OnTeamBuilding

We get to learn from Jon Grizzle in this episode of the OnTeamBuilding podcast. Jon has been team building for over 13 years. He got hooked on team building through his scouting program and has never looked back. Today he spends most of his contact hours with adult groups, but still takes the opportunity to work with the younger minds as well.

Jon shares his thinking about programming and some activity ideas to help groups work through conflict (if this is a program outcome). We get to hear about 'Card Perspective' (an activity in Jon's book, Team Building A La Card: Affordable Adaptations of Team Activities), one of Jon's favorite activities and 'gutters' one of his favorite props. When it comes to processing, we hear about his two favorite tools, his go to question and his favorite book focused on a 5-Question processing model (one of Chris' favorite books as well!). Jon also shares one of his biggest challenges when working with groups and how he manages it.

We hope you join us!

Find all Show Notes and Episodes HERE

This podcast is another facet in a network of resources being developed in an ongoing effort to help team builders, all over the world, learn and grow:

• OnTeamBuilding Blog - Conversations about a variety of team building topics
• Ask Michelle & Chris About Team Building - Podcast for Team Builders
• FUNdoing - Activity Resources for Team Builders (Blog, Store, Trainings)
• FUNdoing Fridays - Bi-monthly email of activities (sign up form at this page)
• TeamBuilderPowerUps - A growing online school of resources for team builders
• YoungTeamBuilders - The voices of new team builders

In this episode we're learning from Al Leone. Al and Chris have been "Con-Friends" for years - only getting together once a year, traveling from different locations, to attend the National Challenge Course Practitioners Symposium in Boulder Colorado.

Al has been been team building with a variety of different age groups for over 14 years. She shares with us her firm belief about team building early (e.g., 5th grade groups) to start getting them to see what a community can be like (you don't want to miss the story). Al also shares memorable moments with Mousetraps, the importance of compassion and kindness with other people's stories, her struggle with helping others understand the important work we do and her powerful connection to The Alchemist, a book by Paulo Coelho ("...a book that helps us find our own story.")

Al is a passionate educator and team builder. She believes experiential education "works if we work it" - trusting the process and the power behind what we do is vital to changing lives. 

We hope you join us!

Find all Show Notes and Episodes HERE

This podcast is another facet in a network of resources being developed in an ongoing effort to help team builders, all over the world, learn and grow:

• OnTeamBuilding Blog - Conversations about a variety of team building topics
• Ask Michelle & Chris About Team Building - Podcast for Team Builders
• FUNdoing - Activity Resources for Team Builders (Blog, Store, Trainings)
• FUNdoing Fridays - Bi-monthly email of activities (sign up form at this page)
• TeamBuilderPowerUps - A growing online school of resources for team builders
• YoungTeamBuilders - The voices of new team builders

In this special Focused episode, Daniel and Chris talk about creativity - being creative, thinking about creativity and being open to creativity. Daniel is the author of, From Experience to Creativity: The Experiential Educators Incomplete Guide to Creativity and the creator of the Epic Cards: Tools for Teaching and Promoting Creativity. He tells us that he wanted to produce a resource to "develop a language around creativity and a way understand it..." Daniel emphasizes, if we can "normalize the parts of the creative process" [especially the idea that failure is part of the process], it will be easier to take creative risks.

Along with accepting failure as part of creativity, we also need to be compassionate - with ourselves and with others. Creativity is a powerful tool. If we, as team builders, can understand creativity, and all the different ways we are creative, our programs can become places for new ideas and new understandings related to creativity.

"It is my belief that [everyday creativity] is most important for experiential educators [team builders] to be aware of and foster in participants, not only because it's open to everyone, but, because it addresses the everyday challenges of participants and facilitators." Daniel Cape

Daniel's TEDx Talk: A Deeper Understanding of Creativity

We hope you join us!

Find all Show Notes and Episodes HERE

This podcast is another facet in a network of resources being developed in an ongoing effort to help team builders, all over the world, learn and grow:

• OnTeamBuilding Blog - Conversations about a variety of team building topics
• Ask Michelle & Chris About Team Building - Podcast for Team Builders
• FUNdoing - Activity Resources for Team Builders (Blog, Store, Trainings)
• FUNdoing Fridays - Bi-monthly email of activities (sign up form at this page)
• TeamBuilderPowerUps - A growing online school of resources for team builders
• YoungTeamBuilders - The voices of new team builders

Dr. Amy Climer has been a team builder for over 24 years working with many different age groups. Currently, her post-doctorate focus has been helping teams be more creative - or be more, deliberatively creative. In this episode we find out about how she uses a Creative Problem Solving Process to program for her trainings and how many focused learnings she likes to provide in a day-long program. We also learn about one of her biggest challenges as an experiential trainer and what she does to mitigate some of that challenge. Amy also shares her favorite team building prop (not what I thought she was going to say), an activity using the prop and some of the reasons why her Climer (Image) Cards are a valuable processing tool.

