Simulation Exercises

As HR professionals, there are times in our lives when we have to address large crowds at short
notice, there are times when you have to walk into a classroom full of strange and disinterested
faces, and there are times when you have to sound funny and engaging though you do not feel
funny and engaged inside.
This little compilation of Simulation Exercises is to equip you during such times in your
professional careers.
If you find this useful, share it with people who would find it useful too.
All the best!
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INDEX
1. ICE BREAKERS
Getting Acquainted
The Mystery Person
The Whole Room Handshake
Working the Room
Bingo Game
The Human Spider Web
Merry Birthday? /Happy Christmas?
I’ve Got A Secret
Mutual Introductions
Interviews
Badgering
2. Team Building
What’s Our Name? Logo? Slogan?
Do You Remember?
What Do I (We) Want In Life?
What Do I (We) Want In Life? What Are My Values? ---- 4
Trust Me ----- 7
3. Sales
Thinking on Your Feet
Handling Objections in Sales Training
It’ll Never Fly, Wilbur!
Bingo Review
Customer Service Categories
Top Three
Empathy
Why
Upset
2-Minute Drill
Five Ideas
Sales Styles: A Role Experience
4. Assertiveness
Consensus
Appreciative Disagreements
Am/Seem
The Chairs
First Impressions
Just a Minute
Decisions, Decisions!
5. Communication
On Your Face
Selves and Possibilities
Transmitting Information
A Read and Do Test
A Nonverbal Introduction
Arithmetic Test
Listening Test: Riddles
Listening And Following Directions
One- And Two-Way Communication
Yin-Yang
Competency: Managing Conflict- Interpersonal Communication Practices
Preconceived Notion
6. Brain teasers
Brain Teasers 1
Brain Teasers 2
Brain Teasers 3
Brain Teasers 4
7. Setting challenging goals

Ring Toss Game
Tower Building
Boat Making
Getting Acquainted
Genre: ICE Breaker 1
Objective:
To enable first-time attendees in a training session to become acquainted with other participants: to help
build a climate of friendliness and informality.
Procedure:
Each person is given a blank nametag and asked to put his or her first name or nickname on it. Then they
are asked to list five words or brief phrases that tell something about themselves that can be used as
conversation starters. Examples could be home states, hobbies, children, etc. An illustration follows:
Mary (Freckles)
1. Arizona resident
2. Wisconsin native
3. Football nut
4. Jogger
5. Disco enthusiast
After giving the group enough time (about 5 minutes) to write down their 5 items, have them start mixing
around in groups of 2-3 (maximum). Every few minutes, tell the group to “change partners” in order to
encourage everyone to meet as many new people as possible.
Discussion Questions:
1. Was this exercise helpful to you in getting to know some other people?
2. What kinds of items made the greatest impact on you?
3. How do you now feel about your involvement in this group?
Materials Required:
Blank stick-on nametags
Approximate Time Required:

Flexible, depending on group size, Minimum time 15 minutes.
The Mystery Person
Genre: ICE Breaker2
Objective:
To encourage newcomers and “old-timers” to make new acquaintances and get them to mix with other
participants
Procedure:
At larger conferences or meetings, the new attendee is often left alone and may have difficulty in getting
acquainted. The established cliques are hard to crack and the first-time attendee may feel completely
apart from—rather than -a part -of- -the group.
To encourage all participants to be more friendly with everyone: designate (in advance and secretly)
someone as Mr. or Ms. Mystery Person. Prior to-and during-the first few sessions, promote the exercise by
publicizing, “Shake hands with the Mystery Person. He (she) will give you $1.”(Or every 10th person gets
$5, etc).
Properly publicized, this exercise can be both fun and rewarding. It is especially useful for breaking the ice
and creating a warm and friendly atmosphere.
1. Why are we reluctant to meet new people? (Each new encounter is a challenge to “sell”
ourselves a
learn about others)
2. What was the impact of a possible cash incentive on your behavior? (Met more people; talked with
them
only superficially)
3. What are some useful conversation-openers that can help us overcome our reticence?
Materials Required:
Cash prizes

As desired
Source: Louise Bowker, Meetings and Conventions, October, 1975
The Whole Room Handshake
Genre: ICE Breaker3
Objective:
To have participants meet at least half of the entire group.
Procedure:
Have group form into two large circles—one inside the other. Participants in the inner circle turn and face
those in the outer ring, quickly introduce themselves and continually move to right. The outer circle
rotates left and the inner circle rotates right until all participants meet each other.
(NOTE: This activity works best with groups of 100 or less.)
Material Required:
None.
Time Required:
10 minutes.
Source: Maggie Bedrosian, The Synergy Group, Silver spring, MD.
Working The Room
Genre: ICE Breaker4
A major purpose of an opening activity is to help participants get acquainted with each other. Here’s an
opener that identifies and rewards participants who would make good politicians.
Purpose
To energize participants and to encourage interaction among them.
Time
15 - 20 minutes
Participants
10 to 30
Preparation
Prepare copies of an instruction sheet presenting the following content with suitable modifications:
Working-the-Room Contest!
We want you to meet and interact with as many other participants as possible.
This is a do-it-yourself icebreaker. You have approximately 7 minutes between now and 8:37 AM to mingle
and chat with the other participants. Collect information from different people and share information
about yourself. Use this contest as an excuse to behave like an intrusive extrovert.
Until 8:37, you are on your own. No other instructions will be given.
Exactly at 8:37, we will conduct a contest that will reward your ability to work the room. You will have two
chances to win!
Flow
Briefing As participants come in, greet them at the door and give them a copy of the instruction sheet. If
anyone asks you questions about the contest, repeat the information from the instruction sheet.
Keeping time Blow a whistle and announce the beginning of the 7-minute period. Keep an eye on the
clock. One minute before the ending time of the contest, give an appropriate warning.
Start the contest. At the exact time, blow the whistle. Tell participants to stop talking with each
other. Ask participants to hide their nametags and any other personal identification.
Conduct the popularity contest. Explain that the first phase of the contest involves visibility. Ask
participants to stand up if they believe that their name will be remembered by the most people in the
room. Bring this group to the front of the room. Point to the first contestant and ask the other participants
to write her full name on a piece of paper. Announce the name of the participant and ask each participant
to check the name written by her neighbor. Ask those who wrote the correct name to stand up, and count
their number. Repeat the process with each of the other contestants. Identify the winner (or the winners)
whose name was correctly written by the most other participants.
Begin the memory contest. Explain that the second phase of the contest involves memory. Ask
participants to look around the room and estimate how many others they can name. Start an auction,
asking participants to bid the number of full names that they recall correctly. Identify the highest bidder
(or bidders).
Conduct the memory contest. Ask the highest bidder to go around the room, whispering (to
prevent the others from hearing) the full names of each participant. Ask all participants who have been
correctly named to stand up. If the highest bidder has succeeded in correctly naming the number of
participants she bid (or exceeded the number), she wins. Otherwise, repeat the activity with the second
highest bidder.
Bingo Game
Genre: ICE Breaker5
Objective: To subtly force newcomers to make new acquaintances in a no threatening climate.
Procedure:
Using prepared bingo-type cards or sheets (see sample on following page), each person is asked to move
around the room until they find a person who fits the description shown. That person then signs his or her
name in the appropriate slot.
Materials Required: Bingo cards (1 for each person)
Approximate Time Required: 20 minutes
Source: Unknown
Bingo Game
DIRECTIONS: Each blank space identifies something about the people in this (seminar, meeting. session,
etc.). Seek out your fellow participants and if one of the listed items pertains to them, ask them to sign
their names in the appropriate place on your’ Bingo card. (Even though more than one item may be
Plays Tennis Is Wearing Red Soccer Chapter Officer Has Grandchildren
_______________ _______________ _______________ _______________ _______________
Drives a Sports Car Hates Football Loves Football Flies a Plane Speaks Foreign
_______________ Language
_______________ _______________ _______________ _______________
Plays Piano Has Tropical Fish Free Skis Committee

Chairperson
_______________ _______________ _______________ _______________ _______________
Has Red Hair Hates Spinach Has 2 Children Likes Camping Attended National
Conference
_______________ _______________ _______________ _______________ _______________
First Time Drives Pickup Brown eyes Reads Newsweek Visited Foreign
Attendee Country
_______________ _______________ _______________ _______________ _______________
Genre: ICE Breaker6
Objective:
To warm up a new group, and break down their inhibitions
To provide an opportunity for participants to work as a team and explore the dimensions of teamwork
Procedure:
Select (randomly) 6-8 volunteers from the larger group to participate in an exercise (for demonstration
purposes), or divide the entire group into teams of 6-8 individuals. Have each group move to a location
that allows them to stand in a small circle.
Instruct members of each group to extend their left hands across the circle and grasp the left hands of the
other members who are approximately opposite them. Then have them extend their right hands across
the circle and grasp the right hands of other individuals.
Inform them that their task is to unravel the spider web of interlocking arms without letting go of,
anyone’s hands. They either will be timed (as a way to place pressure on them), or will be competing with
other groups to see who finishes the task first.
Discussion Question:
1. What was your first thought when you heard the nature of the task? (Probably: “This will be
impossible! “)
2. What member behaviors detracted (or could detract) from the group’s success in achieving its
goal?
3. What lessons does this exercise have for future team-building?
Materials Required: none

Approximate Time Required: 15 minutes, plus discussion time
Source: Susan Hennig, green bay, WI.
Genre: ICE Breaker7
Objective: To be used for small-group (15-25 attendees) workshops as a get acquainted activity.
Procedure:
At the very start of the seminar, explain the importance of becoming acquainted with the other
participants. Hand out a form to each attendee and ask that everyone find at least one similarity (e.g.”
grew up in Chicago”) and one dissimilar trait (e.g., “football fanatic” vs.” dislike sports”) for at least 8-10
other participants. Award a small prize for the first person completing the form.
Material Required: Handout forms and nominal prize.
Approximate Time Required: 15-20 minutes.
Source: Gordon Hills, St. Petersburg, EL.
TREASURE HUNT
Instruction:
Write your name on the first line. Circulate around the room finding one trait you have in common (i.e.,
“newcomer to city”) and one item quite dissimilar (i.e., “has worked for same organization over 10 years”
vs. “third job this year!”)
Name: __________________
NAME ALIKE DIFFERENT
1. ________________ ________________ __________________
2. ________________ ________________ __________________
3. ________________ ________________ __________________
4. ________________ ________________ __________________
5. ________________ ________________ __________________
6. ________________ ________________ __________________
7. ________________ ________________ __________________
8. ________________ ________________ __________________
9. ________________ ________________ __________________
10 ________________ ________________ __________________
Merry Birthday?/Happy Christmas?
Objective:
To provide a sure-fire way to match up workshop participants for mutual introductions or any other two-
person activity.
Procedure:
Collect a set of used greeting cards you have received. Examples include birthday, Christmas, Easter,
Thanksgiving, anniversary, first communion/confirmation card etc.
Cut off all but the first page.
Cut the first page in half. You may wish to strategically cut the page in two, dividing the major greeting into
two parts (such as “Happy” and “Anniversary”). This will provide a slightly greater challenge for
Participants, who then cannot just call out for a “Birthday” partner, but must match the entire message.
Distribute one-half of a card to each participant, making sure that both halves of each card are distributed
within the group. This may necessitate waiting until all participants have appeared (if you historically have
no shows in your groups). You may also need to warn them that they must not only get the major greeting
correct (e.g., “Happy Birthday”) but also the verse on the card.
Instruct them to mix with each other until they find the person holding the other half of the card. Then
they should uncover enough interesting information about that person to enable them to effectively
introduce that person to the rest of the group when you give the signal.
Note: You may also wish to point out to the participants that this is effectively a group task, since if any
two people get the wrong match (“Happy Christmas”), then two others will also be stuck with the wrong
Material Required: Several dozen used greeting cards.

Approximate Time Required: 15-20 minutes for distribution, plus adequate time for mutual introduction,
depending on the size of the group.
I’ve Got A Secret
Objective:
To afford individual introductions in a fun way.
Procedure:
At the beginning of a seminar, or at a luncheon or dinner session, comment on the importance of
informality and getting acquainted with other participants. But rather than have individuals introduce
themselves, tell the group they will introduce the person to their right. They will have a minute to learn
that person’s name and organization. Then humorously suggest they divulge some deep, dark secret about
themselves that “nobody in the whole wide world knows about them!”
Start the process with the first person that introduces the individual on his/her right. To start things off,
the facilitator could begin. Keep things moving quickly and lightly?
If participants are seated at round tables, randomly select any participant. If theater style or U-shape
seating is used, start introductions in the front of room. (NOTE: This method is usable with groups of up to
50 people. It may be overly time consuming for larger groups)
Material Required: None.

10-15 minutes depending on the size of the group.
Source: Unknown
Mutual Introductions
Summary: Group introduction exercise.
Objectives: Introductions.
Materials: Pen and paper.
Timing: 20 minutes for 12 people.
Procedure
1. Ask participants to work in pairs, where possible not known to each other, and label themselves A and
B.
2. Inform them that A has four minutes in which to interview B about his or her life and interests. A may
take notes. Then they should swap roles.
3. In the main group ask participants to introduce their partners and introduce each other to the main
group.
Variations:
1. Give participants some specific questions to which you would like answers. Leave some open ended,
(for example, “three things you can’t tell by looking at them”, “three roles that are important to them
in their life”). You can include course expectations and training experience.
2. Encourage participants to discuss the results of an earlier exercise, use in pairs.
Interviews
Summary: Introductions exercise swapping questions and getting them answered.
Objectives: Introductions.
Energizer.
Self-disclosure.
Materials: Pens,Paper
Timing: 40 minutes (depends on group size).
Procedure:
1. Ask participants to form pairs with someone in the group whom they know least well.
2. Ask participants to choose five questions that they would like to be asked by their partner in
introducing them to the rest of the group this being done by them disclosing the answers. They are
to decide on their questions and then tell them to their partner.
3. When the group has had time to do this, ask participants to choose another partner who they do
not know well. Tell them to identify their original partner and then tell the partner what the
questions are. The new partner must then ask the first person those questions and find out what
the answers are.
4. When this has been done, have participants introduce the person to the rest of the group.
Commentary: This exercise is not practical for groups larger than 12.
Variation:
If the group is much over 12 then at Stage 3 ask participants to approach the first person they see not
talking to someone and to introduce them to the person whose answers they have ascertained.
Badgering
Genre: ICE Breaker13
Summary: Participants pass information on about each other with their badges.
Objectives: Introductions, Listening skills

Materials: Name badges
Timing: 20 minutes at least.
Procedure:
1. Ask participants to work in pairs. They are to spend five minutes at the end of which each will have
introduced him or herself. Then ask them to exchange name badges.
2. Ask participants to find a new partner and (from a distance) to show the badge, point to who it
belongs to, and say as much as they can remember about that person.
3. Reverse roles and then exchange badges.
4. Ask participants to find another new partner and (from a distance) to show the badge, point to who
it belongs to, and say as much as they can remember about that person. Reverse roles and
exchange badges again.
5. Repeat until the only person to whom the badge has not been introduced is the original partner.
This should happen at the same time for everybody, but it probably won’t. Then ask participants to
introduce that person to the others. Explain that some of the information will have become
distorted and that they should not worry about getting anything wrong. Participants can correct
any information about themselves that has become distorted.
6. Hold a discussion on why information became changed.
Commentary:
If there is an odd number of a participant, the trainer will have to take part to even the numbers.
Variations: A simpler session has participants keeping the first badge they come across.
What’s Our Name? Logo? Slogan?
Genre: Team Building 1
Objective:
To allow task groups the opportunity to develop working relationships before confronting their “real”
tasks.
Procedure:
Form participants into small groups that they will stay with for the duration of the workshop. Allow them a
few minutes to meet and introduce themselves.
Ask each group to select a simple team name in the next five minutes.
Ask them to develop a graphic logo (trademark) that will usefully portray who / what they are to the rest
of the world. Allow 10 minutes for this activity, and then ask each group to show their product to the
others, with a brief explanation of what the logo represents (if it is not clear). The logos should be drawn
on the flip chart paper.
Then ask each group to develop a slogan (e.g., 12 words or less) that they could use in public advertising.
This slogan should identify whatever assets or attributes the group realistically thinks are most important,
and present within themselves. Allow 10 minutes for this activity, and then ask each group to verbally
share their slogan with the others.
Discussion questions:
Whose name is best? Which logo is best? Whose advertising slogan is best? What criteria are you using to
judge the quality of each of those three tasks?
How do you now feel about your group? Will it be successful in its future tasks? Will it be personally
satisfying to work in it?
What is the value of spending some time creating group identity at the start of a task group? What is the
cost?
Materials required: Flip chart paper and markers for each group.
Approximate time required: 30 minutes.

Source: D. D. Warrick, Colorado Springs, CO.
DO YOU REMEMBER?
Purpose
To explore how note taking and teamwork increases our ability to remember more.
Time
30 minutes
Supplies
• 50 miscellaneous items such as a ball, fingernail file, hat, lipstick, mirror, key, toy, picture, candle,
pen, orange, etc.
• Tray
• Cloth to cover the tray
• Countdown timer
Flow of the Activity

Prepare a tray of 25 items. Cover the tray with a cloth.
Tell participants that you are going to show them a tray of miscellaneous items and they should remember
as many items as they can without writing down anything.
Display the tray with 25 items for 60 seconds. Then talk to the group about some other topic for a minute.
Have participants write down as many items as they can remember.
Reveal the items on the tray and determine how many correct items participants listed.
Do the activity again, displaying a new set of 25 items for 30 seconds. Allow participants to take notes.
Ask each participant to count the number of items listed.
Organize participants into teams of four and ask them to combine their lists.
Reveal the new items on the tray and determine how many correct items individual participants and teams
listed after the 30-second viewing.
Debrief participants and emphasize the following points:
• Participants were able to write more items in half the time (30 seconds) than when they had 60
seconds.
• Teams were able to list more items than individuals.
Conclude the activity by asking participants how they would apply the principles of note-taking and
working in teams to other situations that requires memorizing and recalling such as:
1. Interviewing a candidate for a job

2. Listening to a lecture presentation
3. Analyzing the behavior of an expert performer
4. Proof-reading a report
5. Observing the behaviors of shoppers in a retail store
What Do I (We) Want In Life?
Objective:
To provide opportunity for individual goal clarification and goal setting
To provide a team-building opportunity through the sharing of key personal values
To provide teams with a task to work on as a vehicle for assessing and improving their process skills.
Procedure:
Provide all participants with a copy of the “What Are My Values?” form and ask them to complete it
individually. This may then serve as the first step in personal goal clarification / goal setting.
Form participants into small groups (e.g., five persons). Ask them to share their individual rankings and
arrive at a group consensus of the rankings that the typical American would provide.
When they are completed, share the “key” with them (for Column 3), and let them compute a measure of
their similarity / dissimilarity to other Americans by calculating the sum of the absolute arithmetic
differences (e.g., without regard to +I- sign) between their individual rankings and the key (Column I), and
between their group rankings and the key (Column 5).
What are the possible reasons for the differences in rankings observed?
What are the implications of your own rankings?
Materials Required: Enough individual sheets for each participant, visual key.
Approximate Time Require: 15-60 minutes, depending on use for Objective #1, vs. 2 & 3.
Source: Adapted from Sandra J. Ball-Rokeach, Milton Rokeach, and Joel W. Grube, “The Great American
Values Test,” Psvcholo~v Today, November 1984.
WHAT DO I (WE) WANT IN LIFE?
What Are My Values?
DIRECTIONS:
Examine each of the following items. Rank-order them, in column 2, from 1-9 (1 =highest priority;
9=lowest) according to the priority you would place on achieving them. Later, if small groups are formed,
discuss the items with other participants and arrive at a consensus ranking in column 4 for the priority
order in which you feel the typical American would rank them.
1 2 3 4 5
VALUE
Ind. Diff Indiv. Key Group Diff.
An Exciting Life
A sense of
accomplishment
A world of
beauty
Family security
Freedom
Happiness
Inner harmony
National
security
True friendship
Totals
Key to Values Exercise
VALUE American’s Rank
An Exciting Life 9
A sense of accomplishment 4
A world of beauty 8
Family security 1
Freedom 2
Happiness 3
Inner harmony 6
National security 7
True friendship 5
TRUST ME

Objective: To demonstrate teamwork for support, leadership, and cooperation.
Procedure:
Divide group into teams of four. Participation should be voluntary. One person in each group is
blindfolded; another is the leader who will instruct the blindfolded person to go from Point A to Point B in
the room or adjacent area. The other two persons assist the leader and make certain the blindfolded
person doesn’t bump into anything. When the walk (two three minutes) is completed, switch roles and
repeat the exercise using a different route. Repeat as time allows.
1. How did you feel when blindfolded? (Uncertain, frightened, dumb, etc.)
2. Did you trust your leader? Why or why not?
3. Did you trust your co-workers? Why or why not?
4. What did you need when you were blindfolded? (Support, assurance, advice, etc.)
5. How did this activity apply to our organization? (Need help, counsel, affirmation, etc.)
6. How about our new employees?
Materials Required: Bandanas.

