Team Building Activities Explained Simply

Solution Projection is a group visualization technique that helps people feel what it is like to solve their biggest work problem so they get the energy to then go on and solve it.

Most problems at work are solvable. People normally just need the energy to execute the solution – use this session when you would like to break the group’s cycle of negativity on particularly difficult issues.

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Objectives

To get a group of people to feel like they have achieved something that they think is difficult to give them the confidence to go on to solve it.
To build an even stronger relationship between you and the group of people you are working with.

When Would You Use It?

This exercise makes people have trust and belief in themselves and demonstrates that their company is supporting them.

Watch David Mibashan describe this activity

Resources Required

1 hour.
8-15 people.
Large open space (no chairs and tables).
A yoga mat for each person.
Facilitator (plus an assistant if more than 15 people).

Process

1
The Facilitator tells the Participants what the objective of the exercise is and asks them to pick their hardest work issue that they would like to focus on for the session.
2
The Facilitator says that it is completely optional if they would like to participate – there is no obligation to talk at all.
3
Ask the Participants to unroll their yoga mats and lie down.
4
The Facilitator leads them through their favored method of relaxation (15 mins).
5
Once the Participants are relaxed ask them to think about the issue that’s concerning them in silence (1-2 mins). It is important that the Participants concentrate on how they feel towards the issue and not try to find a technical solution to it now.
6
The Facilitator does 3-5 mins more relaxation using the same method as before.
7
The Facilitator then asks the Participants to picture themselves after they have accomplished the hurdle.
8
The Facilitator guides them through the emotions of success – the elation, the happiness and the lighter feeling of having solved their problem (2 mins).
9
The Facilitator very slowly brings them back. Allow them to take a few mins to come out of the happy state.
10
Once everyone is sitting up enjoy watching them all smile at each other and allow them a couple of minutes to refocus.
11
The Facilitator asks who wants to start the discussion. The discussion has to focus on what it takes to get to there. How good they felt? What do they need to do? Why weren’t they able to do it before?
12
The Facilitator closes the session by saying they didn’t do anything out of the ordinary. Sometimes when we get stuck by a problem we think that we cannot solve it and therefore we cannot do it. And the more we put it off the more we get worried about it.
13
Build in 10-20 minutes after the session for them to go and have a cup of coffee or tea before they go back to work so they can bring themselves completely out of the relaxation state.

Potential Relaxation Methods

Deep breathing into their abdomen for 15 mins asking them to focus on and follow their breath in and out of their bodies.
Ask a list of sensory questions for them to think about (e.g. Can you taste a strawberry? Can you smell the sea? Can you feel the sun on your skin?)
Cleaning your mind (from Eugene Gendlin’s book, Focusing) – imagine you’re outside your mind with a giant garbage bag and for every thing, idea, preoccupation, problem, issue you have you screw it up and drop it in the bag.
Lie down and feel the difference between the parts of your body that are touching he ground to those that aren’t. Let your body be at one with the floor.

Secret Sauce

Make sure each person knows they should concentrate on the very hardest of all their problems (it shows trust in the method).
Ask the participants in advance to wear comfortable clothing to the session.
Don’t do this with a group of people you don’t know at all. You need them to have some trust in you before you break out the yoga mats.
Doing this with less than 8 people means you won’t get enough group dynamics going in the discussion and people can be a little more shy.
If you have more than 15 people take an assistant with you so you can break the discussion up into smaller plenary groups. You can then bring everybody back together to end the exercise.
During the discussion phase make sure they know it’s completely optional to talk – introverts should not be forced to open up in this particular exercise due to the size of the problem they have likely been focusing on.
Only do this with a group who are receptive to the idea of relaxation. Groups that are traditionally or culturally a little uptight may not respond well to this technique.

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About the Author

David is a Clinical Psychologist & Organizational Consultant based in South America at Human Ideas. He specializes in Human Relationships and their effects on work efficiency and employee satisfaction.

Solution Projection via Guided Imagery