Climer Consulting

The Deliberative Creative Podcast by Dr. Climer

TEDx Talk (on TED) The Power of Deliberate Creative Teams

We hope you join us!

Find all Show Notes and Episodes HERE

This podcast is another facet in a network of resources being developed in an ongoing effort to help team builders, all over the world, learn and grow:

• OnTeamBuilding Blog - Conversations about a variety of team building topics
• Ask Michelle & Chris About Team Building - Podcast for Team Builders
• FUNdoing - Activity Resources for Team Builders (Blog, Store, Trainings)
• FUNdoing Fridays - Bi-monthly email of activities (sign up form at this page)
• TeamBuilderPowerUps - A growing online school of resources for team builders
• YoungTeamBuilders - The voices of new team builders

In this episode, Phil shares one of his favorite versatile props and a super low-prop activity he's been using for over 12 years (one he brought with him from England). We talk about Maximizing Resources, Failing Forward, Preparing Participants for 'Struggle' ("The Struggle is Real"), Report-Out Fatigue, and the idea of using certain activities as a litmus test. Phil also shares a problem solving model he uses as a processing tool (A, B, C, D, E) as well as journaling for processing. Finally, we find out about a book Phil recommends to everyone (including team builders) interested in, 'The business of life!'

We hope you join us!

Find all Show Notes and Episodes HERE

This podcast is another facet in a network of resources being developed in an ongoing effort to help team builders, all over the world, learn and grow:

• OnTeamBuilding Blog - Conversations about a variety of team building topics
• Ask Michelle & Chris About Team Building - Podcast for Team Builders
• FUNdoing - Activity Resources for Team Builders (Blog, Store, Trainings)
• FUNdoing Fridays - Bi-monthly email of activities (sign up form at this page)
• TeamBuilderPowerUps - A growing online school of resources for team builders
• YoungTeamBuilders - The voices of new team builders

Mariah Emond has a deep background in adventure therapy - using adventure-based activities and contexts to work towards positive change. Most of her work has been focused on helping youth navigate todays challenges.

In this episode, Mariah talks to Dr. Cavert about how she was introduced to adventure methodologies and the book that helped her understand the power of adventure-based counseling - one of the books that has informed her practice for over 24 years. During the episode, she also talks about her favorite (must-have) prop - pretty much the signature, and super-fun, prop of all adventure educators (dare I say).

Currently Mariah works for a non-profit that serves youth on a daily basis. She is also, among many other duties, the resident team builder in her organization helping the adult staff (also) navigate their own challenges working together to support their youth clients. Find out how, as a staff, they use the 'Check and Balance' to support team growth.

Mariah also explains the difference in activity outcomes between in-tact teams and groups of individuals together in a therapeutic program. It's about 'personal insight' and 'individually minded' processing with a group. She offers, "We have the opportunity to start relationships that are gold mines." We hope you join us.


Find all Show Notes and Episodes HERE

This podcast is another facet in a network of resources being developed in an ongoing effort to help team builders, all over the world, learn and grow:

• OnTeamBuilding Blog - Conversations about a variety of team building topics
• Ask Michelle & Chris About Team Building - Podcast for Team Builders
• FUNdoing - Activity Resources for Team Builders (Blog, Store, Trainings)
• FUNdoing Fridays - Bi-monthly email of activities (sign up form at this page)
• TeamBuilderPowerUps - A growing online school of resources for team builders
• YoungTeamBuilders - The voices of new team builders

Trevor Dunlap has been team building for well over 20 years. He is the Executive Director of Nuhop, a camp and retreat center that services all types of groups with many levels of abilities. Currently, he spends most of his team building hours working with corporate groups, but has a deep background with all ages.

In this episode, Trevor talks about some 'high torque' activities (some he's co-created) that he uses with groups to stretch their learning potential. He also shares some processing ideas to create metaphorical connections and his 'short list' of books we should all have on our shelves (after we read them of course).