Approximate Time Required: 20-30 minutes.
Source: Susan Mitchell, Barclays Bank, Poughkeepsie, NY.
Thinking on Your Feet
Genre: Sales 1
Objective: To encourage quick thinking in a pressure situation
Procedure:
Similar to the “Handling Objections” exercise, this activity also has a multiplicity of uses. A few volunteers
are asked to assist in illustrating the difficulty, but importance, of being able to think quickly on one’s feet.
As an objection (as in sales training) is voiced, the trainer lights a match and hands it to the trainee. The
trainee then must respond to the question or objection before the lighted match burns down or the flame
is too close to the fingers. As soon as the response is voiced, the match is extinguished.
1. Like the threat of that match, what other pressures may cause difficulty in these situations?
2. Was the group’s peer pressure through observation a substantial one?
3. Are there some dangers also in replying or responding too quickly to objections? If so, what are
they?
Materials Required: Box of matches
Approximate Time Required: Dependent on the size of the group, 15 minute minimum
Source: Unknown
Suggestions for Overcoming Fear of Speaking before a Group:
1. Know the material well (be an expert).
2. Practice your presentation (pilot-test, and possibly videotape yourself).
3. Use involvement techniques (participation).
4. Learn participants’ names and use them.
5. Establish your credibility early.
6. Use eye contact to establish rapport.
7. Take a course in public speaking.
8. Exhibit your advance preparation (via handouts, etc.).
9. Anticipate potential problems (and prepare probable responses).
10. Check in advance the facilities and AV equipment.
11. Obtain information about the group in advance (through observation or questionnaire).
12. Convince yourself to relax (breathe deeply; meditate; talk to yourself).
13. Prepare an outline and follow it.
14. Manage your appearance (dress comfortably and appropriately).
15. Rest up so that you are physically and psychologically alert.
16. Use your own style (don’t imitate someone else).
17. Use your own words (don’t read).
18. Put yourself in your trainees’ shoes (they’re asking, “What’s in it for me?”).
19. Assume they are on your side (they aren’t necessarily antagonistic or hostile).
20. Provide an overview of the presentation (state the end objectives).
21. Accept some fears as being good (energizing stress vs. destructive).
22. Introduce yourself to the group in advance (via a social context).
23. Identify your fears, categorize them as controllable or uncontrollable, and confront them.
24. Give special emphasis to the first five minutes (super-preparation).
25. Image yourself as a good speaker (self-fulfilling prophecy).
26. Practice responses to tough questions or situations.
27. Create an informal setting (sit on a table).
Handling Objections in Sales Training
Genre: Sales 2
Objective:
To encourage participants to anticipate objections and be able to respond to them quickly and
satisfactorily
Procedure:
Prepare 3 x 5 index cards on which are noted possible objections encountered in a sales situation. (Leave
one side blank.) The participant draws a card from the deck and reads aloud the objection (for example, “I
believe your price seems higher than our existing supplier’s”). The trainee must then respond
spontaneously. A critique follows from the trainer and group in which other possible answers or responses
are discussed. Then the deck is rotated to another participant, and the process is repeated.
Alternative:
An alternative way is to give the respondent a moment of preparation before vocally responding. This
method may be desirable for novice trainees to help build their confidence before demanding job like
spontaneity.
1. What are your feelings when put on the spot like this? (Stimulated, fearful) What additional
responses can you think of now?
2. The “Yes, but” or “Yes, and” techniques are valid ones in handling objections. What other methods
are pertinent?
3. Preparation and anticipating objections are key points. How can we better remember some of our
standard responses? (Key words, a success/failure experience, etc.)
Materials Required: 3 x 5 cards
Approximate Time Required: Dependent on the size of the group; minimum 15 minutes
Source: Ray Higgins, Armour Dial Company
It’ll Never Fly, Wilbur!
Genre: Sales 3
Objective:
To allow participants to identify possible roadblocks or barriers that might impede new policies or
procedures.
Procedure:
In introducing a new concept, a plan of action, or a problem-solving session, the facilitator sets the stage
by identifying the objectives of the session. For example, “Our task this morning is to identify ways to
increase customer service in each of our departments.”
Then participants are immediately asked to write out 4-5 problems they see that would possibly block the
organization from achieving the goal. For example, “we don’t have time to train our people,” or “we can’t
take people off the line,” or “we can’t afford to bring in a Customer Service consultant.”
Subdivide the audience into groups of 3-4 and ask them to discuss their concerns. Then, each subgroup
writes out its 3 major roadblocks on a 3 x 5 card and reports them to the entire group. Facilitator
acknowledges comments and redistributes the 3 x 5 cards so each subgroup receives a different card.
Subgroups’ next task is to attack the problem roadblocks and creatively think of several ways to solve
them. They then report back to the entire group.
Materials Required: Flip chart, 3 x 5 cards.
Approximate time required: 20-30 minutes.
Source: Unknown.
BINGO GAME BOARD
B I N G O
3 FREE
Bingo Review
Genre: Sales 4
Objective:
To assess the degree of retention of key concepts among a group of trainees.
To reinforce major terms at the end of a training session.
Procedure:
Develop a set of 24-25 questions about the subject material that can each be answered with a standard
term from the training program. Sort them into five major categories. Create some identity of each
category name with the letters, B, I, N, G, and 0. Create BINGO cards for each participant. Two options
exist.
a. Generic cards. These would be exactly like traditional BINGO cards, with numbers in each of the 24
cells in the 5 x 5 matrix (the middle cell is “Free.” In this scenario, the trainer would read a question
with an associated number, and if the trainee had the number and could correctly write in the answer,
(s)he could fill in the cell.
b. Specific cards. These would have the cells previously filled in with 24 of the key terms (plus a “free”
one in the middle). Whenever a question is read, if the participant believes that one of the answers on
the card fits the question, (s) he would simply write in the question number next to it.
Whenever a participant achieves five correct answers in a row (vertically, horizontally, or diagonally), (s) he
may call out “BINGO and receive a prize. Play may continue until all 25 cells are filled, too.
1. Which terms gave the group the greatest difficulty?
2. Which terms would you now like to have clarified?
Materials Required: A set of questions, plus a card for each participant. Inexpensive prizes.
Genre: Sales 5
Basic Structure
Players take turns to supply items that belong to a specific category related to customer service. Any player who
hesitates too long, repeats a previous item, or supplies an inappropriate item is eliminated. The last player left
standing wins the game.
Purpose
To increase fluency with various concepts, procedures, and issues related to customer service.
Minimum: Two
Time: 5 minutes to an hour, depending on the number of categories
Supplies
Slips of paper (or index cards), each with a category related to customer service. (See a list of suitable categories
after the description of this game.)
Flow:
Organize participants into play groups . If you have more than seven players, divide the total group
into smaller groups of four to seven players each. Explain that each of these groups will play the game among its
own members. Ask members of the groups to stand up.
Select a category . Ask a player to pick a piece of paper (or card) and read the category aloud.
Supply items that belong to the category . Ask each player to take a turn to say an item that
belongs to the category.
Eliminate players . Ask all players to listen to the items supplied by the other players. Ask them to eliminate
any player who commits one of these errors:
1. Hesitates too long before saying an item

2. Repeats an item that was already said
3. Says an item that does not belong to the category
Examples:
The category is “What customers expect”.
John hesitates too long because he could not come up with an example of a typical customer expectation.
He is eliminated.
Chris says, “Remember their preferences”. During a later turn, Pat says, “Don’t forget what each customer
prefers”. The other players point out that this statement is very similar to what Chris said earlier. So Pat is
eliminated.
Roger says, “A regular paycheck”. The other players claim that this statement is irrelevant because it does
not belong to the category of customer expectations. So Roger is eliminated.
Continue the game . Eliminated players sit down and do not participate in subsequent rounds. The
activity continues with the remaining players.
Conclude the game . When all players except one are eliminated, the surviving player wins the game.
Adjustments
What should I do with the eliminated players ? Just to keep them actively involved in the
game, make them the judges who spot other players who make mistakes. Alternatively, ask them to
become coaches, stand near any of the remaining players, and whisper suitable items in their ears.
1. Advice you would give to a new customer service representative
2. Benefits of customer service
3. Benefits of the team approach to customer service
4. Characteristics of a customer service champion
5. Characteristics of an ideal customer
6. Dangers of trying too hard to please a customer
7. Discovering customer’s real needs
8. Empathy statements to an upset customer
9. First-rate customer service telephone skills
10. How to apologize to a customer
11. How to be assertive with an abusive customer
12. How to close your interaction with the customer
13. How to follow up a customer interaction
14. How to get feedback from customers
15. How to handle customer complaints
16. How to interact with a customer who has a language barrier
17. How to keep a positive attitude while serving customers
18. How to make a positive first impression on the customer
19. How to make a positive lasting impression on the customer
20. How to reflect and learn after a customer service transaction
21. How to refuse an unreasonable demand from the customer
22. How to say “Good-bye” to a customer
23. How to say “Thank you” to a customer
24. How to win customer’s trust
25. Negative self talk that you should avoid while serving a customer
26. Nonverbal behaviors that customers dislike
27. Nonverbal behaviors that customers like
28. Obstacles to providing exceptional customer service
29. Points of contact with the customer
30. Positive self-talk about customer service
31. Roles we play as customer service representatives
32. Steps for getting ready to serve the customer
33. Things you can do when you’ve messed up while interacting with a customer
34. Tips for establishing rapport with a customer
35. Tips for working collaboratively with the customer
36. Tools and supplies needed to satisfy the customer
37. Ways to be a good listener
38. What customers expect
39. What e-customers expect
40. What motivates a customer-service team?
41. What motivates us to provide exceptional customer service
42. What telephone customers expect
43. What to do when the customer lies
44. What to do when you are a customer
45. What to do when you don’t have an answer
Top Three
Genre: Sales 6
Here’s a rapid learning activity that explores the relationship between competition and cooperation.
Key Idea
Participants pair up and play an apparently competitive game. Later, the facilitator reveals a cooperative
strategy that would have enabled a pair to win the championship among all participants.
Purpose
To come up with a winning strategy by analyzing the total system.
Participants
Any number divided into groups of three.
Time
5 to 10 minutes
Supplies
Several pennies and nickels (or any two different coins in your local currency).
Flow
1. Divide participants into three-person groups. Ask one participant to be the non-
playing scorekeeper. Give a penny and a nickel to each of the other two participants.
2. Explain how each round is played. Each player hides one of the two coins in her fist and
extends her hand. (The other coin is hidden in the other hand.) When both players are ready, they
open their hands to show the selected coins.
3. Explain how each round is scored:
o If both players show pennies, they each score 1 point.
o If one player shows a nickel and the other shows a penny, then the player with the nickel
scores 5 points and the player with the penny scores 1 point.
o If both players show nickels, then both players score zero.
4. Explain the championship rule. Announce that after 2 minutes of repeated play, the three
highest scoring players (among all the players in the room) will become champions. (If you can
afford it, announce a prize for each champion.)
5. Begin the play. Explain that players rapidly play as many rounds as possible during the next 2
minutes. Ask participants to begin playing and the scorekeeper to keep adding up each
participant’s score at the end of each round.
6. Conclude the play. Stop the activity after 2 minutes.
7. Identify the champions. Ask the scorekeepers to announce the scores of the two players.
Identify the top three players in the room. Declare them to be champions.
8. Debrief by asking the best strategy for the game. After listening to different ideas, point out that
the two players are not only competing against each other but also competing against all other
players to become champions. Suggest that the best strategy will be for the two players to
cooperate by taking turns to play the nickel (while the other player plays the penny) and running up
high scores. This will ensure that the two players will be the top two scorers.
9. Discuss the importance of broadening one’s thinking to identify an effective strategy.
10. Discuss questions like these:
o How can we ensure that the two players end up with the same score? Is it important to
achieve this state of equality?
o Now that everyone knows the strategy, what could be the winning strategy if we play the
game again?
EMPATHY
Genre: Sales 7
For the past few months, I have been working with a friend on training employees to more effectively and
enthusiastically display empathy during customer calls. The February issue contains two games (CONCERN
and CONCERN FOR CUSTOMERS) related to this training objective. Here’s another game in this series.
Key Idea
Different teams produce audiotape recordings of simulated telephone conversations between a customer
and a Customer Representative. These recordings incorporate key behaviors associated with the display of
empathy by the employee. One of the teams does not produce a recording but evaluates other teams’
recordings.
Index Tags
Customer service. Telephone conversations. Empathy. Roleplay. Drama. Audio game.
Purpose
To display concern and empathy during customer service conversations on the telephone.
Participants: 6
(Participants are divided into 3 to 6 teams, each with 2-7 members.)
Time Requirement
45 to 90 minutes.
Handouts
One copy of Empathy Checklist for each participant.
Equipment
One audiotape recorder (or other kind of audio recorder) for each team.
Room Setup
Tables and chairs for each team.
Flow
Brief the participants . Explain that you are going to explore techniques for displaying empathy
toward customers during telephone conversations. Distribute copies of the Empathy Checklist. Walk
participants through the items on the checklist, briefly discussing appropriate behaviors associated with
each item. Encourage participants to ask questions. Give brief responses.
Form Teams. Divide participants into 3 to 5 teams, each with 3 to 7 members. Seat each team around a
convenient table with an audiotape recorder.
Explain the production task. Explain that each team is to produce a 3-minute long audio recording
of a simulated conversation between a customer and an employee. The challenge for each team is to
incorporate at least five important items from the Empathy Checklist in this recorded conversation.
Announce a 15-minute preparation time.
Explain the evaluation task. The simulated conversation recorded by each team will be evaluated
along three dimensions:
• Authenticity: Is the conversation realistic and believable?

