Networking

As attendees broke into small groups, they were asked to work together to come up with a networking activity that they would like to see us use at a future chapter meeting. The winning team, as decided by participant applause, would be awarded a free chapter meeting – at which they would facilitate the activity for meeting attendees.

Ideas that the teams came up with included

• ASTD Bingo, where people would complete Bingo cards by answering questions related to training
• Screen Rotation, in which questions would be displayed on the screen and teams would discuss the questions to form an team response
• Business Card Swap, when participants would be paired up to introduce them selves, giving the other person their card. After 5 minutes the pairs would break up and reassemble, but this time the participants would introduce themselves as the person on the card they had received, not as themselves, and once again give ‘their’ card to their partner. Following 5 rounds, people would volunteer to introduce themselves (as the person on the card they now hold). Will the real person recognize him or herself based on this introduction?
• 35, in which participants write an observation or question on to a 3X5 card. Participants are given a set period of time to exchange cards as many times as they can. Being sure they do not have their own cards, participants are broken into pairs and given a set time to award a total of 7 point to the two cards they hold. No half points are allowed. The pairs break apart and reassemble, again awarding a total of 7 points to the two cards they hold. After 5 rounds, the points awarded to each card are totaled to find the winners.

Congratulations to Melisa Winham, Cyrene Christian, and Noreen McNew who won a free chapter meeting for their 35 networking activity. Join us at the September meeting when they will facilitate the activity for the chapter.

ASTD Competency Model

Following the networking activity, we had a brief discussion of the foundational skills in ASTD’s competency model, reflecting on those skills we draw upon so often that they become second nature.

Collaboration=YES, Group Think=NO

The majority of the meeting was devoted to a Rapid Robin where attendees moved between three outstanding sessions. We explored de Bono’s Six Thinking Hats, lateral thinking tools like random word and concept triangles, and considered what it looks like inside a red pen or a blue pen company. A huge thank you to Bill Bellows, Tim Higgins, and Cade Wilson for facilitating these informative sessions!

So what exactly do you think of when you hear the word taxi, and what could that possibly have to do with bathtubs? Don’t know? Then you missed out on some real learning fun. What a meeting!

See you in June!