is a sample of my new Team Building Booklet 8 Variations of Infinite Loops. This is 1 of the variations….for ALL 8 and they are very excellent you can purchase the entire Team Building Book.

CLICK HERE

michael cardus is create-learning

Handling complexity is at the heart of competence to find solutions. How managers solve problems is in turn at the heart of how they are regarded by their staff, and also the strength of their managerial-leadership. To have managers that understand complexity is crucial for an organization to survive and thrive.

This is the solution to increasing your ability to work with complexity and change.

Outcomes

• Gain competence in Information Complexity that will lead to improved decision-making and problem solving for the organization;
• Gain competence in Problem Complexity that will lead to greater success in achievement of long-term organizational goals and organizational innovations in services, processes and procedures;
• Assess for subordinates and self, the Current-Actual-Level of Information and Problem Complexity;
• Assess the Organization’s Current-Actual-Level of Information and Problem Complexity;
• Increase quality completion of goals and task assignment, due to proper delegation in the proper way with the proper level of complexity and change;
• Use Tools and Methods to coach and mentor subordinates to flourish into their potential and increase their own ability to handle complexity and change. This leads to a stronger succession plan for the future of the organization.

Situation

Managerial-Leaders are challenged by the need to deal with some of the most complex issues in the organization requiring decision making and problem solving, even at times when the future is unclear or uncertain.

Innovation and critical thinking are essential skills. The ability to handle organizational complexity goes beyond strategic planning as managerial-leaders need to take action and increase their ability to deal with ambiguity and complexity.

The best strategic plans cannot be implemented without the skills to engage in critical thinking, manage organizational complexity, make decisions, innovate and solve problems. Decisions have to be made to address current issues as well as those what will arise in 2-5 years. Many aspects have to be considered such as Federal/State/Local politics, changing regulations, increasing or changing staff and customer needs, vendor issues, overlapping systems with differing needs and priorities, as well as staff competencies and training needs.

This training program supplies senior leaders with evidence-based tools and strategies to navigate change and the increasing complexity that exists within organizations. Role competence requires that senior staff lead the organization through times of complexity, high levels of ambiguity, and change.

As a person is promoted within the organization, the concrete, day-to-day operations become less important and the conceptual, year-to-year operations become more important. Very few leaders are trained and able to handle this change from day-to-day operation to month-to-month to year-to-year. In order for the organization to thrive and last, long term plans must be made to address an often ambiguous future.

Content will supply Managerial-Leaders with the knowledge and tools to make the best decisions they can through times of complexity and change. All people in organizations work with complexity and change. Senior staff must be capable of understanding the more complex systems, translating the plan and goals to their subordinates, then ensuring that the subordinates have the necessary ability and resources to complete their work and handle their own complexity and change.

Time Frames

The ideal process time is approximately 18 hours of classroom training with 12 hours of consulting, and application coaching. The training, consulting and coaching are best used over a 6 to 8 month period of time. This way Managerial-Leaders have the opportunity to test, apply, and learn from success and failure in the field. Contact Mike (1-716-629-3678) to discuss options and your organizational needs.

This is meant to be real-work on real-complex organizational problems.

If you are looking for something shorter below is the break down of the workshops. Plan on each taking approximately 6 hours of training with 4 hours of consulting and coaching. Contact Mike to discuss options and your organizational needs.

Content

What is Organizational Complexity and Change?

Overview: Complexity is determined by the number of factors, the rate of change of those factors, and the ease of identification of the factors in the situation. Complexity is separated into two categories

1. Information Complexity: Human work is concerned with the use of judgment and decision making. The complexity of the work will be expressed in the complexity of the information which a person uses in problem-solving.

2. Problem Complexity: The complexity of a problem does not lie in the complexity of the goal, but in the complexity of the pathway that has to be constructed and then traversed in order to get to the goal.

Content will focus on gaining understanding of Information and Problem Complexity, its direct application to senior staff, and illustrate a systemic process of moving the organization toward achievement of long-term goals.

Determining the Current-Actual-Level of Information and Problem Complexity

Overview: Leading through complexity and change within an organization requires a thorough knowledge of the organization as a whole and peoples’ Current-Actual-Level and comfort in dealing with complexity and change. Once this is known then the proper plans and skills for making change happen and managing can be matched to the right team, person and process.

Content will cover the 5 step formula for determining Current-Actual-Level of information and problem complexity. Steps to properly match organizational goals and objective within a time-frame that makes the work achievable. Additional focus will be spent on managing change and creating solution focused steps to build upon organizational and people’s existing strengths, developing a culture that continually improves through complexity and change.