• Focus: Does the conversation clearly incorporate key behaviors from the Empathy Checklist?
• Dramatic: Does the conversation attract and maintain audience attention?
Randomly select one of the teams. Explain that instead of producing a simulated conversation, this team
will play the role of evaluators. Ask the team to come up with a rating scale for comparing and evaluating
different simulated conversations along the three dimensions that you identified.
Coordinate production activities . Announce the start of the 15-minute production time. Start the
timer. Let teams work on their own. Give a 5-minute warning at the end of 10 minutes. Blow a whistle at
the end of 15 minutes to signal the end of the production time.
Play the recorded conversations. Randomly select one of the teams and play its recorded
conversation. If necessary, use a microphone to make sure that everyone can hear the recording.
Encourage the members of the evaluation team to listen carefully and take notes. Stop the replay at the
end of exactly 3 minutes. Ask each member of the evaluation team to independently score the audio
recording.
Invite the next team to play its recorded conversation. Repeat this procedure until all teams have replayed
their recorded conversations.
Ask evaluators to announce their ratings. After the replay of the last recording, ask the
evaluation team to discuss their individual ratings and identify the best recording. Invite this team to
briefly explain their rating procedure and to give evaluative feedback for each recorded conversation.
Finally, ask the team to identify the best recorded conversation.
Present your comments . Congratulate the winning team. Give your feedback, focusing on how
clearly each team emphasized key behaviors from the checklist.
Conduct a debriefing discussion . Ask questions similar to those listed below. Encourage
participants to respond to each question and discuss alternative responses.
• How typical was the conversation portrayed in each recording? Which one was the most typical?
• Which item in the Empathy Checklist is the most important one? How did different teams portray
this item?
• Which item in the Empathy Checklist was frequently ignored? What was the reason for teams
ignoring it?
• Which item in the Empathy Checklist is the most difficult one to portray? How did the roleplayers
portray it?
• In each of the conversations, how would you rate the effectiveness of the employee? How could
the display of empathy be improved?
• In each conversation, how realistic were the behaviors of the customer? How could we make these
behaviors more realistic? More challenging?
• If the teams produced a 15-minute recorded conversation, what additional incidents and behaviors
would you have included?
Empathy Checklist
1. Use affirming and assuring statements to connect with customers.
2. Display true concern and interest in the customer’s situation.
3. Maintain a high-level of active listening throughout the conversation, even during emotional
outbursts.
4. Use “I” or “we” statements.
5. Use “Yes” statements frequently (“Sure, let’s take a look at that.”)
6. Avoid “No” statements.
7. Pick up on trigger statements that signal problems and issues.
8. Whenever appropriate, probe to uncover the root cause behind the customer’s questions.
9. Convey reasons behind your probing questions.
10. Whenever appropriate, paraphrase the customer’s statement and check for accurate
understanding.
11. Apologize for the organization’s mistakes and the inability to resolve the issues.
12. Explain errors that made by employees—without blaming them.
13. Use appropriate emotional responses that reflect the customer’s situation.
14. Acknowledge the customer’s feelings by using reflective statements (“It sounds like you’re quite
upset about this.”)
15. Express positive reactions when customer is pleased with your efforts or the efforts of the
organization.
16. Perform all actions promised to the customer before, during, or after the call.
WHY
Genre: Sales 8
Here’s an interesting game that produces humorous results. Hidden behind the humor, however, is subtle
provocation that forces participants to think deeply to justify some of the basic principles and assumptions
related to the training topic.
Key Idea
Participants write “Why?” questions related to the training topic. Then each participant writes a response
to someone else’s “Why?” questions. The questions and answers get mixed up, producing incongruous
results.
Purpose
To recall principles and assumptions related to leadership.
Participants: 3
Time Requirement 7 to 15 minutes
Supplies
• Index cards (or pieces of paper), one per participant
• Pens or pencils
Flow
Write a question . Distribute an index card to each participant and ask her to write a question on one
side of the card. The question must begin with the word “Why” and should be related to the training topic.
Recently we conducted the WHY game on the topic of Leadership. Here are four questions written by the
four players:
Anne: Why are charismatic leaders incapable of producing sustained results?
Bob: Why do most people prefer autocratic command-and-control leaders?
Christy: Why do some leaders get assassinated?
Dave: Why do people make a big issue of differentiating between managers and leaders?
Exchange questions. After a suitable pause, ask each player to pass the question to the player on the
left. Also ask each player to read the question given to her and think of a suitable answer that begins with
the word “Because”. Warn the players not to say or write the answer.
In our sample game, Bob got Anne’s question, Christy got Bob’s question, Dave got Christy’s question, and
Anne got Dave’s question. They read and reflected on the question and mentally worked out an answer.
Write the answer on the back of another question card. After a suitable pause, ask each
player to turn over the question card so the written side is facing down. Ask players to pass the question
card (with its blank side up) to the person on the left. Warn participants not to turn over the card they
receive to see the new question. Instead, ask them to write the answer (that they thought of during the
previous round) on the blank side of the card.
Read and laugh . Ask participants to pass the card to the person on the left. Each participant now has a
card that contains a question on one side and an answer on the other. The question and the answer are
related to each other—and that is what makes them amusing. Ask participants to read the question and
the answer and laugh at the incongruous combination. Invite participants to share the most humorous
combinations to the other seated nearby.
UPSET
Genre: Sales 9
Dealing with upset customers presents both a challenge and an opportunity. In many situations, we can
prevent upsetting customers by proactively proving excellent service. However, certain jobs, such as auto
insurance claim adjuster, require you to face customers who are upset because of things beyond your
control. This training activity helps you explore and apply techniques and principles for healing customers
who are in shock, frustration, anger, grief, fear, guilt, resentment, anxiety, and other such negative
emotional states.
Key Idea
This activity involves two teams and incorporates three rounds of team discussions followed by paired
conversations:
Round 1. One team generates typical demands and questions from upset customers while the other
team comes up with guidelines for responding to these demands and questions. Following this team
discussion, participants pair up with members of the other team and hold question-and-answer
conversations.
Round 2. Teams change their roles and repeat the same procedure.
Round 3 . Both teams discuss the key lessons learned from the previous rounds and share them through
one-one-one conversations.
Index Tags
Roleplay. Upset customers. Questions. Demands. Avoiding defensiveness. Empathic listening. Customer
recovery. Large groups. Structured sharing.
Purpose
• To anticipate different complaints, demands, and questions from upset customers.
• To respond appropriately, truthfully, empathically, and without defensiveness to these complaints,
demands, and questions.
• To derive a set of guidelines for effectively responding to upset customers.
Participants
Minimum: 6
Time Requirement 25-45 minutes
Room Setup
This is primarily a stand-up activity. Remove all chairs and other furnishings from the room (or move them
to the sides, next to the walls).
Handout
A list of guidelines for handling upset customers
Supplies
• Timer
• Whistle
• Pieces of paper
• Pens (or pencils)
Flow
Brief the group . Explain that this activity is about empathy listening and helping upset customers.
Specify the generic context in which participants are to play the role of customer-service representatives.
Divide participants into two teams of equal size . Designate one of them as Team A and the
other as Team B. Ask participants from Team A to temporarily remove their name tags (so everyone can
easily tell the difference between members of the two groups).
Round 1
Conduct the first round of team discussions. Ask members of Team A to brainstorm a list of
situations, complaints, demands, and questions from an upset customer. Encourage participants to include
several provocative or hostile items in their list. Suggest that team members jot down some of the
demands and questions on a piece of paper for reference during individual conversations.
While Team A is coming up with this list, ask members of Team B to brainstorm guidelines for effectively
responding to the complaints, demands, and questions from upset customers.
Announce a 3-minute time limit for the team brainstorming activities. Blow a whistle at the end of 3
minutes and conclude the activity.
Conduct the first round of paired conversations. Explain that during the next 5 minutes,
members of Team A will repeatedly pair up with different members of Team B and hold brief
conversations. Each conversation will begin with a statement, complaint, demand, or question from the
Team A member and an appropriate response from the Team B member. The conversation may continue
with additional demands and responses. Once every minute, you will blow the whistle and participants will
switch partners and begin new conversations.
Conduct this conversational activity for a total of 5 minutes.
Round 2
Conduct the second round of team discussions . Ask participants to return to their original
teams. Explain that the teams will switch their tasks. Ask members of Team B to share the complaints,
demands, and questions they responded to in the one-on-one conversations and to brainstorm additional
items associated with upset customers. At the same time, ask members of Team A to share the effective
guidelines used by the other team to respond to upset customers. Also ask them to brainstorm their own
guidelines. Announce a 3-minute time limit and blow a whistle at the end of this time to conclude the
activity.
Conduct the second round of paired conversations. Repeat the same procedure that was
used during the first set of paired conversations but with the roles of the two team members reversed:
During this round, members of Team B start the conversation by making demands and asking questions
and members of Team A respond to them. Conduct this activity for a total of 5 minutes.
Round 3
Conduct the third round of team discussion . Ask all participants to return to their original
teams and debrief themselves to share the lessons learned during the earlier activities. Ask each team to
come up with a list of guidelines for effectively, clearly, and truthfully responding to upset customers.
Conduct the third round of paired conversations . Explain that you will repeat the procedure
of conducting five one-on-one conversations between members of the two teams. However, instead of
asking and answering questions, participants will share their guidelines for handling upset customers.
Conduct the activity as before, blowing the whistle at the end of every minute to signal the time to switch
partners.
Follow up. Distribute copies of a handout with guidelines for handling upset customers. Encourage
participants to compare these guidelines with those they came up with. After the session, update your
handout by adding additional guidelines generated by the participants.
2-MINUTE DRILL
Genre: Sales 10
Here is a fast-paced game that I use to review the training content from product-knowledge or technical
publications.
Participants
6 to 25. Best game is for 12 to 25 participants, organized into groups of four or five.
Time 15 - 30 minutes.
Supplies
• Question Cards. One set of 50 or more questions for each group.
• Answer Sheet. One copy for each group.
• Handout: How To Play 2-MINUTE DRILL. One copy for each participant.
• Timer.
• Whistle.
Preparation
Get the big picture. Read the handout (which contains instructions to players and to “Game
Masters”) along with the instructions below.
Prepare Question Cards. Write 50 or more short-answer questions based on the training content.
Print each question on a separate card. Shuffle the packet of questions and number each card. Prepare a
duplicate (with the same numbers) for each group.
Prepare the Answer Sheet. Type the question numbers and the correct answers for each question.
Prepare a copy of this sheet for each group.
Flow
Demonstrate the play of the game. Distribute copies of the job aid, How To Play 2-MINUTE DRILL
to each participant. Pause while participants read the instructions. Then, ask for three volunteers to come
to the front of the room. Explain that you will be the Game Master for the first round and demonstrate the
play of the game. Invite players to refer to the job aid as they watch the game in action. At the end of the
2-minute demonstration, point out that every member of a group will have a turn to be the Game Master.
Organize groups. Divide participants into two to five groups. Each group should have three to five
players. It does not matter if some teams have an extra participant. Explain that the players in each group
compete with each other.
Distribute cards. In each group, select a player to be the first Game Master. Give a question deck to
each Game Master.
Begin the first round. Start the timer and blow the whistle. Ask Game Masters to conduct the game
with their group.
Conclude the first round. At the end of 2 minutes, blow the whistle again and ask players to stop.
Instruct each player to count the number of face-down cards that were correctly classified. This is the
player’s score for the first round.
Conduct the second round. Ask the Game Masters to collect the cards and to shuffle them. Give
the pile of cards in each group to the new Game Master (the person seated to the left of the previous
Game Master). Conduct the game as before.
Repeat the procedure. Continue playing additional rounds of the game until every member of each
group has had a turn at being the Game Master.
Conclude the game. After the final round, identify the player (or players) with the highest total score
in each group. Congratulate these players as the winners.
How To Play 2-Minute Drill
Instructions To Players
Receive a card. When the facilitator blows the whistle, the Game Master will give you a question card.
Answer the question. If you know the answer to the question on the card, yell out the card number
and the answer. If you don’t know the answer, make an educated guess.
Replace the Question Card. Wait for the Game Master to call out your card number and give you
feedback. If the Game Master says that your answer is correct, place the card in front of you with the
question side facing up. If the Game Master says your answer is incorrect, give the card back to Game
Master. In either case, get another Question Card from the Game Master.
Continue playing. Repeat the process, trying to give as many correct answers as possible within the 2-
minute period. When the Game Master stops the round, count the number of cards that you correctly
answered. This is your score for the round.
Play the next round. The game will be repeated for several 2-minute rounds. Repeat the same
procedure during each round (except during the round when you are the Game Master).
Instructions To Game Masters
Get ready. Get a deck of Question Cards from the facilitator. Also get a copy of the Answer Sheet.
Begin the round. Wait for the facilitator to blow the whistle. Immediately give everyone a Question
Card.
Listen for answers. In a little while, players will begin yelling out card numbers and answers. Since
they will not be taking turns, this is going to be chaotic.
Give feedback to the first player. Check your Answer Sheet for the card number that you heard
first. If the player’s answer is correct, say “Right!” and give the player a new card. The player will place the
correctly classified card in front of him or her with the printed side facing up. If the player’s classification is
incorrect, give the correct answer, and take the Question Card back from the player. Place the incorrectly
answered card at the bottom of the deck and give another Question Card to the player.
Do several things at the same time. Keep track of the numbers and answers yelled out by
players. Call out the next number that you heard and give appropriate feedback. Repeat the process.
Conclude the round. Keep repeating the process until the facilitator blows the whistle again. Ask
each player to count the correctly classified cards to determine the score for this round. Collect all the
cards, place them at the bottom of the deck, and give the deck to the next Game Master
FIVE IDEAS
Genre: Sales 11
Teambuilding activities create high-performance teams whose members are extremely loyal to each other
and to their team. Sometimes, however, the emphasis in teamwork results in reduced collaboration across
teams. Similar problems occur when employees become so focused on their departmental goals that they
ignore or downplay the strategic goals for the total organization.
FIVE IDEAS is an activity that encourages participants to go beyond what is good for their team or their
department and work on cooperatively achieving common goals.
Key Concept
During the first round of this activity, participants from each division of an organization identify what they
need from the other divisions. During the second round, participants are organized into heterogeneous
groups with one member from each division. These groups come up with collaborative ideas for reaching a
common goal.
Purpose
To come up with ideas for inter-team and inter-departmental collaboration for achieving common goals in
an organization.
Participants
Two to 10 members representing each different department.
Our sample activity used for illustrative purposes below involves five members representing these three
departments: service, parts, and sales.
Time
45 minutes to 3 hours (depending on the number of participants, number of divisions they represent, and
amount of detail required)
Supplies
• Flip charts
• Felt-tipped pens
• Timer
• Whistle
Flow
Specify a common goal. At the beginning of the activity, announce a goal that requires
collaboration among the different divisions. Briefly discuss how the achievement of this goal can be
measured.
Paul, who is facilitating participants from three different departments, has a choice of several common
goals: making a record profit for the next quarter, reducing employee turnover, and developing new service
lines. He eventually decides to stick with the mundane (but important) goal of providing excellent customer
service. During the discussion of this goal, participants suggest that a reduction in the waiting time and an
increase in positive customer feedback could be used as measures for checking the achievement of this
goal.
Organize participants into homogeneous groups. Assign everyone from the same
department to the same group. (However, if there are more than seven people from each department,
divide them into more than one group.)
Paul has a simple task. He organizes three groups of service, parts, and sales, and assigns the five members
from each department to the appropriate group. (If there were 11 people from each department, Paul
would have created one group of six and another group of seven.)
Assign tasks to the homogeneous groups. Ask members of each group to brainstorms a list of
ideas in response to the question, “How can employees from the other departments help us better
achieve the common goal?” Encourage groups to come up with a long list and shrink it down to the top
five ideas. Announce a suitable time limit.
Pam is a member of the service department. She suggests that the sales group should provide them with a
clearer picture of what each customer wants. Someone else in the group suggests that the sales group
should stop making rash promises to the customer. The group also decides that they want better
coordination with the parts group to avoid service delays. The other two groups work out similar lists of
what they want from the remaining groups. Each group records its ideas on a flip chart.
Get ready to conclude the first round of the activity. Five minutes before the end of the
allotted time, blow a whistle to get participants’ attention. Ask each group to identify its top five ideas for
achieving the common goal. Ask individual participants to take notes about the final list. Explain that every
participant would need this information during the next phase of the activity.
Reorganize participants into heterogeneous groups. Blow the whistle at the end of the
allotted time. Now, reorganize the participants into several groups that contain one member from each of
the previous (homogeneous) groups.
Paul divides participants into five groups of three members each. Pam ends up in a group with Alan from
sales and Kathy from parts.
Assign tasks to the heterogeneous groups. Ask members of the group to brainstorm a list of
ideas in response to the question, “How can employees from different departments work with each other
to achieve our common goal?” Encourage participants to use their ideas from the previous round in a
flexible fashion. As before, encourage each group to begin with a long list and whittle it down to the top
five ideas.
Pam is somewhat irritated by the unreasonable expectations of the other two members of her new group.
After some debate, all three group members focus on the common goal, compromise their initial
demands, and come up with creative strategies.
Get ready to conclude the activity. Five minutes before the end of the assigned time, blow the
whistle and ask the groups to identify the top five ideas. Also ask each group to list the final set of ideas on
the flip chart and get ready to make a presentation.
Share the ideas. Select a group at random and ask its spokesperson to present the final set of five
ideas. Encourage members of the other groups to listen carefully. Repeat the procedure until all groups
have made their presentation.
Conduct individual action planning activity. Give an index card or a piece of paper to each
participant. Ask participants to write down five ideas in response to the question, “How can I individually
contribute to the achievement of the common goal?” Tell participants that they could record earlier ideas
from their groups, or ideas from other groups, or new ideas. Announce a suitable time limit.
Don’t Alaap Apna Raag
Genre: Sales 12
Objective: Understanding the importance of Standardization. One team one goal
Duration - 5 to 7 minutes
Timing of Activity: Post Lunch. This activity can also be useful while explaining the sales process –
The need for following the sales process of Bharti Axa Life Insurance.
Activity
The trainer divides the entire batch into groups (4 – 5 per group)
Each group is asked to select a song of their choice.
Once each group has finalized their song, all of them are asked to start singing the song very loudly at the
same go.
Their will be total chaos in the training room since every one is singing their own song.
After 2 min. the trainer requests every one to stop singing & ask the participants randomly if they were
able to identify the songs sung by the other group.
Result: Probably no one will be able to do that.
The trainer now gives a common song to all the participants / groups (preferably a motivational one) &
now asks them to start singing once again for a minute or so.
The groups will be much organizes this time.
The trainer should now ask the participants to analyze both the situations.
Result: Participants will themselves understand that every one should be on a single thought or platform
while performing a common task.
The trainer here also need to built upon the need for every one to be focused on one goal of the
organization since otherwise it will become a “Khichdi”
Ruk Jana Nahin
Genre: Sales 13
Duration: 10 – 15 Minutes.
Objective: Problem solving. Don’t run around problems, look for the solutions.
Timing Of Activity: Any time during the workshop. Preferably in a sales workshop.
Requirements: 15 -20 Chairs arranged in a zig zag manner in the training room.
Ask for 4- 5 volunteers & have them take a good look of the entire room.
Give them a destination to be reached at the end of the room.
Now, blind fold them & ask them to reach the assigned destination without touching/colliding with the
chairs.
Meanwhile, silently remove half of the chairs from the room.
The volunteers will try to reach the assigned destination taking every effort not to touch the chairs as per
the arrangement shown to them.
Once every one has reached the assigned destination ask them to open their eyes & have a re – look of the
entire room. They will be surprised to find that there are just half of the chairs in the room to which they
had taken precaution of not colliding with them.
Learning: Obstructions are all in the mind. We perceive lot of obstructions in our mind before
getting on to the actual job; however, most of the obstacles are baseless.
Sales styles: A Role Experience
Genre: Sales 14
Goals
To demonstration the impact of four different sales styles (Product-centered, company centered,
customer –centered, Self–styled) on different customers
i. To demonstrate the need for flexibility in sales styles
ii. For understanding the customer.
Group size
Groups of 12 participants any number of groups may be used.
Time required
About 3 hours
Materials
i. Role identity cards – four different salesman (Red, Blue Green Yellow )
Four customers (Red, Blue, Green Yellow) and four observers (Red, Blue, Green, Yellow)
ii. Role briefing sheets for the respective roles (a total of six- role briefs)
iii. Customer, observer and salesman rating sheets
Process
i. The facilitator explains the overall structure of the exercise and the procedures
ii. To be followed while working on it. He announces the product or the item which
a. Will be sold by the salesmen and if possible distributes illustrated sales
b. Literature of the product
iii. The facilitator divides the total participant group into groups of 12 each. Or alternately
accommodates available number of participants in a changed scheme of group formation, where
less then 12 but more than 9 participants.
iv. The facilitator invites the groups members to choose their respective roles
a. And helps them put on their “Role Identity card”. He, then, distributes the
b. “Role briefing sheets “and “Evaluation Forms “to the respective role players
c. He then suggests the role-players to spend about 10 minutes to themselves recapitulating
their role without any discussion with other members.
v. While the salesman and the customers are busy recapitulating their respective
a. Roles, the facilitator holds a brief session separately with all the observers together here he,
either reads out to them the “guidelines for the observers”
b. Or explains the procedure that they have to follow while participating in the exercise.
c. He also provides deeper insights into the various dimensions on
i. Which they are expected to observer and assess the salesman-customer
transactions by acquainting them with the variety of verbal and non-verbal
ii. Behaviors that they are likely to observe during the course of the interactions.
vi. The facilitator then, assembles the total group together. He suggests the four Customers to be
seated in four different corners of the rooms at such a distance that their discussions in dyads with
salesman are not audible to other groups.
Then he goes around meeting them individually to enquire if they have any questions.
vii. Once this is over the facilitator suggests the observes to go and join their respective customers and
to sit at such a distance from the customer that
a. The interaction of the salesman –customer pair remain audible and visible to him but his
presence does not distract them. When the observers are thus seated with individually if
they have any question, suggests appropriate name for their companies for inserting on
their respective role identity card and then signals them to meet their scheduled customers
to commence their first round of interactions.
viii. After 15 minutes the facilitator announces closure of the first round, and
Request the respective role-player to spend sometime (10 minutes) to themselves rating the
transactions (they have just completed) on the rating form provided to them in their respective
sets.
ix. The facilitator then requests the salesmen to change their pairs. When the salesmen are thus
reseated he announces the starting time for the round. In this manner he helps the group complete
the four rounds of interactions as provided in the design of the exercise.
x. After a brief break of 10 to 15 minutes, which fallows the assessment – recoding after the fourth
round, the entire group reassemblies together as at the beginning of the exerciser, at this stage the
facilitator distributes to the salesmen and to customers the copy of the “Observer briefing sheet”.
After allowing 5 to7 minutes reading time he proceeds to tabulate (either on the black-board or on
a flip-chart) the consolidated assessments by respective role players:
• Salesman-wise consolidated assessment by all customers.
• Customer-wise consolidated by all –customer-wise consolidated assessment by all salesmen
xi. After tabulating the assessments, the facilitator invites the group to discuss the data if necessary by
raising points such as;
• Which of the salesman was most effective and why?
• Which of the salesman created good impressions and why?
• How realistically did the respective salesmen assess their effectiveness?
• What significant processes came to surface or were involved during the course of various
transactions?
• What different interaction patterns were noticed by the observes?
xii. The facilitator at this stage discloses the predominant characteristics of the respective roles of the
four salesmen which were so far referred to only by their “color” identities.
xiii. The facilitator then initiates of a process of feedback by inviting contributions from the group by
referring directly to the sales styles (as product-centered style etc.)With a view to highlight the
distinguishing features of different sales styles as revealed by the analysis of the process of
interactions. it may also prove useful to relate these features to the ratings given to salesmen by
the customers, and also by the observers.
The 8 dimensions outline in the observation form go a long way in providing significant feedback to role
players even on those behaviors which are not specified in the “Guidelines for role-players”. The
statement-role players may not get so over concerned about playing their specified styles that they may
neglect
The participants who play the “customer” role in this session may have to be briefed individually (in
private) to play only the role of moderate need customer so as to keep this variable constant for the two
or three different rounds in this session.
After each round of role-play, the observer group could give feedback in common, on the basis of
assessments made by all members (other than the “salesman”) individually.
Role Brief for Salesman Yellow
You are going to play the role of sales representative of a company which is manufacturing the product
announced by your instructor. The company has begun to gain a good reputation and has established a
name in the manufacture of this product. The name of the company is
“…………………………………………………………….” (Please insert here and your id card an appropriate name for this
company n consultation with your Instructor).
You have been on this job of sales representative for almost a year now. During this one year, you have
acquired a particular style of talking to people for selling your products. On the basis of your experiences
you have developed into sales men who believe that a lucid narration of your experiences about selling
this product pays better dividends while persuading people to but them. You believe that people can be
made to buy any brand provided the salesmen know how to sell it. In your view very few items on the
market get sold on the strength of intrinsic merits of the products. It is the flair and image of the salesmen
that really makes for the sale. You therefore talk about the number of items you have been able to sell in
the past, and about how well you have been received by customers, about the many agencies that are
after you to work in selling this product. You talk about the problems faced by other salesmen in the field,
stating in the same vein how you have to sell a few more items to have achieved a most challenging target
which you have set for yourself. In other words, you will enact the role of a salesman who talks about
himself, about his accomplishments and experiences. Your basic belief is that customers buy from
successful salesmen. Your thought processes are full of your achievements and your experiences.
In the process of enacting this role, you will be visiting four customers one after the other. You will
approach them with improvised talking points and presentation consistent with your role. You will have to
develop the presentation yourself. Think about how to talk to the customer. You have to talk to him
without sacrificing either realism or sounding yourself artificial. You have 15 minutes to be spent with each
customer. After you are through with each of these customers you will spend then minutes to yourself, in
seclusion, to rate the customer you have met, on the basis of the transactions which you had with him.
You will use the Salesmen Rating Form provided to you. Part 1 of the Form you will fill in immediately after
you are through with a customer. Whereas the part 2 (on its backside) is to be filled in when you have
finished with all the four customers.
Role Brief for Salesman Blue

