Over the years, I’ve collected these communication exercises and activities from a variety of LinkedIN discussions and recommendations from trainers and business people. If you aren’t sure how to choose a team building game, view How to Choose a Teambuilding Game Infographic. If you̵...
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Several weeks ago, I asked the folks in our new Trainers Community, “What’s your greatest professional challenge?” From the dozens of replies, a single theme emerged: CHANGE. I suppose this won’t come as a surprise to anyone. The training industry has changed as profoundly as eve...
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While our library of Communication and Listening Exercises is quite comprehensive, Active Listening is a critical subcategory worthy of deeper exploration. Active listening isn’t just nodding to the speaker. Active listening happens when you’re completely focused on the speaker, taking i...
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Managers work so hard to build effective teams and develop strong working relationships. Communication and Listening Exercises is the #1 post on this blog for good reason. Learning to communicate and listen, however, is only half the battle. Bringing people together also requires sharing vulnerabili...
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We all have a different sense of personal privacy. Five years ago, when I was diagnosed with breast cancer (now cancer-free!), I had no need to keep the news private. To the contrary, I saw myself as part of a community—one that could support me and that I could help by sharing my experience. As�...
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I love that scholars are studying happiness and finally understanding that success does not breed happiness; rather happiness breeds success. I learned that from my dad who long ago left the corporate world to start Trainers Warehouse. Starting a new business felt financially risky, but his happines...
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“I can’t talk about that at work.” “My boss wouldn’t want to hear what I have to say.” Employees have so many reasons for not talking about meaningful topics at work. Sometimes, they’re tight-lipped simply because giving feedback is difficult. In other cases...
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I had thought that old adage, “everything we need to learn, we learned in kindergarten” was true. Remember “show and tell,” when children are invited to share a favorite object and talk about why it is meaningful to them? Now I’m not so sure. To improve communication an...
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Not sure which Thumball is perfect for your needs? Take a moment to complete this quick quiz and get a handful of ideas about which discussion prompts will be best for your team and what your Thumball Style is! What’s a Thumball? It’s a soft ball imprinted with 32 discussion starters...
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Can ethics be taught? We know the question is at least 2500 years old, as the Greek philosopher Socrates is said to have debated the questions with fellow Athenians, and expressed the opinion that doing what is “right” can be taught. Why then, do only 46% of consumers in the United Stat...
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