Leading through Complexity & Change in Action

Overview: Once the foundational knowledge and organizational understanding of Information and Problem Complexity is understood, there are a series of tools that can be used to implement the process. Managerial-Leaders will use these tools to solve and handle complexity and change that they are currently dealing with. This session will provide a feedback system to enhance the decision making and problem solving of the participants.

Content will cover the use of Plan:Do:Check:Act models for setting short term measurements of success and failure. Examining various complexity and change tools to assist the leader in understanding, planning and ensuring the proper level of focus to achieve organizational goals. Additionally participants will use a Coaching for Performance Model to develop subordinates to better work with Complexity and change, creating a stronger succession plan within the organization.

How your organization, management and you manage complexity & change will move you into your potential.

Click the box below to be the reason success happens.

michael cardus is create-learning

image by by DenisHennessy

In Standardization is the first step to innovation, Alan Kay Wrote, “…every team is different. I think you have to take the principles and practices you mention, align them with the goals of the organization and decide where to place the emphasis. The application would vary greatly if you were running a highly regulated business, e.g., healthcare vs. an innovative internet retailing business.”

I agree that the emphasis may be different for different teams and industries. And every organization and person, in order to do their best work at their maximum effectiveness seeks personal mastery. 

For innovation to take place the person traverses through 3 phases of learning. Rote Copying, Surface Understanding, Personal Mastery. 

Using the examples Alan supplied lets see how innovation of process and the need for standardization applies.

HealthCare: Is regulated yes, and being that I have had my blood drawn and seen blood drawing at 5 different facilities in the past year that will my example. Each facility and individual when drawing blood has their own way of completing this task. They use different techniques, tell different stories. I have even seen a variety of needles, tubes, containment systems…The way they arrange the needles, the steps they take, etc…

All of this is their judgment and decision in solving the problems that arise during their tasks. This ‘personalized’ technique and for some great skills set (some phlebotomists are amazing and you cannot even feel the needle, some are really horrible they dig and poke and leave bruises) came from;

• Rote Copying in Medical and / or Nursing school, plus some residency or apprenticeship. Where they were watched and told to just follow the steps.
• Surface Understanding As the comfort level increased and the professor, managers, peers coached and showed they tricks they began to “get a feel” for how drawing blood works.
• Personal Mastery after several years the gains in process innovation in blood drawing are great, and they now have their own process that is still within the regulations.

This one feels obvious, because what the Nurse does is routine day in and day out from what we see. But with every step in the process he has to use his judgment about the environment, patient, time, and several other factors.

Innovative Internet Retailing Business: Perhaps not as regulated as healthcare and still there are Goals, Roles, Procedures that exist either explicitly they are part of a training manual, shared understood, known to the employee. Or implicitly Not documented although exist as part of the unspoken rules and norms of the organization.

The people who make up this business all must operate within the assigned Goals, Roles and Procedures of the company-otherwise the company would not exist. While we may think that Rote Copying, Surface Understanding, and Personal Mastery doesn’t apply to what is called innovative business, it  still does.

A Customer Representative from this company is the example. All customer reps in this company like the phlebotomist above have their own way of solving problem and making decisions, within the boundaries of their work. These boundaries are often called Policies & Procedures, Local Operating Standards (LOP) Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) etc… Their own person mastery of how they answer the customer request, interact, calm irate people, solve problems etc…

All of this is their judgment and decision in solving the problems that arise during their tasks. This ‘personalized’ technique and for some great skills set (some customer service reps are amazing, some are really horrible) came from;

• Rote Copying they had to learn how to answer the phone, use the computer system, communicate with other sales reps and departments within the company, speak to a customer, etc… This all happened in a combination of on the job and possibly from other workplaces. They just copy what they see and are coached evaluated by more senior members and managers.
• Surface Understanding After some time the rep. begins to work on his own, taking calls, solving problems and dealing with customers. From the rote copying, she knows some boundaries and best practices from others. The understanding of how the system works and how to interact with the customer increases. Still the manager and senior members supply coaching and feedback.
• Personal Mastery Now the rep. is examining her own process for working with customers and finds their own tricks and steps to improve the work within the given set of boundaries. Using relationship and continuous improvement to master the innovative internet retail business.

At any given moment all of us, whether in work, relationships, life are Rote Copying, Surface Understanding, and Personally Mastering many things and many times at many levels.