“…………………………………………………………….” (Please insert an appropriate name for this company n
consultation with your Instructor. Repeat the same name on your identity card).
acquired a particular style of talking to persuade people in buying your products. On the basis of such
experiences you have developed into a salesman who believes that the easiest way to sell items is by
impressing on the customer the superiority of the company rather that glorifying merits of the product.
You believe that people buy not so much by the qualities or merits of the product but by the name of the
company. You do not expect customers to possess such deep insights into qualitative appreciation of
products. Hence you believe in impressing them by talking about the company, in pointing to tae awards
the company has won in the international markets, and about things which highlight the accomplishments
and reputation of the company. You talk only marginally about the merits or qualities of the product you
selling. In other works you have to enact the role of sale representative who displays great reliance on the
reputation of the organization while making sales an who expresses a deep sense of prod in working for
the company. Your belief is that customer but from sales men who represent companies with a very good
image.
approach them whit improvised talking points and presentation consistent with your role. You will have to
develop this yourself. Think about how to describe your product impressively without sacrificing realism.
You have 15 minutes to be spent with each customer.
After are through with each of these customer, you will spend 10 minutes to yourself, in seclusion to rate
the customer you men and transaction you had with him.
Role Brief for Salesman Green

experiences you have developed into a salesman who believes that it is the customer who mattes most. In
your opinion what generally persuades people in buying is the understanding you show to you customer
about his needs, and the way you build up a personal relationship with him. You believe in selling to
customer only when they are likely to benefit genuinely by the purchase. You keep enquiring about the
personal welfare of the customer and seek to establish friendly relations with him. You show respect for
his opinions and remain sensitive to his reservation. Your basic belief is that customers buy from friendly
and likeable salesmen. You rarely talk about your company or about the special qualities of the product in
other words you have to enact the role of a sales man who believes in expressing a concern for customers
and their problems.
approach them with improvised talking points and presentation consistent with your roles. You will have
to develop this presentation yourself. Think how to talk to him without sacrificing either realism or
sounding yourself artificial. You have 15 minutes to be spent with each customer.
After you are through with each one of these customer you will spend ten minutes to yourself, in
seclusion, to rate the customer you have met, on the basis of the transactions which you had with him
Role brief for Red
experiences you have developed into a salesman who believes that is the quality of knowledge of the
product of which matters in promoting sales. In your view it is the description and presentation of the
product which persuades people to by. you believe in talking about the about the excellence of the
product, its superiority over similar products, the distinctive features of its manufacture, the vast range of
advantages that it offers and of its such other characteristic features which single it out from other brands
on the market. You believe that it is these merits of the product which persuade the customer to buy it.
You rarely talk about your company. In other words, you have to enact the role of a sales representative
who displays high esteem for the product he is selling. Your basis belief is that customer by from salesmen
who display the product knowledge.
In the process of enacting this role, you will be visiting four customer one after the other you will approach
them with improvised talking points and presentation consistent with your role. You will have to develop
this yourself. Think about how to describe your product impr4essively without sacrificing realism. You have
15 minutes to be spent with each customer.
After you are through with each of these customer, you will spend 10 minutes to yourself, in seclusion, to
rate the customer you me and the transaction you had with him.
Role Brief for Customer Red, Green, Blue and Yellow

You are going to play the role of customer who has been planning to buy a ‘quality’ product of type
announced by the Instructor, even if this means a long wait for you. You are no in need of the product
immediately but would like to have one of the quality is gook.
Today you are going too have a few salesmen from different companies visiting you. They come with their
products and product description. They will be you one after another.
When a salesman comes to you, you will not tell him straight that you are not interested in his product.
Generally customers of this type talk of their experiences with other similar products and complain. You
may or may not like to tell him about your experience. But you will give him enough opportunity to talk his
own way. You are going to react to him with poise, devoid of any manifest disinclination to by an Indian
product. You have about 15 minutes to talk to each one of these salesmen and to make up your mind.
Even in the end, you are not going to reveal you decision to buy or not to buy. You will simply tell him, in
the end, that you will let him know your decision the next day.
You will enact this role afresh for every other salesman who comes to meet you i.e., even if you have
decided in your mind not to buy from either of them, you will still role-play as though you have not made
up you mind yet. You will not refuse to talk to any of these salesmen, and will interact with all of then
indication your interest in them though not in their product.
Soon after each salesman leaves you, you will spend ten minute to yourself, and folk in the Customers
Rating Form (Part 1) for the respective salesman on all the three dimensions. Once having completed your
assessment for the fourth salesman in Part 1 of the Form, you will give your comparative assessment of all
the four transaction in Part 2.
Please do not reveal to anyone at any stage during the interaction process, that you are going to rate the
salesman who meets you.
Role Brief for Observers

Your customer color ______________
Your name ______________
1. The exercise provides for interactions between four salesmen and four customers, each one of
whom represents a different orientation in sales style and product need, respectively. They interact
impairs accounting to a pre-arranged schedule which will be announced by the Instructor.
2. The salesman-customer transactions in this exercise take place simultaneously in four pair. The
exercise provides for four rounds of interactions to complete the full circle of transactions in pairs
between all the four customers and the four salesmen.
3. You are going to play the role of observer in this exercise. You will observe interaction between one
customer and four different salesmen.
4. you will choose your customer and write his color identity (e.g. red, blue, green or yellow) n the
box provided at top right on this page; and remain yourself with this customer throughout the
exercise.
5. To avoid overlapping of choice of the customer between the four observers, you will select your
customer in consultation with other observers.
6. There are four observers, each one of whom will observe the transactions in their respective pairs
of the salesman and the customer spread over four rounds. The dimensions on which you would
observe the transaction are outlined in the “Observe Briefing Sheet”. You will keep note on various
dimension of the interaction and exchange these notes with the interacting person, only after the
four are over.
7. Your role expects you to silently observe the process and also to note the content of the
transactions. At no stage, however, you will intervene in this process either verbally or no-verbally.
8. You will assess these transaction in the ‘Observation For provided in this set. One separate
observation for is to used for one salesman.
Observation Form
Your name ______________ Salesman color ______________
On this Form you will record your observations in brief for your own use regarding observed behaviors,
significant statements or expressions. Any important customer reaction which has a bearing on the
following 8 dimensions is to be recorded.
Dimensions Of Salesman – Customer Transaction

1. Opening a sale
2. Client-needs assessment
3. Content of transaction - Motivational
Brief Clarification
Information
4. Listening Skills
5. Practiced Sales Style. Please write whether he was “product – centered’, Company – Centered”,
“Customer – Centered” or Salesman (Self) – Centered;, and give reasons for your assessment by
quoting from the transactions
6. Velocity & Tone
7. Climate Describe By using either of the following adjectives: “Tense: Relaxed”; Friendly”;
“Unfriendly”; “Warm”; “Cold”; “Directive’; “Non-Directive”; “Argumentative”; Composed”;
Etc. Try and justify your assessment by relating it to observed behaviors
8. Close of the Sale & Length of Transaction
2. Feedback: (What Suggestion You Would Like To Make To This Salesman )
Stop Doing
Reduce
Start Doing
Increase
4. Skill Assessment:
i. Please rate his capacity as a Salesman

ii. In your opinion what is the probability of the customer buying the product from this
salesman (out of on a 5 point scale, where 1 denotes the highest and 5 the lowest)
Capacity Probability
Customer Rating Form
Part 1
Your name ______________ Your color ______________
Please mark ‘x’ in the box in appropriate salesman column below, to represent your thoughts after, the
increase with him.
DIMENSIONS FOR ASSEMENT:

1. ACCEPTANCE THOUGHT:
Which one of the following thoughts comes to your mind after your interaction with this salesman?
I will not hesitate to buy from him Red Blue Green Yellow
if I need it
I will not buy from him even if I

need it
I will recommend it to my friend

who needs it
I will caution my friend to be

careful before he buys this
product, since I am not convinced
FEELINGS:
A set of eight bi-polar adjectives are presented each one of the four assessment blanks on the back
page. There are seven blank spaces between the bi-polar adjective which provide scope for indication
the degree of intensity of your feelings broadly expressed within the range. You will express your
feelings which were left behind in you after your interaction with this salesman. By ticking () and of the
seven blank space provided on the bipolar axis.
For Example
Warm _______________________ Cold
Customer Rating Form
Please tick (√) mark the appropriate blank space on all the 8 dimensions immediately after your interaction
with the respective salesman.
Salesman Active Passive
Red Good Bad
Warm Cold
Impressive Unimpressive
Sharp Dull
Efficient Unfriendly
Friendly Inefficient
Patient Impatient

Blue Good Bad
Warm Cold
Sharp Dull
Patient Impatient

Green Good Bad
Warm Cold
Sharp Dull
Patient Impatient

Yellow Good Bad
Warm Cold
Sharp Dull
Patient Impatient
Customer Rating Form - PART 2
Fill in this part of the form only when you are through with all the four salesmen. Here you are giving a
comparative assessment based on all the four interactions.
If at all you have to buy the product, from who would you like to buy meet, and from whom the least?
Please indicate below the respective color identities of the salesmen in your mind.
Most ______________ Least _______________
Salesman Rating Form - Part 1
Your name ______________ Your color ______________
Please give your assessment of each one of the customer on the three dimensions outlined below. You
have to record your assessment immediately after you have completed the round of interactions with
the respective customer. For example after you have interacted with the Customer Red, you will assess
him on all the three dimensions in the column marked in this form for red Customer.
Please mark ‘x’ in that box in the respective customer column which approximates your rating.
Dimensions of assessment Rating Scale Customer
Red Blue Green Yellow
1. How satisfied you are with Very much
the intereaction you had with satisfied
this customer
Somewhat
satisfied
Neither satisfied
nor dissatisfied
Somewhat
dissatisfied
Very much
dissatisfied
2. What is your assessment of Very high

this Customer’s need to buy
the product you were High
endeavoring to sell?
Medium
Low
Negative
3. In your opinion, what is the State the

probability of this Customer probability in
purchasing the product percentage figure
in the box
opposite
Salesman Rating Form - Part 2
Your name ______________ Salesman color ______________
After having completed all the four rounds of interactions with the four customers’s you will introspect
for a while about the entire range or transacting. Then write in brief below, the thoughts are still in your
mind even after the process was over. Please state your reactions like feelings of comfort or discomfort,
happiness or unhappiness, satisfaction or dissatisfaction, nervousness or exhilaration etc, by specifying
the occasions.
Consensus
Genre: ASSERTIVENESS 1
Summary: A group decision-making activity.
Objectives: Team-building.
Assertiveness.
Decision making.
Materials: Checklists (see below), Pens.
Timing: One hour.
Procedure:
1. Hand out the checklist and ask participants to rank their ten most important qualities in descending
order of importance. When they have done so, ask them to remove the five lowest.
2. Ask the group to come to a consensus as to which are the most important qualities in a 20 minute
period. Observe them doing so.
3. Discuss with the group how they came to the consensus they reached.
Commentary:
The group may well seek further advice on terms of reference, or complain that the task is too hard. The
trainer should remain outside the group and not offer directive advice. If the group abandons a constraint
like Pillow Talk then this should be allowed and then talked through in the discussion phase.
Instances
Variations:
1. If your learning points are about team-building then at Stage 2 ask group members to rank each
member according to how dominant they think they are. Share these and get each person to work
out their average rank (the total score they have been given by themselves and others divided by
number of people in the group). A low score means they are perceived as dominant. Divide the
group into sub-groups according to dominance and then go through Stage 2.
2. It is possible to use other qualities like “Qualities of an effective manager” elicited through
brainstorming the whole group, if that is something that can be drawn on later in the course.
3. The group processes can be recorded by the trainer using video and/or an interaction analysis like
that of Bales (Swenson 1973, pp. 195-207) ‘or Rackham (1977). This will increase the processing
time considerably.
Personal qualities checklist:
To me it is ‘important that another person can:
-have a good sense of humor - be wise
- be kind -state their bottom line
-have fun -be logical
-be understanding -be accepting
-be friendly -know a lot
-be outrageous , -listen
-be trustworthy -be cynical
-be outgoing -be generous
-take a joke -be confident
-be honest -be consistent
-be critical -be attractive
-be able to understand my feelings -be calm
-be talkative -understand me
-be able to listen -be correct
-be creative -be aggressive
-be stylish -be in control
-be spontaneous -be doing the best you can
-be mature -be lively
-be child-like -be predictable
Appreciative Disagreements
Genre: Assertiveness 2
Summary: Participants try to change each other’s minds while the other person practices non-
confrontational responses.
Objectives: Non-verbal cbmrnunication.
Motivation.
Assertiveness.
Materials: None.
Timing: 20 minutes.
Procedure:
1. Ask participants to work in pairs and ‘choose a topic on which they will disagree. It does not matter
if they both have the same view.
2. Invite them to take opposing views and do all they can to persuade the other to change his/her
mind. Explain that at a signal they will swap over roles. Responses should be in the form “I
appreciate/I agree/I respect . . . AND” (note “and” and not “but”).
3. On’ a signal ask them to exchange roles.
Commentary:
Often those who have started arguing against their “natural” view report difficulty in changing back to
what they “really” believe. Explore how the ‘acknowledgement in the form of words used affected their
ability to take a hostile’ attitude. This is a good exercise to do immediately after War of Words. You may
wish to have said something about the theory of assertiveness before starting on this exercise.
Am/Seem
Summary: Exploration of how group members see themselves and are seen by others.
Objectives: Self-disclosure
Team-building
Assertiveness.
Materials: Prepared cards (see below).
One card for each group member with his or her name on it.
Pens.
Pins.
Timing: 30 minutes.
Procedure:
1. Pin up the name cards round the room at an equal distance from each other.
2. Give each participant a set of the prepared cards and explain that each person has the same ones.
You may wish to eliminate some items or add others, depending on the level of trust established
within the group.
3. Invite participants to pin the cards under the name of the person they consider most appropriate. If
you think it will help the group then start them with their own name and ask them to move
clockwise at the same time so that nobody knows who has given what card to whom.
4. Invite them to circulate and look at their own and others’ lists.
5. Discuss the extent to which people’s perceptions of themselves differed from those of others. Note
how this can even apply to apparently “objective” categories like height.
Commentary: On a team-building-course it will not be appropriate to include the trainer. In other contexts
it might.
Variations
1. Give different people different but overlapping sets of cards.
2. Provide some blank cards for people to put their own categories.
3. In the discussion, ask what other categories people would have liked to have.
4. Use blank cards only.
Sample cards
1. Person who makes me laugh the most.
2. Kindest person.
3. Most outgoing person.
4. Most hard working person.
5. Most perceptive person.
6. Untidiest person.
7. Most reliable person.
8. Friendliest person.
9. Silliest person.
10. Most unreliable person.
11. Most scatterbrained person.
12. Most flexible person.
13. Most trustworthy person.
14. Most serious person.
15. Mast prejudiced person.
16. Most critical person.
17. Person I would most share my feelings with.
18. Most talkative person.
19. Most spiritual person.
20. Most untrustworthy person.
21. Most artistic person.
22. Person who most often irritates me.
23. Youngest. Person
24. Cleverest person
25. Most logical person
26. Most accepting person.
27. Least prejudiced person.
28. Wisest person.
29. Most passive person.
30. Person I would most like to work with.
31. Most cynical person.
32. Oldest person.
33. Greediest person.
34. Person I would most like to go on holiday with.
35. Most generous person.
36. Smartest person
37. Person who made the least impression on me.
38. Most fashionable person.
39. Person I would most like to be my boss.
40. Most beautiful person.
41. Most .aggressive person.
The Chairs
Summary: In pairs participants try and persuade each other to get up off a chair.
Materials: A hard chair.
Timing: 30 minutes.
Objectives: Assertiveness.
Non-verbal communication.
Procedure:
1. Ask for a volunteer and sit them in the chair in the centre. Ask for another volunteer.
2. Explain that the task of the second volunteer is to persuade the first to get out of the chair. If they
wish they can dramatize a situation which they might be in and take that as their starting point
(examples below). They may not touch the person, but may say anything they like, and it is up to
the person sitting whether she or he vacates the seat.
3. Invite another pair to try.
4. Lead a discussion. Discover the kinds of arguments people used. Why did they think that argument
would work? Were they the ones that they would have liked used on them? Would you let
anything work on you? If not, why not? Often a simple “I would feel better if you stood up” works.
If they have a dramatized situation then explores other options. Consider whose rights (if anyone’s)
were in danger of being violated. Consider the non-verbal communication used by the parties.
Commentary: This is based on the same game type as Fists.
Variations:
1. Instead of asking for a second volunteer invite the rest of the group to take turns in improvising. This
“brainstorm” approach can work well.
2. The first three stages can be done by the whole group in pairs.
Situation examples:
1. Finding someone in your seat at the theatre.
2. Returning to find your seat occupied on a train.
3. Finding “your” seat taken in the course-room on the
4. Being a clumsy waiter.
5. Head waiter trying to close a restaurant.
6. Operating an electric chair.
7. Being an office cleaner.
8. Sitting in an aircraft that is about to crash.
9. Mother telling her child to come in for dinner.
10. Deck-chair attendant.
11. Dentist.
12. Officer evacuating the Titanic.
13. Nurse getting a patient back into bed.
14. Elderly person needing a seat on the underground.
First Impressions
Summary: Exercise exchanging first impressions.
Objectives: Self-perception.
Self-disclosure.
Attribution.
Materials: Paper and pens (optional).

Flipchart.
Timing: 30 minutes.
Procedure:
1. Remind group members of the first time that they saw each other. Introduce an exercise to share
these impressions and to consider their accuracy.
2. Go through a list of questions on a flipchart:
What was your first impression on me?
What things about me gave you that impression?
Did I remind you of, anyone else? Was that important?
Do you want to know if that was the impression I wanted to give?
How accurate do you now feel the impression you had of me is?
3. Invite group members to form pairs and share their first impressions. Say that you will ask them to
change after seven minutes.
4. After three combinations bring the group back together and ask what people have learned about
the first impressions that people make.
Commentary:
Once participants have started this, they will often want to do it with everyone else. Time rarely allows
this. Invite them to continue outside the course room if necessary. This exercise works best with people
who are all strangers at the start of the course.
Just a Minute
Summary: An exercise to test knowledge of a topic by timed talking in a competitive situation.
Objectives: Attention switching.
Energizer.
Validation.
Materials: Whiteboard to score on and markers.