We also get to find out about his creative process - where he 'listens' for ideas, play tests his prototypes and embraces 'failing forward' to refine the activities and get them out there to others. (His recent products include: Crowd Words, Performance Cubed, and Crowd Cubes - all co-created with Matthew Broda).


Find all Show Notes and Episodes HERE

This podcast is another facet in a network of resources being developed in an ongoing effort to help team builders, all over the world, learn and grow:

• OnTeamBuilding Blog - Conversations about a variety of team building topics
• Ask Michelle & Chris About Team Building - Podcast for Team Builders
• FUNdoing - Activity Resources for Team Builders (Blog, Store, Trainings)
• FUNdoing Fridays - Bi-monthly email of activities (sign up form at this page)
• TeamBuilderPowerUps - A growing online school of resources for team builders
• YoungTeamBuilders - The voices of new team builders

In this 'Focused Episode' Laurie and Chris talk about the important topic of community building during "social distancing" (what Laurie believes should be referred to as "physical distancing") and beyond, into the 'new' normal. Here are some vital questions and considerations (and concerns) explored during this episode:

"We are pulling away right now...", how can we help each other pull together?

"We have to figure out what social connection means in a time of physical distancing...what can we do to build community at this time?"

"Mindset is important, we must move to a space of, "What is possible?! versus, "This is impossible!" 

"We have to think deeply about the culture, the essence of community building - whatever it is that makes what we do happen, in a different way."

"This is both a sprint and a marathon!" We need to take immediate action that informs and shapes future outcomes in relation to building and sustaining strong communities in every context.


Find all Show Notes and Episodes HERE

This podcast is another facet in a network of resources being developed in an ongoing effort to help team builders, all over the world, learn and grow:

• OnTeamBuilding Blog - Conversations about a variety of team building topics
• Ask Michelle & Chris About Team Building - Podcast for Team Builders
• FUNdoing - Activity Resources for Team Builders (Blog, Store, Trainings)
• FUNdoing Fridays - Bi-monthly email of activities (sign up form at this page)
• TeamBuilderPowerUps - A growing online school of resources for team builders
• YoungTeamBuilders - The voices of new team builders

Solomon Masala has been team building for over 30 years - working with groups of all ages. Recently he's been bringing his skills and energy into corporate groups, helping them learn and grow into their full potential. What others have said about his work, "transformational," "Insightful," "Inspirational," "Innovative," and "Refreshing."

In this episode, Solomon shares his favorite go-to activities and the props he never leaves home without (and a few activities he does with these props). He also shares his position on Ice Breakers and their relation to "F.U.N.N." (a term credited to Karl Rohnke - a long-time mentor), his programming mindset and the obligation we have as team builders to ask rich questions and move the process of our groups forward.


Find all Show Notes and Episodes HERE

This podcast is another facet in a network of resources being developed in an ongoing effort to help team builders, all over the world, learn and grow:

• OnTeamBuilding Blog - Conversations about a variety of team building topics
• Ask Michelle & Chris About Team Building - Podcast for Team Builders
• FUNdoing - Activity Resources for Team Builders (Blog, Store, Trainings)
• FUNdoing Fridays - Bi-monthly email of activities (sign up form at this page)
• TeamBuilderPowerUps - A growing online school of resources for team builders
• YoungTeamBuilders - The voices of new team builders

Dixie Reed is 5 years into team building, starting out as a static high course operator and now facilitating corporate groups. She tells us about how lucky she was with her introduction (on-boarding) into leading team building activities and how she is now able to help other team builders get started.

We find out about the (noisy) Toy Pig and why it's her favorite prop for all populations, how she plants the seeds that lead to challenge and focused processing, and a 5-minute closing she loves to use when faced with little time to talk about learnings at the end of a program. We'll also get to know how Dixie uses dominos with small groups, how she co-plans (or co-programs) with colleagues and her tips for helping new team builders learn and grow (and take risks).


Find all Show Notes and Episodes HERE

This podcast is another facet in a network of resources being developed in an ongoing effort to help team builders, all over the world, learn and grow:

• OnTeamBuilding Blog - Conversations about a variety of team building topics
• Ask Michelle & Chris About Team Building - Podcast for Team Builders
• FUNdoing - Activity Resources for Team Builders (Blog, Store, Trainings)
• FUNdoing Fridays - Bi-monthly email of activities (sign up form at this page)
• TeamBuilderPowerUps - A growing online school of resources for team builders
• YoungTeamBuilders - The voices of new team builders