What an organization needs to do it acknowledge this and develop a system where everyone consistently is improving their work. The managers job is to learn how each person is improving their work, encourage everyone to teach and share what and how they are improving, then unify this knowledge in such a way that others can learn from it.

Whether you are mopping a floor, to selling a car, to designing the next innovative patent … It starts with copying what already exists, developing an understanding of how and why it works, then mastering and evolving the process to match your needs and situation.

michael cardus is create-learning

image by kevin dooley

The learning process goes through 3 phases

• Rote Copying
• Surface Understanding
• Personal Mastery
• to read more click here 

Standardization is the first step to innovation

Without the standard of a Rote-Copying method then Surface Understanding to Personal Mastery, innovation cannot take place. Because we have no standard to measure against and move forward and backwards. The lack of a standard to create small-wins and lead us through rapid PDCA cycles. 

Friction is needed for mastery.

The solution is knowing that these 3 phases exist and purposely developing managers through a standardized process, the same way you would teach someone how to use a new machine for the 1st time.

Delegation as an example.

Rote Copying

The managers manager (who is accountable for the output of the manager) teaches the manager a step by step method of how to delegate and follow-up on delegation of tasks a shared standard. The manager copies this method step-by-step with the coaching of their manager.

Surface Understanding

Once the manager has the basics, they delegate again following the steps. They may vary slightly off the steps using their own words and interpretation BUT they are still following the standardized system that was established by their manager. By following the standardized process the manager can receive coaching and feedback about their effectiveness in delegating tasks.

Personal Mastery

Now comes to possible variations only once understanding, coaching and feedback plus metrics and solutions are found and transferred into skilled-knowledge. The manager may find that the order of the standardized steps are cumbersome and she can now change them to better achieve the objectives. This still happens with coaching and feedback from their manager. NOW the manager can evaluate effectiveness in a different category, because the time was taken to move beyond Rote and Surface Understanding.

Now Your Turn;

How might we standardize management practices within organizations? What benefits would this have on inter and intra departmental collaboration? If all managers and staff use the same standardized method, what would be the effects on teamwork?

michael cardus is create-learning

“First you copy, Then Understand, Finally you master. Once you master then innovation inevitably happens.”

Problem

As a working professional you are expected to walk into the door already being a master of the work you do. This is tough because mastery of a process and work may take years.

I see people just fake-it. Quickly learning by drowning then that one swimming-stroke saved them, it’s all they ever use.

For example, a new manager who has to set-goals, develop plans and delegate tasks BUT was never taught a method for how to do this. It was just assumed that once you become a manager you know these things. The manager freaks out (learning by drowning) YELLS at someone, poorly delegates the work. The project gets completed, however it is late, over budget and the below quality.

The project got-done, no-one supplied this manager with any feedback. What he did must have worked, right?

Solution

Any learning process goes through 3 phases

• 1. Rote Copying – Mimicking and doing exactly what the directions, LOP, Policies Procedure, teacher, trainer, etc… does. There is no room for interpretation just following the steps.
• 2. Surface Understanding – following the Rote Copying you begin to create an understanding for how to get things done. The learning becomes more than just copying. You are now understanding why and when and how to do the steps.
• 3. Personal Mastery – following Surface Understanding you enter the personal mastery phase. The learning becomes innate, you do the work without much thought about the details. In this phase you have mastered the basics so much that you begin to create your own new, unique and useful solutions to the work. Innovation comes from mastery.

Now your turn;

How did you learn to become so competent at your current work? Did you go through these 3 phases? How might we develop a standard for developing managers and teams using Rote Copying; Surface Understanding; Personal Mastery?

michael cardus is create-learning

image by by jinterwas

Leading and working with teams, the people who make up the team have a desire for Self-Direction (autonomy) to make their own choices AND have a desire to be Other-Directed (dependence) to be told what to do. Each has there benefits and challenges.

Each person and the collection of people on the team have varying levels of comfort with ambiguity. Each team, based upon their past, level to handle complexity, and comfort with each other, have varying levels of comfort with ambiguity.

The Inquiry;

How much autonomy? How much dependence? Where do you find the balance? Does it really matter?

Share your ideas.

By the way I shared a similar question on my FaceBook page and my friend Jim gave me an interesting response, Mina is his dog;

“When we work in agility, Mina responds very well to me when I am confident in our transitions. If I falter on the course, or appear unstructured, she bites me. Apparently unstructure is a problem for everyone.”

michael cardus is create-learning

image from by pshutterbug