Stopwatch
Bell or whistle for trainer.
Something for participants to make noises with (like whistles, bells).
Prepared list of cards with topics relating to the subjects of the course on them
Scoring system set out on newsprint.
Timing: 30 minutes.
Procedure:
1. Explain that the objective of the exercise is to speak for one minute, without deviation, hesitation
or repetition, on a topic suggested by the trainer. Participants can challenge one another (one
point if correct, one point to the speaker if incorrect), and whoever speaks as the whistle goes gets
another point. Bonus points to anyone who speaks for the whole minute.
2. Start with a trivial round on a topic suggested by the trainer (like “knees”) and proceed to further
rounds. Then do the real thing. Use suggestions for topics by the participants, and topics relating to
the learning points of the training event.
Variations:
1. Invite participants to suggest topics.
2. Have participants working in two teams.
3. Just a Minuet is a musical variation. Individuals (or teams) sing a well-known song, but when a word
is repeated they must use a different word or expression each time. The challenger then continues
until the minute is up. You may give teams lyric sheets, but it is still a difficult and enjoyable fun
activity.
Decisions, Decisions!
Genre: Assertiveness 7
Objective:
To show to participants the desirability of committing themselves to intellectual positions, but only after
careful listening for input with which to make potential decisions. To convince participants of the merits of
remaining flexible so as to absorb new inputs and adapt to new rationale.
Procedure:
Ask all participants to stand in the center of the room. Quickly share with them a brief scenario that results
in a dilemma, or the essence of a controversial topic of contemporary interest. Then state a key assertion
flowing from that story. For example, relate the incident from the movie Dead Poets Society in which one
of the students wishes to spend some time working in the theater, but his father dictates that he shall not
because it would detract from his studies. Assertion: The father’s position is defensible. (Many other
examples abound, such as abortion, euthanasia, legalization of drugs, etc.)
Designate each comer of the room as space for those who Strongly Agree, Somewhat Agree, Somewhat
Disagree, or Strongly Disagree. Ask participants to move to the comer of the room that best represents
their current position on the assertion. If they have “No Opinion,” they should temporarily stay in the
middle of the room, but must eventually choose a comer. (Note: Not all comers will necessarily have
someone in them.)
Now ask volunteers from any comer to voice their reasoning. Individuals may, at any time, move from one
corner to another, thus indicating that they have changed their mental position on the issue—either
directionally (agree—disagree) or by degree (somewhat—strongly).
Discussion questions:
1. How flexible are you on controversial issues? Are you truly open to new inputs and arguments?
2. What kinds of arguments are most effective in swaying opinions?
3. How can we discipline ourselves to become better listeners?
Material Required: None
On Your Face
Genre: Communication 1
Summary: Identification of labels through the responses they evoke.
Objectives: Energizer
Non-verbal communication
Attributions
Materials: Marker pens

Prepared headbands (examples given below). Two strips of paper or card of A4 length taped together
will fit an average head.
Timing: 20 minutes.
Procedure:
1. Form participants into pairs, excluding the trainers. Explain that you are going to put a headband
onto each participant which will offer instructions on how that person is to be treated by others.
Do so. They should not get the chance to see their own headbands.
2. Ask pairs to find as many areas of common interest as they can in ten minutes, reacting to each
other as though the labels were true.
3. After ten minutes stop the discussion and, as a group, talk about how people managed to guess
what was on their headband. Ask them for parallels from their own experience. How might such
messages be transmitted? Are they aware of any such messages that they give to other people?
Commentary:
This activity is related to Amnesia and Labels. It can also be used to explore the internal “voices” that seem
to push people into behaving in certain ways.
Variations:
1. Rather than talking in pairs, participants can form a group and discuss any topic in that context.
2. Blank headbands can be handed out and participants asked to fill them out and put them on
someone else’s head.
Selves and Possibilities
Summary: Comparison of self in different circumstances with ideal self.
Objectives: Self-development.
Self-disclosure.
Team-building.
Action planning.
Materials: Blank cards (six per person).

Pens.
Timing: 25 minutes.
Procedure:
1. Distribute the cards to participants individually.
2. Explain that you are going to ask them to think about themselves in different situations. Ask them
to think of words to describe “What I am like when I am at work”. Two or three adjectives are all
that is required.
3. Then do them same for “What I am like when I am at home”, and “What I am like when I am by
myself”.
4. Then do the same for “What I would like to be when I am at work”, “What I would like to be when I
am at home”, and “What I would like to be when I am by myself”.
5. Invite them to discuss in pairs what the differences are between their present and the ideal state,
and what might be the best way of reconciling the two.
6. Invite them to share anything they wish with the main group.
Commentary:
The approach used here is based on that of Carl Rogers to counseling, which was to consider the difference
between the self and the ideal self (Rogers 1951). The trainer interested in adding a short input session on
this approach could consult Hampden-Turner (1981).
Variations:
1. Invite participants to close their eyes and imagine themselves in the various states.
2. Choose all work related situations (for example, “What I am like as a line manager”, “What I would
like to be being managed by others”).
3. Carry out the exercise at the start and at the end of the course and ask participants to look at the
differences.
4. At Stage 5, place more emphasis on pairs comparing the different ideal states, present states, and
the differences between them.
Transmitting Information
Objective: To demonstrate that information transmitted loses much of its content when passed through
“channels.”
Procedure:
Take any recent article (2-3 paragraphs) that is not currently “in the news.” Divide the group into teams of
4 or 5 people each. Tell them to count off, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 so that each person is identified in sequence. Ask
those numbered as #1 to stay in the room and all others to move outside the room. Then, tell those
remaining that you’re going to read them a story; they should not take notes, but merely listen to it. After
you’ve read the story (with no questions allowed), ask the #2’s to return to their tables, where the #l’s will
repeat the story to them. Then the #3’s are brought in and hear the story from the #2’s while the #1’s
observe. Continue the sequence until all have participated. Then at random have some of the number 5’s
repeat what they heard.
Discussion Question:
1. Of the initial story, how much was lost in the respective transmittals? How much embellishment
took place?
2. What errors or differences were observed as the story passed among the group members?
3. How could we have increased both the facts and the understanding of the story? How do we get
feedback in real world incidents?
Materials Required: A brief article from a magazine or newspaper

Approximate Time Required: 10-12 minutes
Source: Unknown
A READ AND DO TEST
Can you follow instructions?
1. Read all that follows before doing anything.
2. Write your name in the upper right-hand-comer of this page.
3. Circle the word “corner” in sentence two.
4. Draw five small squares in upper left hand corner of this page.
5. Put an ‘X” on each square.
6. Put a circle around each square.
7. Sign your name under line 5.
8. After your name, write “yes, yes, yes.”
9. Put a circle around number 7.
10. Put an “X” in the lower-left-hand corner of this page.
11. Draw a triangle around the “X” you just made.
12. Call out your first name when you get to this point in the test.
13. If you think that you have followed directions carefully to this point, call out, “I have!”
14. On the reverse side of this paper add 6950 and 9805.
15. Put a circle around your answer.
16. Count out loud, in your normal speaking voice, from 10 to 1.
17. Put three small pin or pencil holes in the top of this page.
18. If you are the first person to get this far, yell out, “I am the first person to get to this spot and I am
the leader in following directions.”
19. Say out loud, “I am nearly finished. I have followed directions.”
20. Now that you have finished reading carefully, do only those things called for in the sentences
numbered 1 and 2. Did you read everything on this page before doing anything?
NOTE: PLEASE BE QUIET AND WATCH THE OTHERS FOLLOW DIRECTIONS.
A Read and Do Test
Objective: To show, in a humorous way, that people often fail to read and / or follow Directions.
Procedure:
Distribute a copy of the “Read and Do” test to each participant. Ask them to keep the test face down until
everyone has a copy. Explain this is a timed test with a maximum time of three minutes allowed to
complete the task. Offer no further instructions of any kind. Then state “OK? Ready, set-go!”
Materials Required: Copies of the Read and Do test.
Approximate Time Required: Five minutes.

Source: Unknown.
A Nonverbal Introduction
Objectives:
1. To demonstrate that communication can sometimes be completely accomplished without words and
still be largely effective.
2. To illustrate that interpersonal communication is indeed possible through the use of gestures and
other nonverbal methods.
Procedure:
Divide the group into two-person teams. State that the purpose of this exercise is to introduce oneself to
his or her partner, but that this entire activity must be accomplished with no words, i.e., completely
nonverbally. They may use visuals, pictures, signs, gestures, signals, or anything nonverbal. If necessary,
you may offer certain hints, i.e., pointing to a wedding ring to indicate marriage, an in-place running
movement to indicate jogging, etc. After a 2-minute time period allowed for each member of the dyad,
have each group then take a few minutes to verbally “check themselves out,” i.e., allow them to verbally
state what they were communicating nonverbally.
1. How accurate were you in describing yourselves? (Have them rate themselves on a 1-5 scale.)
2. How accurate were you in “reading” your partner’s gestures? (Rate themselves again)
3. What were some of the better clues given by your partner?
4. What barriers or problems seemed to be in our way? (Lack of props, lack of experience with
nonverbal communication)
5. How might we eliminate or reduce these barriers?
Materials Required: None
Approximate Time required: 10 minutes

Source: Unknown
Arithmetic Test
Objective:
To demonstrate that people don’t always read or follow even simple, written directions.
Procedure:
As shown on the following page, this is a one-page “test.” Preface your instructions by commenting that
the test is a very simple one involving easy addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division problems.
Pass the papers out face down. Then state, “As soon as I say ‘Go’, turn your papers over and work as -fast
as you possibly can. As soon as you finish, turn your papers back over, and raise your right hand in the air.
Ready - Set - Go!”
Make certain your instructions are given hurriedly and allow no time for questions. Give the impression
that time is very tight and they must rush this assignment. Allow only around 30 seconds, and then
interrupt, saying, “OK, I see most of you are finished, so let’s check our answers.” Pause. “The answer to
number 1, of course, is what?” (Note: Experience indicates that at least half of the audience will respond.)
Acknowledge that “10” is correct, even though one or two people will correctly give the answer as “16.”
Continue, “OK, the answer to number 2 is what?” After one or two more responses, demonstrate that
there are different answers and ask the group, “Did you all get the same sheet?” Then let the group itself
discover their problem by reading the directions to themselves.
1. Remember the saying, “If all else fails, read the directions”? Why didn’t we do so here? (Pressed for
time; saw familiar problems).
2. Have you ever seen incidents where poorly given or rushed instructions may be worse than none at
all?
3. Did anyone experience group pressure when you began to start this exercise? What effects did this
have on your performance?
Materials Required: Test sheet (see following page)

Source: Unknown
ARITHMETIC TEST
In the following simple arithmetic problems, a plus (+) sign means to multiply, a divide (÷) sign means to
add, a minus (-) sign means to divide, and a times (x) sign means to subtract. Complete the problems
following these directions.
8+2= 14-7=
9 + 11 = 6x5=
4x3= 8+3=
6÷2= 7x2=
9-3= 9+2=
7x4= 8-4=
4+4= 9+6=
8-4= l÷l=
12 x 2 = 8x7=
20 - 10 = 13-1=
9-1= 16-4=
5+6= 8x2=
2x1= 9÷9=
10-5= 6x2=
12+2= 8+4=
6+6= 10 - 2 =
8+5= 4-1=
6+6= 18-3=
17 x 2 = 8+2=
14 ÷ 7= 15 x 3 =
Listening Test: Riddles
Objective:
To introduce a session on listening or on communications by showing that few of us really are good
listeners! By the use of a humorous, light exercise such as these riddles, the participants are quickly shown
that their own skills in listening can be improved.
Procedure:
Ask the group to take a sheet of paper and number from 1-10 on it. Tell them you are going to ask them a
series of questions, all of which have short answers. They are to simply jot down their responses on their
sheets. Read each question only once. Now check their answers (see the key below), Ask, “How many said
‘Yes’ for #l? How many said ‘No’?” (A few chuckles will prompt the group that something may be wrong.)
Then read the questions again, providing them with the appropriate commentary. Repeat the process for
the other nine questions.
Key:
1. There’s no law against a man’s marrying his widow’s sister, but it would be the neatest trick of the
week. To have a widow, he would have to be dead.
2. You’d get one hour’s sleep. Alarm clocks don’t know the difference between morning and night.
3. Oh, yes. They have a 4th of July in England. They also have a 5th and a 6th, and so on.
4. First of all, you’d light the match.
5. Moses took no animals at all. It was Noah who took two of each.
6. Who said the Yankees and the Tigers were playing against each other in those games!
7. The average man has one birthday; so does the average woman. All the rest are birthday
anniversaries. In fact, in France “birthdays” are known as “anniversaries” (anniversaries).
8. You can’t bury survivors under any law - especially if they still have enough strength to object:
9. The archeologist is a liar because B.C., of course, means “Before Christ,” and who could have
guessed in advance when Christ would be born?
10. The bear that rang the doorbell would have to be a white bear. The only place you could build a
house with four southern exposures is at the North Pole, where every direction is south.
LISTENING TEST: RIDDLES
1. Is there any federal law against a man’s marrying his widow’s sister?
2. If you went to bed at eight o’clock at night and set the alarm to wake up at nine o’clock in the
morning, how many hours of sleep would you get?
3. Do they have a 4th of July in England?
4. If you had only one match and entered a cold room that had a kerosene lamp, an oil heater, and a
wood stove, which would you light first for maximum heat?
5. How many animals of each species did Moses take aboard the Ark with him during the great flood?
6. The Yankees and the Tigers play 5 baseball games. They each win 3 games. No ties or disputed
games are involved. How come?
7. How many birthdays does the average man have? The average woman?
8. According to International Law, if an airplane should crash on the exact border between two
countries, would unidentified survivors be buried in the country they were traveling to, or the
country they were traveling from?
9. An archeologist claims he has dug up a coin that is clearly dated 46 B.C. Why is he a liar?
10. A man builds an ordinary house with four sides, except that each side has a southern exposure. A
bear comes to the door and rings the doorbell. What color is the bear?
Listening And Following Directions
Objectives:
1. To demonstrate to trainees that the directions given to subordinates may be ambiguous and
therefore need greater clarity.
2. To demonstrate the need to listen carefully and seek clarification of an unclear message.
Procedure:
Show the following page to the group and direct their attention to each quadrant in sequential order.
Move rapidly through this set of directions:
1. Quadrant One: Tell them to place a dot on the letter “i”.
2. Quadrant Two: Tell them to print the word “xerox” in the blank spaces.
3. Quadrant Three: Tell them you saw a papa bull (PB), a mama bull (MB), and a baby bull (BB) in a
barnyard. Which one should not have been there? (Circle one)
4. Quadrant Four: Tell them to circle the word that doesn’t fit with the rest.
The “answers” to these queries are:

1. Quadrant One: Although most will place a dot in the usual place above the “in, they should have
placed it on the “i”.
2. Quadrant Two: Many will write the letters on the lines; however, the directions told them to write
it in the blank sp aces, e.g. _X_E_R_O _X.
3. Quadrant Three: There is, of course, no such thing as a mama bull.
4. Quadrant Four: The task is to search for the common denominator among three items and exclude
the fourth (many will circle the drum). But as one participant said, “You can beat your dog, your
child, or a drum, but you just can’t beat sex!”
1. Why did we respond incorrectly? (Ambiguous directions, time pressures, failure to listen, failure to
seek clarification, our prior habits and conditioning)
2. What lessons does this provide us for being better trainers/trainees/supervisors? (Take action to
overcome each of the problems identified in #1)
Materials Required: Following page on handout card or overhead transparency
WORKSHEET FOR FOLLOWING DIRECTIONS
ONE WAY COMMUNICATION DIAGRAM
One- And Two-Way Communication
Objective: To demonstrate the many problems of misunderstanding that can occur in a one-way
communication.
Procedure:
Prepare a diagram similar to the one shown on the following page. Ask a volunteer to assist in this
demonstration. Explain to the audience that the volunteer is going to describe something to them and
their task is to simply follow instructions in sketching out the illustration. Provide the volunteer with the
figure shown. Have the volunteer turn his or her back to the audience so no eye contact is possible. The
volunteer can use only verbal communication, i.e., no gestures, hand signals, etc. Further, no questions are
allowed on the part of the audience. In brief, only one-way communication is allowed. When the exercise
is completed, project the correct figure on the overhead projector and ask participants to judge whether
their drawings are at all similar to it. (If time permits, this activity can be immediately followed with
another volunteer using a comparable illustration but allowing for full and free two-way communication.)
1. How many of us got confused and just “quit” listening? Why?
2. Why was the one-way communication so difficult to follow?
3. Even two-way communication cannot ensure complete understanding. How can we make our
communication efforts more effective?
Materials Required: Diagram, as shown

Source: unknown
Yin-Yang
Did you ever play the TELEPHONE game during your childhood? In this game, children sit in a circle, and the
first child whispers a message to the next child. The second child whispers to third child and so on until
everyone has heard the whispered message and transmitted it to the next person. In the end, when
children compare the original and the final version of the message, they usually burst out laughing at the
way the message gets distorted.
We have designed an online game (called YIN-YANG) based on TELEPHONE with an interesting twist. Recently,
we used this game to explore direct and indirect modes in intercultural communication.
Direct and Indirect Communication

Indirect communication assumes that people understand the meaning without having to tell everything. It
tones down unpleasant aspects of the message by using convoluted language and metaphors.
Direct communication makes everything explicit. People using this mode of communication tell you exactly
what mean in a direct and assertive fashion.
How Yin-Yang Is Played

In this game, the first player writes a note in direct communication mode (example: “You’re stupid!”).
The next player converts it into indirect communication mode (example: “There are many factors that
make one person different from another. In the factor of appearance, you are beautiful. In the factor of
strength, you are strong. In the factor of intelligence, you are somewhere among typical people, slightly
below the statistical average. Of course, that does not mean that you are not a wonderful human being.”)
The next player sees the message in the indirect mode and converts it into the direct mode. This
alternating conversion continues and at the end we can compare different versions of the same message
in the two modes.
A Sample Game
During one of the most recent sessions, we started with this direct statement:
I love you.
And ended up with this direct statement:
One price only: $15. Do you want to buy it or not?
In case you are curious, here’s how the message alternated beween the direct and the indirect modes until
the noise in the system changed the entire meaning:
Direct: I love you.
Indirect: I hand knit this poncho for you. I thought you would like it.
Direct: This hand-made poncho costs $15.
Indirect: This is really a very good offer, high quality, nice price. Would you be able to spare $15 for this
superb product?
Direct: One price only: $15. Do you want to buy it or not?
Competency: Managing Conflict-
Interpersonal Communication Practices
Instructions: This survey is designed m assess your interpersonal communication practices. For
each item in the survey, indicate which of the alternative reactions best represents how you would
handle the situation described. Some alternatives may be equally characteristic or equally
uncharacteristic of your reaction. Although that is a possibility, choose the alternative that is relatively
more characteristic your reaction. For each item, distribute between the ‘ alternatives in any of the
following combinations.
A B
1. 5 0
2. 4 1
3. 3 2
4. 2 3
5. 1 4
6. 0 5
Thus, there are six possible combinations for responding to the pair of alternatives presented to you
with each survey item. Be sure that the numbers you assign to each pair sum to 5. To the extent
possible, please relate each situation in the survey to your personal experience. In this survey, we
alternate the words he and she and him and her m balance use of the feminine and masculine genders.
1. If a friend of mine had a personality that involved the other friend, and of
conflict with a mutual acquaintance of which he was not yet aware, I would
ours with whom it was important for
her to get along, I would a. Change the subject and signal
my friend to do the same.
a. Tell my friend that I felt she was b. Fill in my uninformed friend on
partially responsible for any what the other friend was
problems with this other person talking about and suggest that
and try to let her know who the we go into it later.
person being affected by her is.
b. Not get involved because I 5. If a friend were to tell me that, in her
wouldn’t be able to continue to opinion, I was doing things that made
get along with both of them me less effective than I might be in
once I had entered into the social situations, I would
conflict.
a. Ask her to spell our or describe
2. If one of one of my friends and I had a what she has observed and
heated argument in the past and I suggest changes I might make.
realized that he will be ill at ease around b. Resent the criticism and let her
me from that time on, I would know why I behave the way I do.
a. Avoid making things worse by 6. If one of my friends aspired to an office

discussing his behavior and just in our student organization for which I
let the whole thing drop. felt he was unqualified and if he had
b. Bring up his behavior and ask been tentatively assigned to that
him how he felt the argument position by the president of the student
had affected our relationship. organization, I would
3. If a friend began to avoid me and act in a. not mention my misgivings to

