We all know that dysfunctional teams are often underpinned by defensiveness, but even functional groups can take time to 'gel' . Who can blame people from protecting themselves when they are unsure about others in the room. Even with team mates, there can be an initial tension an uneasyness. Breaking this tension can be done quickly by generating the trust chemical Oxytocin. This neurochemical is is widely referred to as the bonding chemical. It is powerful and produced in huge amounts at the time of childbirth - bonding mother and child for ever. In general it seems to impact levels of trust in humans - and particularly in social groups. For a group to develop trust, some interactive activities can stimulate oxytocin very quickly. This enables people to get on with the meeting without barriers to discussion.
Facilitators have known about the need for 'Ice breaker' activities for years. I use many different methods that enable people to relax together - all involve moving, looking at each other and having fun. The combination of smiling, eye contact and touching in a safe way usually starts the Oxytocin flowing. Recently, with this neuroscience knowledge, we created an easy and fun card game called 'Spark'. This is a card sort which sparks the production of Oxytocin at the start of a session but can also be used later as a source of metaphors for creative idea generation. The attached video was filmed with group of retail managers but I have also used the cards recently with a senoir HR team and groups of executive leaders. It seems that whatever our position or organisation, we are all human and relate better and faster when Oxytocin production is encouraged!
These cards are available for sale on the workplace wisdom web site http://www.workplacewisdom.co.nz/main.php?content=shop We are selling the last few packs of our first print run for only NZ $39.95 per pack and less for bulk. Thanks to Jane Francis for creating the You tube video.
Facilitators have known about the need for 'Ice breaker' activities for years. I use many different methods that enable people to relax together - all involve moving, looking at each other and having fun. The combination of smiling, eye contact and touching in a safe way usually starts the Oxytocin flowing. Recently, with this neuroscience knowledge, we created an easy and fun card game called 'Spark'. This is a card sort which sparks the production of Oxytocin at the start of a session but can also be used later as a source of metaphors for creative idea generation. The attached video was filmed with group of retail managers but I have also used the cards recently with a senoir HR team and groups of executive leaders. It seems that whatever our position or organisation, we are all human and relate better and faster when Oxytocin production is encouraged!
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