an aloof and withdrawn manner, I either my friend or the president
would and let them handle it in their
own way.
a. Tell here about her behavior and b. tell my friend and the president
suggest she tell me what was on of my misgivings and then leave
her mind. the final decision up to them.
b. Follow her lead and keep our
contacts brief and aloof because
that seems to be what she 7. If I felt that one of my friends was being
wants. unfair to me and her other friends, but
none of them had mentioned anything
4. If two of my friends and I were talking about it, I would
and one of my & friends slipped and
brought up a personal problem of mine a. Ask several of those people how
they perceived the situation to
see if they felt that she was 11. If my relationship with a friend has been
being unfair. damaged by repeated arguments on an
b. Not ask the other how they issue of importance to us both, I would
perceived our friend but wait for
them to bring it up to me. a. Be cautious in my conversations
with her so that the issue would
8. If I were preoccupied with some not come up again to worsen our
personal matters and a friend told me relationship.
that I had become irritated with him b. Point to the problems that the
and others and that I was jumping on controversy was causing in our
him for unimportant things, I would relationship and suggest we
discuss it until we had resolved
a. Tell him I was preoccupied and it.
would probably be on edge a
while and would prefer not to be 12. If in a personal discussion with a friend
bothered. about his problems and behavior, he
b. B. listen m his complaints but suddenly suggested we discuss my
not try to explain my actions to problems and behavior as well as his
him. own, I would
9. If I had heard some friends discussing an a. Try to keep the discussion away
ugly rumor about a friend of mine that I from me by suggesting that
knew could hurt her and she asked me other, closer friends often talk to
what I knew about it, if anything, I me bout such matters.
would b. Welcome the opportunity to
hear what he felt about me and
a. Say that I didn’t how anything encourage his comments.
about it and tell her no one
would believe a rumor like that
anyway. 13. If a friend of mine began to tell me
b. Tell her exactly what I had heard, about her hostile feelings about another
when I had heard it, and from friend who she felt was being unkind to
whom I had heard it. others (and I wholeheartedly agreed), I
would
10. If’s friend pointed out the fact that I had
a personality conflict with another a. Listen and also express my own
friend with whom it was important for feelings to her so she would
me to get along, I would know where I stood.
b. Listen but not express my own
a. consider his comments out of negative views and opinions
line and tell him I didn’t want to because she might repeat what I
discuss the matter any further. said to her in confidence.
b. Talk about. It openly with him to
find out how my behavior was 14. If I thought an ugly rumor was being
being affected by this. spread about me and suspected, that
one of my friends had quite likely heard was having some temporary
it, I would personal problem that were
none of my business.
a. Avoid’ mentioning the issue and b. Try to talk to him about it and
leave it to him to tell me about it point out to him how his
if he wanted to. behavior was affecting people.
b. Risk putting him on the spot by
asking him directly what he
knew about the whole thing. 18. If I had begun to dislike certain habits of
a friend to the point that it was
15. If I had observed a friend in social interfering with my enjoying her
situations and thought that she was company, I would
doing a number of things that hurt her
relationships, I would a. Say nothing to her directly but
let her how my feelings by
a. Risk being seen as a busybody ignoring her whenever her
and tell her what I had observed annoying habits were obvious.
and my reactions to it. b. Get my feelings out in the open
b. Keep my opinions to myself, and clear the air so that we
rather than be seen as could continue our relationship
interfering. in thing- s that are comfortably and enjoyably.
none of my business.
19. In discussing social behavior with one of
16. If two friends and I were talking and one my sensitive friends. I would
of them inadvertently mentioned a
personal problem that involved me but a. Avoid mentioning his flaws and
of which I knew nothing-.. I would weaknesses so as not to hurt his
feelings.
a. Press them for information b. Focus on his flaws and
about the problem and their weaknesses so he could improve
opinions about it. his interpersonal skills.
b. Leave it up to my friends to tell
me or not tell me, letting them
change the subject if they 20. If I knew that I might be assigned to an
wished. important position in our group and my
friends’ attitudes toward me had
17. If a friend seemed to be preoccupied become rather negative, I would
and began to jump on me for seemingly
unimportant things and to become a. Discuss my shortcomings with
irritated with me and others without my friends so I could see where
real cause, I would to improve.
b. Try to figure out my own short
a. Treat him with kid gloves for a comings by myself so I could
while on the assumption that he improve.
Scoring Key
In this survey 10 of the items deal with your receptivity to feedback and 10 are concerned with your
willingness to disclose yourself. Transfer your scores from each item co this scoring key. Add the scores
in each column. Now, transfer these scores to Figure by drawing a vertical line through the feedback
score and a horizontal line through the self discipline.
Receptivity t o Feedback Willingness to Self-Disclose
2 B_____ 1 A_____
3 A_____ 4 B_____
5 A_____ 6 B_____
7 A_____ 9 B_____
8 B_____ 11 B_____
10 B_____ 13 A_____
12 B_____ 15 A_____
14 B_____ 17 B_____
16 A_____ 18 B_____
20 A_____ 19 B_____
Total ______ Total ______
As Figure suggests, higher scores in receptivity to feedback and willingness to disclose yourself indicate
a greater willingness to engage in open interpersonal communication. Of course, you need to be
mindful of the situational factors that may influence your natural personal preference to be relatively
more open or closed in interpersonal communication.”
Question
1. Based on your scores, what communication abilities do you need to develop?
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Personal Openness in Interpersonal Communication
Low personal High Listening

Openness
High Personal High Openness
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Preconceived Notion
Genre: Perception 1
Objective: To illustrate how a “mind set” can block simple communication.
Procedure:
Before showing the illustration on the following page, simply state, “Keep the arrow pointing down. If
you can read this, please raise your hand, but don’t tell anyone else.” As you rotate the sheet, say,
“You don’t have to turn it around as I am doing, but with the arrow pointing downward, can you read
what this says?” (Usually 10-15% of a group will have seen this before or will detect the word “FLY”
quickly.) Acknowledge them immediately, and ask, “The rest of you can’t see the word FLY? If you still
can’t see it, try looking at the white space rather than the black markings. “
1. This type of thing - preconceived notions - is common for most of us. Can you recall an incident
where such notions may have caused some concerns?
2. What other barriers cause problems in interpersonal communication? (Noise, disinterested
people, wrong methods, etc.)
3. Children see the word “FLY” immediately. Why, then, do adults experience difficulty in seeing it
as fast? (We have “learned” to read black print on white paper, such as this page.)
Materials Required: Sheet like the attached

Source: Unknown
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DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. Recall Neal Patterson’s scathing e-mail 5. Think of a team of which you are a
message in the Preview Case. What member. How would you assess the
types and forms of communication members’ self-awareness?
should he undertake to reduce or 6. Why is media richness important in
eliminate the damage that he has done? communication?
2. Describe some problems that an 7. According to Ken Blanchard, author of
individual from a low-context culture the One-Minute-Manager, feedback is
and an individual from a high-context the “breakfast of champions.” What are
culture could have in trying to lend a some of the barriers that managers
meeting. need to overcome, when giving others
3. Describe your communication network feedback?
at work or in school. Is it effective? 8. Describe the common nonverbal cues
Would you like to make any changes in used by someone you have worked for.
it? Why or why not? Are they usually consistent or
4. The Internet and e-mail are making it inconsistent with that person’s verbal
easier to communicate with people expressions? Explain.
from different cultures. Do you agree or 9. If your job transfers you to a foreign
disagree with that statement? Explain. culture, what nonverbal communication
practices must you be sensitive to?
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Brain Teasers
Genre: Brain Teaser 1
Objective:
To provide a quick, fun exercise that will facilitate the interaction of strangers and their formation into
task-oriented groups.
Procedure:
This is strictly a “for fun” exercise and should be introduced as such. It purports simply to give
participants a chance to do some liberal translation by interpreting visual and written communications.
Form the members into small groups of 3-4 persons each. Tell them that they have 5 minutes to
decipher the 20 brainteasers found on the following page into a word or brief phrase. (The team with
the highest score may be promised a prize.)
Answers:
1. Sandbox
2. Man Overboard
3. I Understand
4. Reading Between the Lines
5. Long Underwear
6. Cross Roads
7. Down Town
8. Tri-cycle
9. Bi-level
10. 3 Degrees Below Zero
11. Knee on Light
12. Circles Under the Eyes
13. High Chair
14. Paradise
15. Touchdown
16. 6 Feet Under Ground
17. Mind Over Matter
18. He’s Beside Himself
19. Backwards Glance
20. Life After Death
Materials Required: Brainteasers as shown, on a handout or overhead transparency
Approximate Time Required: 10 minutes
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Source: Unknown
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Brain Teasers
ANSWERS
1. It’s up to you
2. Different Strokes
3. The start of something big
4. Just in case
5. Fouled up
6. Jay walking
7. Just between you and me
8. Time’s up
9. Deep sea fishing
10. Forget it
11. More to it than meets the eye
12. Space invaders
13. That is beside the point
14. Water under the bridge
15. Highway overpass
16. Making ends meet
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117
Brain Teasers
ANSWERS
1. Play on words
2. Dipsy doodle
3. Better late than never
4. Partly cloudy
5. Head over heels in love
6. Fancy that
7. Bed and breakfast
8. This round is on me
9. Jack-in-the-box
10. Without a second glance
11. Man in the moon
12. Open-and-shut case
13. A round of drinks
14. Middle of the ninth
15. Overseas holiday
16. Downhill skiing
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119
Brain Teasers
ANSWERS
1. Cry over spilled milk
2. Big man on campus
3. Six of one; half dozen of another
4. Unfinished business
5. Cancelled check
6. Moving in the right circles
7. Middle of the road
8. Sitting on top of the world
9. Three square meals a day
10. Vitamin “A” deficiency
11. Stepping over
12. Backseat driver
13. Right under your nose
14. Splitting headache
15. Heat wave
16. Mountain climbing
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Brain Teasers
Look at this picture: what do you see?
Images nearby ... and far away
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Brain Teasers
Where are:
The woman
The horse
The lion
The old man
The wolf
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Brain Teasers
How many hidden images?
Horse
Bear
Lion
Eagle
Wolf
Father
Woman
And ???
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Brain Teasers
12 elephants / 6 heads
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Brain Teasers
This face consists of 30 animals
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Brain Teasers
Can you find 9 hidden images?
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Brain Teasers
There is a hidden face in this scenery
Can you find it?
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RING TOSS GAME:
Genre: Setting Challenging Goals 1
Risk-taking is an important aspect of entrepreneurial life. Entrepreneurs are calculated risk-takers.
They do not aim at goals that can be very easily accomplished. They like challenges. They also do
not aim at tasks that are very difficult to accomplishing a challenging goal. They are moderate risk-
takers.
Objective
The ring-toss game provides an opportunity for an entrepreneur, potential entrepreneur or for any
participant to examine his own risk-taking orientations and associated behaviors. It has the
following objectives:
(a) To enable the participant to examine his own risk-taking behavior, i.e., whether he is a high
risk-taker, moderate, or a low risk-taker.
(b) To enable the participant to examine the dynamics of achievement motivation (or affiliation
and power motives)
(c) To enable the participant to study the extent to which he use this information to modify his
behavior.
(d) To help the participant examine his tendencies to take personal responsibility in accomplishing
the risks.
The Rational
To be personally responsible for the risks involved in the establishment of an enterprise may be
considered as on of the important dimensions of entrepreneurial behavior. Entrepreneurs have,
however, certain characteristic attitudes towards risk. Generally, the choice of an occupation is
governed by many other considerations. Most people look for security in their occupation because of
the ‘fear of failure’. However in the choice of an entrepreneur, the fear of failure forms the important
consideration. The entrepreneur bears the risk of launching a new business. Nonetheless, while opting
for a risk, he does not like to play the gambler. The difference between a gambler and an entrepreneur
needs to be clearly understood for a proper appreciation of entrepreneurial behavior.
When a gambler risks his stake, he is primarily concerned with the payoff which is solely determined by
the result of a “chance” event, such as the fall of a “die” or the draw of cards. The gambler stakes
expects waits and is prepared to receive either the positive or negative payoff. He cannot control the
outcome by his intervention. He operates where his experience does not help. In gambling, each event
is independent of any outcome.
On the hand, even though the entrepreneur also stakes and expects, he continuously intervenes to
influence the outcome. He is aware that his intervention, even in the most certain situations,
makes all the difference to the outcome. Such awareness in him is confirmed by his experience. It
would be appropriate to say that an entrepreneur takes only such risks where he can control the
outcome. The feeling or awareness, which is confirmed by experience that the outcome can be
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controlled by interventions, marks the demarcating line between gambling and the calculated risk-
taking.
In gambling, learning is not possible, whereas entrepreneurial risk-taking is mainly governed by
learning. In the former, it is possible to calculate the long-term objective probabilities or odds. Such
objective probabilities may be almost denied or not always available to the entrepreneurial activity.
The sense of control, the possibility of learning and the presence of moderate subjective probability
or the level of confidence is to demarcate the dividing line between gambling and entrepreneurial
activity.
Material Required
This game requires a wooden peg with a stand and four light weight rings made up of thin dry cane.
The height of the peg mounted on a stand may be about 18 inches. The diameter of the rings
should be about 8 inches
This game is to be played in a free space, on the ground without any obstructions. A room or
verandah about 25 ft long and 10 ft wide is needed. There should not be tables, chairs, etc., which
can obstruct movement.
The peg should be kept at one end from where the distance should be marked in feet at intervals of
1 ft. against each unit distance or interval, the points may be marked as suggested in Appendix 1.
Time Required
This game may take about two hours for a group of 20 participants: one hour for playing and one
hour for discussion.
Procedure
The following procedure may be followed for conducting this exercise.
1. The participants should be told that they are going to participate in a ring-toss game. If
the timetable is given to the participants only the title of the game should be mentioned
and nothing more. It is advisable not to announce to the participants or to communicate
to them in any way that this is a announcement or communication is likely to influence
their behavior on the game.
If the program is not announced, the participants should be seated in a room and told that they
are going to participate in a ring-toss game the detail of which will be given when they go to
play.
2. There are three rounds in this game. The first round will be played by every participant
individually. Second and third round will be played in the presence of all the
participants. While playing the first round the participants may be given a reading task
to keep themselves busy.
3. The following instructions may be given to the participants.
“You are now going to participate in a ring-toss game. In this game you will be required to go
out one by one, play the game and return to your seats. Detailed instructions will be given to
you outside before playing the game. Please do not talk or communicate to one another
anything about what happened in the game.”
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4. The participants are called one by one outside and the following instructions may be
given after handing the four rings.
“You can see the peg (point to the peg). You have four rings with you. The distance is marked
from the peg in feet. The numbers 1, 2, 3, etc., indicate the distance. Against each marking of
the distance, the points if you can get at least two successful throws from the corresponding
distance. If the ring you throw catches the peg and remains there it is called a successful throw.
You may choose any distance from where you like to throw. Once you choose the distance you
cannot change and all four throws must be attempted from there. In order to get the points
you must have two successful throws. No trials are allowed. Before you actually throw the rings
please tell me the distance from where you would like to throw.”
5. After giving the instructions, the behavior of the participant may be observed and the
peculiarities may be noted in the remarks column of the ring-toss data record sheet
(Appendix 2). The peculiarities may include feeling the weight of the ring, going near the
peg and examining it, attempting a trial without actually throwing the ring, putting the
ring down to test its restitution, throwing it in the opposite direction of the peg to
estimate the distance where it falls, etc., These behaviors indicate that the participant is
exploring and trying to generate information about his own abilities before he actually
throws.
6. When the participant actually throws, the distance chosen and the number of successful
throws may be noted in the record sheet. If some throws have almost caught the peg
and missed, this may be noted in the remarks column. This information may be useful
while interpreting the results.
7. after the completes the first round he should be requested to return to his seat and
write down an introspective report on why he chose that particular distance, what
considerations he had in mind, what thought processed did he have while playing the
game, how he felt after each throw and the end of four throws, etc. He may be
requested not to share anything with others in the class till the discussion begins. The
sample introspective report form given in Appendix 3 may be used for this purpose.
8. For the second round all the participants should be called out. They should be asked to
stand in line on either side of the marking as observers. They should stand as much far
away from the markings as possible to permit the-free movement of the players. The
instructions may be repeated as in the first round. The participants may be told that the
called out one after the other and the distance chosen, and the data on the successful
throws, etc., may be recorded. They may be asked to write an introspective report after
completing play.
9. Before staring the third round the participants may be told that the last round will be
played using money as the incentive. In order to play this, ten rupees may be collected
from each participant. The participants may be told that each point they earn carries ten
paise as incentive. The procedure is the same as in the earlier round and they may
choose a new distance for their throws. They must get at least two successful throws to
obtain the incentive. The data may be recorded in the record sheet as earlier. After
everyone complete they may be requested to write an introspective report as they had
done earlier after getting back to their seats.
10. While the participants write the report the trainer may transfer the date from the
record sheet to the blackboard for discussion.
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Processing the Exercise
Discussing the data is the most important part of this game. Till the time of the discussion the
participants may not be aware of the significance of the date they have generated for themselves. The
skill of the trainers lies in making the participants see the significance of this date for themselves.
Raising a series of questions, suggesting alternative interpretations and helping the participants think
about the various behaviors’ they have shown and the implications of these behaviors for
entrepreneurship could do this. The data generated by the game and the behavior shown by the
participant in the game, should be treated as suggestive rather than conclusive, i.e., the trainer should
not try to force any of his conclusions on the participant but should attempt to help the participant
raise questions about himself. When the questions raised by the participant about himself are in the
context of entrepreneurial participant behavior, a significant learning process commences. Such a
reflection can be facilitated by the trainer picking up some typical as well as exceptional cases from the
date on the blackboard and rising question. It would be ideal to analyses the behavior of each and
every participant. But it may not be possible to do that as it requires a lot of time. Hence an
intermediate strategy of analyzing a few typical cases and all exceptional cases could be followed.
What makes a case typical or exceptional depends on the data. Those who show patterns of behaviors
similar to most others in each round can be taken as typical cases. Deviations may be traded as
exceptional. Some times groups may differ from one another. What is exceptional in one group may
become typical in another. The following sequence may be followed interpretation and processing the
data.
Initial Goal-Setting
When any participant begins to play game, he has no idea of the distance from where the probability
of his success is moderate (about 50%). Every individual starts with his own expectations. Some
perceive longer distance as the most probable distance and some perceive very short distances as the
most probable distance for success. Their perceptions are the indicators of their subjective probability.
The objective probability depends on the actual skill of the individual and may vary from individual to
individual. Getting every individual to throw the ring from every unit distance a number of times and
preparing a chart can determine the objective probability. However, this objective probability may
change with the acquisition of skill. For the purpose of this game the objective probability can be taken
on the basis of the data collected on a number of individuals. As all the participants are new to the
game and have not developed the requisite skill, these average probabilities can be taken as the
objective probabilities.
The approximate objective probabilities of success are reproduced in Appendix 4. These objective
probabilities are estimated on the basis of the data generated by a number of participants. For
example, against 6 feet the probability of success is 60% that means 60% of participants have
succeeded catching the peg when they threw the ring from this distance. Interpreted in another way it
may mean that there is a 60% chance of success when the ring is thrown from the 6 feet distance. The
same way the rest of the chart may be interpreted.
The objective probabilities re not known to the participants in the same way as an entrepreneur does
not know the objective probability of his success when he takes a decision. He estimates on the basis
of the information available to him and makes a guess about his probability of success. This guess is
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called subjective probability of success. This is what is reflected in the initial choice and the later
choices of the distance from where to throw the rings.
An enterprising person attempts to get his subjective estimates as close to the reality as possible by
generating and using information or data from the environment. In the first trial the data are minima.
Particularly if the participant has not played the game earlier the participant has no clue as to the
distance from where he is likely to be successful and at the same time gain the maximum point. In the
absence of such data he can only make indirect estimates by studying the situation. He could feel the
weight of the ring, he may study the height of the peg, he may throw the ring outside without using
the peg, he may study the position, his hand movements, etc. Such a study may not help him very
much but it is indicative of his information collection behavior. He might even ask questions to the
trainer about the distance from where most people succeed (although the trainer does not answer
that question).
A person who takes the rings from the trainer and without any planning or thinking chooses a distance
and starts throwing the rings straight may be indication his carelessness or impatience in data
collection. Such candidates are less likely to succeed, as their subjective estimates may be random and
far away from the objective estimates.
While some individuals make random estimates and thereby become poor performers, some others
make consistently low or high estimates. The latter category may be the ones who are guided by the
fear of failure. In other words, they are motivated by the avoidance of failure. These individuals may be
having a poor self-concept. Low estimates are also indicative of domination by affiliation motivation
whereas high estimates may indicate high power motivation (McClelland, 1975). Both these
orientations do not facilitate entrepreneurship.
The choice of the distance in the first round may throw up a lot of data about some of these
orientations of each participant. Skillful questioning and processing of data may bring these out.
Instead asking one or two questions and concluding that the candidate is a low or a high risk-taker, it is
advisable to indicate the possibilities and leave the conclusions for the participants themselves.
While asking the questions it is better t start with the behavior of the participants is the first round.
May be useful to pick up the extreme cases first and then go on to the typical ones. Questions like the
following may be asked:
Why did you choose this distance?
What consideration did you have in mind before you choose the distance?
What was your objective in the choice of distance? ( to test yourself, to avoid failure, to be able to have
all four rings catch maximum points, to try from the longest distance, etc.).
What did you think after the first throw?
What die you feel after all the four throws?
Answers given by the participants may be indicative of the following – avoidance of failure, low risk-
taking, high risk-taking, a very planned way of approaching the task, calculated goal-setting, interest in
taking challenges, etc.
After eliciting the answers from a select group of participants the trainer may summaries the different
approaches and orientations the participants had in approaching the task and setting the goals. A
example record of the data is reproduced in Appendix 5.
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The following are some of the typical answers that the participants may give (the answer of individual
from Appendix 5 are indicated in brackets):
(a) I just felt that I will be able to succeed from there. I had no reason (most typical response)
(b) I had no previous experience. So I looked at the peg. The rings are light. So I thought I should be
able to succeed from somewhere in between among the range marked there, the points did not
mean anything for me (individuals 2, 3, and 4 from Appendix 5)
(c) I preferred a challenging distance; no use throwing from too near; and no use from a long
distance (individual 6, 9, and 10 from Appendix 5).
(d) I am tall and I thought I can throw from along distance. I thought I am skillful. But I realize now I
cannot do that well (individual 15).
(e) No reason in particular. I thought I will succeed from there (individual 13).
(f) I imagined from 3 or 4 distances’ throws. I selected the most appropriate one (individual 14).
(g) I wanted to get as many points as possible. So I chose the longest distance (individuals 5 and 7)
(h) I wanted to succeed in the first trial so I must have a success experience. So I chose a smaller
distance (individual 18).
(i) The points are meaningless. I did not bother about them at all. I am only trying to estimate the
best possible distance fro the same distance. I was confident that I will succeed (individual 1).
(j) No reason. I thought that is the best distance (individual 11).
(k) I thought four is a safe distance. It is not too near but at the same time one is sure to get it
(individual 12)
Responses 1, 5, and 10 are similar. The possibility that these individuals approach the tasks blindly by
random goal-setting may be suggested. They need to explore further if this random-missed goal-
setting and ignoring the surroundings or not paying attention to details is their characteristic way of
behavior.
Responses 3 and 9 indicate the tendencies to go for challenges. But there is, however, no evidence of
planning. This could be explored through further questioning.
A response 7 indicates a power-dominant orientation. Making as many points as possible may not be
linked with a long distance. It is possible that the candidate has a tendency to achieve higher targets.
This may be further explored.
Responses 8 and 11 indicate an orientation toward a fear of failure or an avoidance of failure. The
subjects seem to be primarily guided by the need to have a definite success experience. This is
indicative of the failure avoidance motivation. Consequently they set lower goals and underutilize their
capabilities.
Second Round
The data from the second round can give some more significant inputs about the entrepreneurial
characteristics of the individual. The candidate has already generated some data about his skill in
playing the game in the first round. And enterprising person uses these data and modifies his goal-
setting behavior in the second round. The use of feedback is a characteristic of entrepreneurs. Since
this round is played in the presence of others every candidate has an access to not only the data
generated by him self but how others thus becomes another set of data. This advantage may increase
for the last players as they have a chance to observe the majority perform before them.
The processing of the data in the second round could be done for the following objectives:
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(a) To bring out the extent to which the participant is using the data generated by him self to
modify his goal-setting behavior.
(b) To help the participant become aware of his sensitiveness to the data generated by others and
the use of this information in his own goal-setting.
(c) To help the participant examine consistencies in his goal-setting behavior (he may be a
consistent low risk-taker).
(d) To examine the impact of presence of other on his goal-setting behavior.
While going on to process the data from the second round is advisable to stick to the same participants
that were picked up for interpretation in the first round. If new individuals are to be picked up it is
necessary to start with processing of their data on the first round. Questions like the following may be
asked to process the data?
Why did you choose this distance, this time?
What consideration did you have in mind?
Why did you change (if there is a change)?
What impact did the group’s presence have on you?
What did first round data mean to you for setting goals now?
How did you feel upon succeeding or failure?
What did the performance of others mean to you?
How did you use the data generated by others? Etc.
The following are some of the responses generally given by participants:
(a) I have retained the some distance as in the first trial as on e of my rings almost hit the target.
Now that I gained some practice, I thought I will be able to get them by the second trial. (e.g.
individual no: 11)
(b) I have retained the some distance because I wanted to try from there. I must succeed from
that distance only. That is my goal. I will prefer not to change. (e.g. individual 5)
(c) I have changed the distance in spite of my failure because I wanted to be different than
others. No use sticking to the same distance you must go up. (e.g. individual 15)
(d) I have lowered my goal because I failed in the first trial. My rings were falling about I foot
short of the peg. So I lowered the distance by a foot. (e.g. individuals 3, 6, 9)
(e) I have lowered the distance because the first round indicated that I cannot throw from such
a long distance. I must come down. So I changed by 2 feet. (E.g. individual dual 9).
(f) I have increased the distance because I wanted to try from a longer distance. No use from a
short distance you see. Failure didn’t bother me. I am happy that I tried from a longer
distance. (E.g. individual 7).
(g) I have increased the distance because I did well in the first round. I thought I am capable of
getting more. So I changed. Group presence didn’t make any difference. (E.g. individuals 12
and 14).
(h) I did not change the distance because my objective is to succeed from there only.
A response 1 indicates that the participant may be looking for challenge. If in the first trial at least one
ring caught the peg or most rings almost missed the peg narrowly, maintaining same distance is very
understandable and is indicative of calculated risk-taking. The participant is also indication his
orientation to learn from experience.
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Responses 2 and 8 are similar and indicate rigidity or perseverance on the part of the candidates.
Which of these are more dominant is a question that the respondents themselves should answer.
Perseverance is good but perseverance of high power motivation. These possibilities should be pointed
out to the candidates.
Responses 3 and 6 are likely to be by candidates who increased their distance inspite of failures. This
again is an indicator of failure to learn from feedback and a high risk-orientation. The candidate may be
trying to avoid failure by setting such unrealistic goals. Setting unrealistically high goals is another way
of avoiding experience of failure as the candidate can claim later that he failed because his goals are
unusually high. Therefore it is not a real failure. It show, he at least had the courage to aspire for higher
goal. This could also be an indicator of high power motivation or need to get attention both of which
may not facilitate entrepreneurial success.
Responses 4, 5 and 7 indicate a tendency on the part of the participants to learn from experience.
These are very desirable characteristics for entrepreneurs.
These dynamics again should be brought to surface by throwing alternatives. Impact made by the
presence of the group should also be explored. Some individuals are likely to be hindered by the
presence of the group. People having again high interpersonal need (affiliation and power) are likely to
get affected by the presence of the group.
Final Round
In the third round, financial incentives have been introduced. Individuals with high need for
achievement are likely to respond to this round more seriously even if they have not been responding
so till this round. By the time of the third round the participant may also have generated significant
information about his skill in throwing the rings. Because of these two factors the goal setting behavior
on the third round and the consistencies in all the three are likely to give enough insights about the
entrepreneurial tendencies.
The data on the third round may be processed for the following objectives:
(a) To help the candidate assess his risk-taking behavior with more confidence.
(b) To help him understand and analyses the consistencies in his goal-setting behavior, and
(c) To help him examine the extent to which he learns from feedback.
Questions similar to those asked in the second round may be asked. While processing the data of this
round an attempt should be made to find out consistencies in behavior patter.
It is possible that some candidates who were taking high risks till this round may suddenly jump down
to moderate risk level.
The discussion should bring out the impact made by the financial incentives on the risk-taking behavior
of the participant. The meaning attached by the participants to financial incentives may be brought
out.
It is possible that some participants start setting unrealistically high goals or very low goals when faced
with financial incentives. These may also be explored by picking up individuals who have lowered or
increased the distances.
The extent to which the individual is taking personal responsibility for his success or failure can be
assessed by the statement he make. For example, some individuals state that the light ring , or too
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short height of the peg etc., influenced their failure. Such candidates indicate external control or lack of
orientations to take personal responsibility. Those who own up success of failures, feel happy about
success and unhappy about failure are indicating that they can take personal responsibility.
It is useful to point out the consistencies in patterns of behavior and statements made by the
participants.
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Appendix 1- A suggested distribution of Points for the ring-toss
game
Distance
In feet 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18
Points in
Round 1 5 10 20 35 55 80 110 145 185 230 280 335 395 460 530 605 685 770
Points in
Round 2 5 10 20 35 55 80 110 145 185 230 280 335 395 460 530 605 685 770
Points in
Round 3 5 10 20 35 55 80 110 145 185 230 280 335 395 460 530 605 685 770
Note: If money is used each point may be considered as equal to one unit of currency or one paisa.
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Appendix 2 - Ring Toss Game: Record Sheet
First round of distance Second round of distance Third round of
distance
No of Chosen Successful throws Chosen Successful throws Chosen Successful throws
1
10
11
12
13
14
15
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Appendix 3
After completing each round please give an introspective report of your decision-making process here.
Round 1 No. of successful throws
Distance you chose:
1. How did you choose the distance? What factors influenced you? What are some of the thought
processed you had before you announce the distance?
2. What was your estimate of the probability of your success from this distance?
• Not Thought about – 10% - 20% - 30% - 40% - 50% - 60% - 70% - 80% - 90% - 100%
3. How satisfied or dissatisfied are you with you performance on this round?
- very much satisfied – satisfied – somewhat satisfied
- More Dissatisfied that satisfied – dissatisfied
- Very much dissatisfied

Distance you chose:
1. What factors influenced you in your choice of the distance this time? Please record your thought
processed:
2. What was your estimate of the probability of your success from this distance?
3. How satisfied or dissatisfied are you with you performance?
• Very much satisfied – satisfied – somewhat satisfied
• More dissatisfied that satisfied – dissatisfied - Very much dissatisfied
4. What effect did the presence of others have on you?

Distance you chose:
1. What factors influenced you in your choice of the distance this time?
2. What was your estimate of the probability of success?
3. What does financial incentive mean to you? What effect did it have on you?
4. How satisfied or dissatisfied are you with you performance?
• Very much satisfied – satisfied – somewhat satisfied
• More dissatisfied that satisfied – dissatisfied - Very much dissatisfied
140
game. (the estimate here are based on the play by more
Probability estimates of two successful throws using an 8 inch ring and 18 inch peg in a ring-toss
Than four teams and trials by others
Distance from
the page
1’ 2’ 3’ 5’ 4’ 6’ 7’ 8’ 9’
10’
Probability of
success 100% 100 % 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 35% 30%
Distance from
the page
11’ 12’ 13’ 14’ 15’ 16’ 17’ 18’ 19’
20’
Probability of
success 20% 15 % 10% 5% 5% 5% 4% 3% 2%
2%
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First round Second round Third round
Distance No. of Distance No. of Distance No. of
No. Name correct throws correct throws correct throws Remarks
1 Hussain 13 0 9 1 9 1
2 Rashid 5 2 6 2 6 2 Took long time to chose
3 Abu Bakar 7 1 6 2 6 2 “
4 Lee 7 3 8 1 8 1 “ “
5 Wong 10 0 10 0 10 1 Chose very fast
6 Cheng 9 0 8 0 7 1 Took long time

Move bank and forth
7 Bashir 15 0 16 0 18 0 Chose fast
8 Abdullah 3 4 3 4 5 2 Started from 1 his

first trial
9 Yusof 8 0 6 1 6 2 Tried imaginary thrwos
10 Md. Ghani 8 0 9 0 9 0 Thought for a while in

first trial
11 Yunus 9 1 9 0 10 0 -
12 Yeng 4 3 5 2 6 2 -
13 Chee 10 0 9 0 9 0 Fast decision
14 Jmil 6 3 7 1 6 2 -
15 Jamaludding 12 0 13 0 3 4 -
Appendix 5
142
A sample ring toss data record

TOWER BUILDING
Objectives
The following are the main objectives of this game:
1. Understanding the origins of achievement motivation. The game can be used to indicate how
achievement motivating develops in children, why some children have a high achievement
motivation and others have a low achievement motivation.
2. Insight into to values and the culture. The game can also be used to help the participants
become aware of the values they hold in relation to other people while working with them,
how such values have been formed by the process of socialization, and how the culture in
which they live, whether it is the family culture, of the organizational culture, contributes to the
development of such values and with what consequences.
3. Insight into the goal-setting process. The game con be used to have an insight in to the
dynamics of the process of goal-setting in which the person who sets the goal, and others
working with him, contributes to this process.
4. Understanding the role of expectations in the motivation for and the level of performance of a
task. The game is mostly used to illustrate and demonstrated how expectations of significant
people around a person influence his motivation to perform, as well as the level of hi
performance.
5. Understanding the role of help in the motivation for and level of performance. The game also
helps people to understand the role of two significant helping behaviors, namely, giving
instructions and directions and encouraging the persons. The roles of these two behaviors are
significant and have different implications at different levels of the working of the person.
Material Required
The game is played with wooden cubes or wooden blocks. Experience shows that cubes of about 1
½ inch dimensions are useful for the game. These cubes can be bought or constructed out of
ordinary wood. Usually about 25 cubes would be needed for playing in one group. If multiple group
exercise is to be conducted, more cubes would be needed, at the rate of about 25 cubes per group.
One handkerchief or a cloth or a ready-made blindfold is also necessary for each team.
Time Required
Usually it takes bout 10 to 15 minutes to play the game, but needs much more time in processing.
Experience shows that if a single group is playing the game, about one hour is needed. However, if
more than one group plays the game more time may be needed and may be useful to keep about 2
hours for the exercise.
143
Conducting The Exercise
The following suggestions may help in conducting the exercise:
1. The trainer first asks for volunteers to play the game. Usually there are three volunteer. In
asking for the volunteers it may be stated that these person would be involved in playing some
roles and playing the game together. There is always one person who has to play the game
(henceforth called ‘self’ or S) and two persons are chosen who are significant persons in
relation to that role (henceforth ‘significant others’ or SO). For example, the exercise could be
conducted in a family setting where one person plays the role of an 11-year boy (S), and two
other persons play the roles of his parent (SOs). If an organizational situation is selected, then
the S can a Junior Person Like a worker or a superintendent, or a manager, or an entrepreneur,
etc., and the SOs would be senior people in relation to his role. Any situation could be used in
playing the role.
2. After some person volunteers to play this role, the trainer gives instructions to the observers. It
may be useful to ask the role players to go out of the room and then the trainer may give
instructions to the rest of the participants. These instructions can also be stenciled and
distributed to the observers. One sample of instructions appears in Appendix 1
3. After the players have been given the instructions to the observers, the players are brought
back to the group and they are given instructions when the game begins. The instructions may
also be typed and handed over to the players to read. A sample of such instructions appears in
Appendix 2.
After the player has been given instructions, the trainers make the following statements:
“Well now we would like to start the exercise. However, before we start the exercise I would
like you to individually write on a small piece of paper your own estimate how high a tower (in
terms of the number of cubes) the child (or worker, etc.) will be able to make. And the child (or
the worker, etc.) will also give his estimate of his own performance. Now are you ready? Write
down your own estimates.”
4. All the three persons playing the game then write down their estimates. At this stage the
trainer can ask the overseers also to write down individually their own estimates. After the
estimates are taken individually from the three role player, the trainer reveals tem and says
that there are three are thee estimates (usually there will be differences in the three). Before
the exercise starts, he would like to have only one common estimate which is agreed upon by
all the three players. He then asks them to discuss together and give him one common
estimate.
5. After the discussion is over, and after the final figure is give the game starts. The trainer
explains to the SOs that they cannot do two things. They cannot touch the person who is
building the tower nor can they touch the wooden cubes. If they ask him questions whether
they can give instructions or what other things they can do, he simply answers that they can do
anything they like, but they cannot do these tow things It is useful for the instructor not to
answer specific questions but only repeat this sentence again and again when may question is
asked: “You can do anything you like, but ye cannot touch the person who is building the tower
not can you touch the cubes.”
6. Then the exercise is conducted after blindfolding the S. After the last cube falls down, the
exercise is over. Then all persons assemble in the room and the trainer writes down the various
figures on the board.
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Rationale
The game can be played in various ways. However, come people wonder why people should be
blindfolded and why they should not be allowed to build the tower with their eyes open. Similarly,
why should the no-dominant hand be sued? The rationale of both blindfolding the S and also to ask
him to use his non-dominant and are mainly two, viz., to reduce the role of the skill in the exercise
and to provide the possibility of help so that later it may be analyzed how giving help and giving
encouragement contributes to the level of performance and of achievement motivation. If the
person builds the over with open eyes he would not need any help and therefore the role of help
cannot be discussed. Moreover, by cutting out the sight as well as the dominate hand, which we
often use in our work, we are bringing people to more or less the same situation, and therefore the
role of skill is greatly reduce. This may help us to examine the experience generated by the
exercised rather that the discussions being too much confined to someone being more skilful in
handling the cube, the other person.
Another question which the trainers may wonder about is why the average figures is given and why
not allow people to build the tower without mentioning any figures. The average figure is given to
se some standard or norm against which the performance can be measured to see whether their
expectations are higher or lower. Later on, if we process the experience it may be difficult for us to
talk in terms of high or low expectations because we would have no figure. But given the average,
we create conditions under which later the SO may be able to reflect why he gave higher or lower
that this average figure, and in some cases why he failed to hear or read in the given instructions
something about the average.
Sometimes the trainers may also ask whether there should be a time limit or not even though this
really does not make much difference in the game. However, if a time limit is imposed, say five
minutes, we are adding another variable. But exercise has been done with certain time limit so that
the person can build and then can rebuild if the tower falls within that time limit. It should not
make much difference if this variable is introduced.
Processing The Exercise

Processing the exercise is the most significant part for training. If the exercise in not properly
processed then it may merely become a piece of entertainment or a exercise from which different
persons can derive different point of learning, and may fail to be a very strong and useful source of
learning.
Enough attention should be paid to the processing of the exercise. It may be useful for the trainer
to read several original articles and other literature so that they have sufficient grasp of the various
concepts in the expertise.
The main purpose of processing of an exercise is to help the participants examine their experience
and analyze them for some significant learning. While generating such experience, the trainer may
help evolve some conceptual learning around which various experiences may meaningful hang, and
get integrated. Trainer may differ in their styles of deriving the learning from the experience. While
145
some trainer may prefer to let the participants develop their own learning points. And get their
various massages from the discussion, some others trainers may prefer to have detailed discussion,
and later provide necessary information from the researches done and provide a framework at the
end which the participants may find useful for understanding their experiences and to put all that
they have discussed and experienced in a conceptual context so that they may be able to use this
learning later. The learning, thus, gets integrated and internalized. The following are the various
stages of the processing of the exercise.
1. Recording the Data
Whether one group or more that one group has played the exercise, the trainer should get all
the data from the exercise and write down on the board. The data obtained from two groups in
a bank in Malaysia are given in Table 1.
TABLE 1
Data from two Groups

Group A Group B
Average 9 9
Significant other 1 5 12
Significant other 2 4 10
Self 10 6
Consensus 7 12
Achievement 7 14
Instructions by significant 1 Low Medium
Instructions by significant 2 High High
Encouragement by 1 Low High
Encouragement by 2 low High
If directions and encouragement are rated by different observers, these may be collected and the
average figures may be put down on the board. In case this is not done, then these two thins may not
be written
2. Goal Setting.
in the first part of the exercise the different expectations about the S’s performance are put
down when the trainers ask the players to give estimates of the performance of the S. the
trainer may ask each player why he had a particular figure, of the estimate, and especially ask in
relation to the lower or higher figure compare to the average given by the trainer, i.e., 10. He
may also get the various reasons they had in mind while putting the estimates. Some of these
reasons may not be full articulated by players, but trainer can help them to articulate them
even though they did not consciously think of those reasons at the time of giving these
estimates. But the trainer should encourage them to give the rationale even when this was not
clear thought. Reasons for Having Low Expectations than Average
Usually the following reasons are given for having lower expectation than the average figure.
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I want to ensure the success of S.
(ii) The task is too difficult for S, because he is blindfolded, the wooden cubes are rough, he
is working with his left hand, etc.
(iii) I do not know his capability and therefore I do not want to put higher estimates.
(iv) I do not want to inflate his ego by showing higher expectation from him.
(v) He is below average
(vi) I can do only so much, and so I make similar estimates for him. He may no be able to do
more that what is can do.
(vii) Having lower expectations will encourage him,
If we examine the reasons given above for having lower expectations, we find that the first five
reasons are more or less the same. All these five reasons are based on the logic that the S is
below average, and the SO does into trust his ability to go beyond the average. Let us see the
various reasons. The first reason given by a person that he does not trust his ability to take a
risk or stretch himself. Why should a person ensure success of the other person unless he
doubts the latter’s ability to meet the challenge and to take risk and then succeed?
Similarly, the second reason where the task is seen as to difficult and handicaps are seen as to
many, and so the expectations are put lower. It has the same logic behind. The task being
regarded as too difficult or the handicaps being exaggerated only indicate the lack of trust in
the ability of the other person to deal with such difficulties and overcome any obstacles which
are seen in the situation. This again indicates doubts about the ability of the person. The third
reason may doubt his ability and this may in general show that the tendency the person is to
have low expectations from others. And of course the fourth reason indicates that the person
does not trust the ability of the other person to meet the challenge, to succeed under difficult
situations, and yet remain self-confident and not become vain. Doubt in the ability or person to
remain calm under success also is indicative of trusting the ability of the other person.
The latest reason, namely that having lower expectations will encourage the person, can be
explored by the trainer by interviewing the S. if the interview is properly conducted, it will come
out that the S feels very bad about the lower expectations because it shows the SO’s lack of
trust in his ability.
Reasons for Having Moderately High Expectations
Those people who have higher expectations that the average slightly higher to make their goals
more challenging, give the following reason.
(I) I have confidence in him
(ii) I want to create a challenge for him, and I am sure he will be able to take this
(iii) he is better that the average.
(iv) I can myself do and therefore he can also do it.
(v) I shall be available for help to him.
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Appendix I
Instructions for Observers

You will observe a game being played here. Three people will be involved in this game. You are
observers and your have to follow the rules of observation strictly. No observer can participate in the
game not can communicate in any way, verbally non-verbally, his or her feeling.
The game will have several stages.
(a) One of the three persons (called S) will be required to build a tower under some conditions.
Listen carefully to the instruction given at that time. Two people (called SOs) will remain with
him. They will be required to estimate or guess the S’s score. At that time you also make a
guess, and note it down in the space provided at the end of these instructions. The three role
players must have different estimates. We shall require the role players to come to a common
agreement about the number of cubes to be guilt by S. In this process you observe who is
primarily influencing the final decision and the consensus.
(b) The game will then proceed and you may observe the behavior of each SO. Particularly observe
how the two SOs are helping or not helping, and how much encouragement thy are giving to
the S. you May Divide the exercise into three time periods (beginning, middle, end) and observe
how much help was given by each SO at three different stages of the game, in the beginning,
later on while the game is progressing, and in the final stages of the game. Also observe what
works were used by each SO indicating directions (instructions) and what words were used to
indicate that they were encouraging the S. You can check the appropriate number in the
following form.
At the end of the game, you may also observe some significant things which they do in relation to the
achievement or cant thing which they do in relation to the achievement or non-achievement by the
person who is building the tower, Write down your personal estimate of the S’s score. Rate
instructions and encouragement given by each SO at the all the three Stages of the game. Rating may
range from 1 (the least) to 10 (the most or the highest)
Period instructions encouragement words used to instruct words used to encourage
SO-1 SO-2 SO-1 SO-2
Earlier
Middle
Later
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Appendix II
Instructions to the players, I am a psychologist, testing people how well they do with their
hand and fingers – something like a finger dexterity test. I have conducted this test in several places
and would like to test your child (or worker, or entrepreneur, or employee whatever the case may be).
The child (or worker, etc.) will be required to build a tower with the help of the wooden cubes which
will be put on the table here. He can build as high as he wants or you want him to do.
The last cube after which the tower falls down will not be counted; all the cubes up to that will counted
as his score. For example, if the 4th cube falls down then his score will be 3, or if 20th cube falls down
then his score will be 19.There are two conditions under which the person will build the tower. First, he
will use his non-dominant hand. If he is a right-handed person then he will use his left hand, or if he is a
left-handed person then he will use his right hand. Are the instructions clear? Before we start the
exercise I want to give more information to you.
As I said that I have conducted this test in several families (or companies, etc.) and I have some data.
Under these conditions which I have mentioned, viz. being blindfolded, using the non-dominant hand,
and having two significant person like you with him, under the same conditions the person (or the child
whatever the case may be) with average ability has been found to put 10 cubes to build the tower.
149
BOAT MAKING

Objectives
This game has objectives similar to the ring-toss game. The former differs from the later more in terms
of its closeness to the reality in entrepreneurial life. The supply of norms on how fast, average, and
slow performers do on this game, the opportunity made available to the participants to test his speed,
and the penalties introduced for changing the goal are three special features of this game. This game
has the following objectives:
1. To help the participant understand his own goal-setting and risk-taking behaviors.
2. To help the participant examine the extent to which he exhibits the characteristics of
an entrepreneur or a high achievement oriented person on an actual performance
exercise. These characteristics include:
i. Use of information and sensitivity to the surroundings.
ii. Calculated risk-taking
iii. Learning from feedback
iv. Ability to cope with stress
v. Concern for excellence in terms of quality, quantity or profits.
vi. Taking personal responsibility for success or failure.
3. To help him experiment with his own goal-setting behavior by modifying it on the
basis of feedback from experience.
Materials
1. Glossy colored papers cut into squares of 4 inches length. Only one side should be coloured and
the other side should be white. About 20 such 4 inch square papers are required for each
participant.
2. Instructions sheet for the boat making game (reproduced in Appendix 1) : one copy for each
participant.
3. Boat making game date record sheet (reproduce in Appendix 2) : one copy for each participant.
4. Blackboard or flip chart arrangement for writing the date for discussion in the class.
5. A stop-watch
Time Required
For two rounds of play and discussion, this exercise requires about 2 ½ to 3 hours with 20 to 25
participants. With smaller groups, less time may be required.
Procedure
In this game every subject will be portraying himself as an independent entrepreneur. He would be
making paper boats following the procedure supplied to him by the instructor. The instructor will be
portraying the role of a contractor. The entrepreneur is in the business of boat making. He gets raw
150
materials from the contractor and sells back to the contractor finished products. The instructor is
required to be continuously \active in this game as contractor.
1. The participant should be seated in the room. Each participant should have at least
two square feet of open space in front of him on the table to keep the paper boat
materials and to work on making paper boats. The participant may be instructed to
keep this space free of books and any other materials. They may be told that they
would be portraying as entrepreneurs and would be involved in a game to
manufacture paper toys. To facilitate manufacturing, they should keep their tables
free of any materials.
2. After the participants settle down, the instructions sheet could be handed over to
each. The participants may then be requested to read the instructions and
understand the exercise. It mat be useful if the trainer explains the various steps in
the game even before the participants go through the instructions. This facilitates
reading and clear understanding of the instructions. While explaining the game the
instructor should explain only the steps in the game. All reference to the purpose of
the game, risk-taking, etc., should be avoided. It should be introduced a business
game and steps may be repeated from the instructions sheet. About 10 minutes may
be allowed for the participants to real all the steps.
3. After they have read, the instructor may clarify if there are any doubts or questions
by the participants. Mostly the questions will d3eal with the clarification of the
procedure and the steps. If anyone asks about the purpose the instructor may merely
say, “The purpose is to see how well you do as entrepreneur – whether you make a
profit or a loss.”
4. After clarifying the instructor may distribute one piece of paper to each participant
for learning to make the boat of the king the is going to specify.
5. The instructor may then give a demonstration of the procedure for making the boats.
(before the class begins the instructor should have practiced and mastered the art of
making paper boats. This is very essential. While giving the demonstrations the
instructor should go slowly, step by step, ensuring that every one in the classroom
understood. After the demonstration he may clarify if any one had any doubts about
the mechanics of making of boat.
6. he ham then specify the quality control requirements, such as:
(a) The outer surface of the boat should be white in color.
(b) The top point of the boat should be pointed and not flat.
(c) Both the edges and the sides of the boat should be balanced. This can be
seen by pressing both sides of the boat together. It the colored surface
from inside is not noticeable in larger areas, then the boat is balanced.
7. After announcing the quality control specifications, the trainer may then request the
participants to \make their initial estimates on the business game data record sheet.
While they do this, the trainer may collect the boats made in the trial run. This would
prevent some of them from practicing. It is useful to m\maintain a uniform level of
practice.
8. After ensuring that everyone has made their initial estimates, the trainer may
distribute another piece of paper for the timed practice. He should instruct the
participant not to begin till he signals them to begin. He may announce that after he
signals them to begin he would be speaking out the time passed at every 5 second
151
interval. Every participant should note the i\time taken by him after he completes
making the boat. After completing the distribution the instructor may set the
participants to be ready to work. He may then ask them to begin and start counting
the time. He may announce the time this way: five seconds over ten seconds over,
fifteen seconds over, etc. He may stop announcing after 90 seconds or after everyone
completes.
9. he should ensure that everyone notes the time taken in the date record sheet. He
may then ask the participant t give their finale estimates after which he should go
around and distribute the paper to each participant, checking the number written by
each participant. It is useful to check as only the current number papers should be
given to the participant. The trainer should also ensure that no participant starts
making folds or any movements with the paper till he asks them to begin.
10. After completing the distribution he may set them and signal them to start. While
they perform he may announce the time after 3 minutes, 5 minutes and 5 ½ minutes.
When 30 seconds remain he may announce at every 5 second interval. When only 10
seconds remain he may start the countdown 10, 9, 8, ….,2, 1, stop. With stop, all
movements in the class must cease\, for for those who continue, one boat’s price
could be deducted or they may be disqualified. Generally such cases do not occur id
the trainer gives instruction in the beginning itself and stresses this point.
11. The trainer may then go around inspecting the boats for quality control. While
making the checks he should firs see the general trend. He could slightly lower the
quality standars if the general performance is low \. However boats having very flat
tops and highly uneven sides should be rejected.
12. After completing the checks, he may request the participants to full out the data
sheet and complete calculating the pants to fill out the data sheet and complete
calculating the profit or loss. The trainer may assist the participants in completing this
task.
13. The participants may now be asked to answer part B of the data record sheet where
they are asked to give an introspective report.
14. After everyone completes, the instructor may announce that he is interested in
getting another product manufactured. The procedure to be followed would be
similar. This time the product manufactured is a ‘knife boat’. After he announces, the
total process, staring from the first practice, till the calculation of profit and loss and
writing of the introspective report may be prepared. The detailed instructions for
making a knife boat are given in the appendix. The trainer should practice sufficiently
before beginning the class. The quality control instructions, the purchase Most and
the penalty chart remain the same. The trainer may suggest after the first practice
trial and before the initial estimate that the time taken for making the knife boat may
be another 3 to 5 seconds more that the time taken for the earlier boat. A second
data record sheet should be supplied to the participants and the game may be
supplied to the participants and the game may be repeated.
15. After the profit or Loss statements are completed and the second introspective
report is filled by the participants the instructor may record the data on the
blackboard or on flip charts. The format used in table 2 in appendix 1 of this chapter
may be used of tabulating the data.
152
After transferring the data to the blackboard the trainer may process the data along the
guidelines suggest below.
Business Game: Instruction Sheet

You are going to participate in a business game where you are going to portray yourself
as an entrepreneur. Yours is a single man’s enterprise. You are the boss, the manager, the worker,, the
salesman and everything.
In this business game you will be manufacturing paper boats and selling them. Your instructor will
portray as the sole supplier of raw materials for your production of boats. He also the sole buyer, i.e.,
you can buy raw materials only from him and sell the finished products only to him. Thus your
instructor will be acting as contractor from whom you can contract business. You can make profits in
this business as the finished products you sell will fetch you a price higher than the raw material cost.
However, there are a few rules involved in this game. These include the following:
(a) You have to make paper boats of a particular type and quality as specified by your contractor.
The contractor (i.e., your instructor) will teach you how to make boats of the specification he
wants. He will teach you free of cost.
(b) After the contractor demonstrates and teaches, you will be required to make an initial estimate
of the number of boats you would like to manufacture in a 6- minute period. It is on the basis of
this initial quotation by you that your contractor can procure his raw material and keep it ready
for purchase by you.
(c) The raw material costs and purchase price (by contractor) for the boats are presented in Table
2.
(d) For your information the average time taken by fast makers, slow makers, and people with
average speed for making similar boats are presented below:
Fast makers = 30-40 seconds per boat
Average = 40-50 seconds per boat
Slow makers = 50-60 seconds per boat
(e) After you make the initial estimate the contractor will give you a timed practice. For this
practice you will be supplied with a new sheet of paper. You will start making the boat when
the contractor gives a signal to start. The contractor would be announcing the time every 5
seconds. As soon as you complete you may note down the time taken by you in the business
game data record sheet. This would help you to look at his time you take to make one boat.
(f) After the timed practice you would be required to give your “final estimate “ of the
number of boats you wish to make ( or the number of units of raw materials you wish to
purchase) for a 6 minutes manufacturing period. For any change in your estimates you will have
to pay a penalty. Details of the penalty to be paid by you are also presented in Table 2 at the
end of these instructions. The penalty would be deducted from the profit you make or added to
the loss if you make loss.
(g) After you give your final estimate, the contractor will come and distribute to you the number of
sheets (raw material) that you judged in the final estimate. You may check the quality of the
raw material without folding the sheets in any way and you have to ask for replacement only
when the contractor is with you.
(h) You will start making the paper boats only when the contractor signals you to start after he has
completed distributing the raw material to all entrepreneurs.
153
(i) When the contractor signals you to start, you may start. The contractor will be announcing the
time at the end of 3, 5 and 51/2 minutes. When only half a minute is left he would announce the
remaining time every five seconds. When only ten seconds remain he would countdown every
second from 10 to 1. As soon as he says stop you must stop no matter in what stage you are.
Otherwise you may be disqualified and may loose all money.
(j) After the production process stops the contractor himself or any quality control inspectors sent
by the contractor welcome to you to check the quality of the boats you made and buy the boats
that need their specifications. The number of boats you made and the number of boats
accepted by them may be entered in your record sheet.
(k) On the basis of the number of boats accepted, your raw material costs and the penalty, you
may calculate your profit or loss.
Profit or loss = selling price of the boats accepted – (Purchase price of raw material + Penalty
for change in estimate)
Remember that any unfinished products and raw material remaining after the 6 minutes period
have no value.
(l) After you complete the calculations answer the questionnaire given in part B of your data
record sheet.
(m) After you complete this, the game would be repeated by the instructor with a different
product. This time you would manufacture knife boats. The same procedure would be followed.
You may use the second record sheer for recording your data
154
TABLE 2
Raw material cost, purchase price and penalty for change of estimates
Raw materials costs Purchase price Penalty for change

________________________________________ _________________________________________
___________________________________________
Quality Cost in No of boats Purchase No. of Penalty in

of paper dollars/ passing price in units dollars/
rupees Quality control dollars/rupees changed
rupees
3 300 3 320 1 10
4 400 4 440 2 25
5 500 5 560 3 45
6 575 6 665 4 75
7 650 7 770 5 110
8 725 8 875
9 775 9 965 6 150
10 825 10 1055 7 195
11 875 11 1145 8 245
12 900 12 1210 9 300
13 925 13 1295
14 950 14 1400 10 360
15 960 15 1560
155
Appendix 2
Business game data record sheet
Name: Date: Trial No:
Part A
1. Your initial estimate of the boats you would
Like to make in a 6-minutes period: ________
2. Time taken by you in the timed practice: ________
3. Your revised and final estimate of the boats
you would like to make in the 6 minutes period: ________
4. Cost of the material (consult Table 2): ________
5. Penalty for change in estimates (consult Table 2): ________
6. Total cost of material including penalty (add 4 and 5): ________
7. No. of boats you could complete: ________
8. No. of boats accepted by the quality control department: ________
9. Cost of the material purchased by the contractor (purchased
Cost of the boats accepted): ________
10. Profit or loss (item 9 –item 6, if the value in
Item 6 is more, it is a loss, and otherwise it is a profit): ________
Part B
Please answer the questions below after you have completed the game.
How did you make you initial estimate? On what basis? What data have you used? What factors
influenced your choice?
1. What did the average timings mean to you? How did you place yourself in relation to these
averages (i.e., fast, slow or average)?
2. What were your reactions during the timed practice? Were you concerned with quality or you
wanted to do as fast as you can, etc.?
3. How did you react to the time you have actually taken? Did that influenced you in any way
latter?
4. What factors influenced your revision or non-revision of the estimates?
5. How did you plan for the exercise? How did you actually carryout the plans?
6. What factors influenced your profit or loss? Could you have done better? How?
156
Sky Is the Limit
Genre: Setting challenging goals 4
Duration: 5 – 7 Minutes.
Objective: Realize your Potential.
Timing of Activity: When doing Goal Setting.
Requirements: 1 White Chart Paper + 3 different color markers. The chart should be pasted at a
height of the wall.
Call for 3 volunteers & ask them to put their initials at a comfortable height on the chart.
Once every one is through ask them once again to put their initials higher than the earlier attempt. This
time the trainer should motivate the volunteers to stretch themselves a bit.
The activity will be repeated the third time with the trainer still motivating them to reach still higher.
At the end of the third attempt the trainer will now ask the audience to judge the winner out of the
three.
Majority of the people will vote for the volunteer as a winner who has put his initials at the highest
level.
However, the trainer will announce all the three as winners focusing on each persons quest to go still
higher with each passing attempt.
Learning: At the first instance many people don’t realize their actual potential but when they put
the efforts, nothing can stop them from delivering the best
157
158

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As HR professionals, there are times in our lives when we have to address large crowds at short

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7. Setting challenging goals

Approximate Time Required:

Approximate Time Required:

Plays Tennis Is Wearing Red Soccer Chapter Officer Has Grandchildren

_______________ _______________ _______________ _______________ _______________

Plays Piano Has Tropical Fish Free Skis Committee

Materials Required: none

NAME ALIKE DIFFERENT

1. ________________ ________________ __________________

2. ________________ ________________ __________________

3. ________________ ________________ __________________

4. ________________ ________________ __________________

5. ________________ ________________ __________________

6. ________________ ________________ __________________

7. ________________ ________________ __________________

8. ________________ ________________ __________________

9. ________________ ________________ __________________

10 ________________ ________________ __________________

Material Required: Several dozen used greeting cards.

Material Required: None.

Approximate Time Required:

Timing: 40 minutes (depends on group size).

Objectives: Introductions, Listening skills

Approximate time required: 30 minutes.

Flow of the Activity

Have participants write down as many items as they can remember.

Ask each participant to count the number of items listed.

1. Interviewing a candidate for a job

Genre: Team Building 7

Materials Required: Bandanas.

Materials Required: Box of matches

Materials Required: 3 x 5 cards

Time: 5 minutes to an hour, depending on the number of categories

1. Hesitates too long before saying an item

The category is “What customers expect”.

(Participants are divided into 3 to 6 teams, each with 2-7 members.)

• Authenticity: Is the conversation realistic and believable?

Time Requirement 7 to 15 minutes

Anne: Why are charismatic leaders incapable of producing sustained results?

Bob: Why do most people prefer autocratic command-and-control leaders?

Conduct this conversational activity for a total of 5 minutes.

Objective: Understanding the importance of Standardization. One team one goal

Each group is asked to select a song of their choice.

Result: Probably no one will be able to do that.

The groups will be much organizes this time.

Give them a destination to be reached at the end of the room.

Meanwhile, silently remove half of the chairs from the room.

Role Brief for Salesman Blue

Role Brief for Salesman Green

Role Brief for Customer Red, Green, Blue and Yellow

Role Brief for Observers

Dimensions Of Salesman – Customer Transaction

3. Content of transaction - Motivational

i. Please rate his capacity as a Salesman

DIMENSIONS FOR ASSEMENT:

I will not buy from him even if I

I will recommend it to my friend

I will caution my friend to be

Salesman Active Passive

Salesman Active Passive

Salesman Active Passive

_______ _ _ _ _________

1. __

2. __

3. __

4. __

5. __

6. __

7. __

8. __

9. __

10 __