Do not take it personally, know that this is not a personal attack and it is only this persons opinion. Stay open minded, do not get defensive, Know that the disruptive behaviour could have been triggered by many different reasons and more often than not these may have been triggered before your training even started. Keep calm, take a deep breath or a drink of water to gather your thoughts and calm your mind. Think of how you can give great service to this person. Think of this as a positive experience as it will help you grow and develop... Continue reading

Name of Icebreaker: Birthdays Category of Icebreaker: Communication Time Scales: 2 - 20 Minutes (Depending on Size of Group) Size of Group: 10+ Materials Required: None Aim of Icebreaker: To test the group’s ability to communicate with each other non-verbally and to achieve the task as a team. Pre-Organisation None Process Explain to your group that they are to get themselves in birth date order (emphasizing date) forming one long line with the beginning of the year at the front of the room. They need to ensure that you are in exactly the right order. However, they are not allowed... Continue reading

Do you find that sometimes your attendees have so many questions that they interrupt your flow, they take up too much time, they make your session over run and often that question is going to be answered later on in your training? So what do you do? There are a few reasons as to why you are having so many questions. It may be because you are not explaining yourself well enough and your attendees need to ask questions to get more clarity. Your attendees may be really interested in the subject and want to find out more. Your attendees... Continue reading

This is a question that I am hoping you will make a comment about because it is certainly up to personal preferences as to how you run your icebreakers and whether you want your group rolling around the floor laughing or not. They do say that laughing is the best medicine and it has many benefits to the individual, such as; helping to release enzymes and hormones, helps reduce stress, increases the blood flow, I even read somewhere it helps to burn calories and improve weight loss. Not only does laughing have its health benefits it also enhances our ability... Continue reading

When we are worried, our heads tend to be full of swirling thoughts “What if I’ve forgotten something?” “Do I look stupid in these clothes?” “Will the audience be kind to me?” “Will anyone notice I’ve forgotten to polish my shoes?” This cacophony of noise in our heads does nothing to assist in the process of relaxation. Merely telling yourself not to worry rarely helps the situation. Sometimes you get an answer back “But there is so much that can go wrong!” This state of affairs means that you are not centred. To be strong you need to concentrate your... Continue reading

If you find yourself sitting down with your legs tightly crossed, clutching your speech notes and with a knot in your stomach you are probably not assisting your own relaxation. Stand up and pay attention to your posture. Devotees of the Alexander Technique will recognise that holding your body correctly is an intrinsic part of feeling good about yourself and there is definitely a correct way to stand. Make sure your head is balanced on the end of your neck, not jutting forward, tilted to one side or leaning back. Unclamp your jaw and ensure your tongue is not sticking... Continue reading

Name The Fruit Game Time Scales 30 Minutes Size of Group 5+ (The More the Merrier!) Materials Required None! Pre Organisation None Process Everyone sits in a circle, or around the dinner table and thinks of a fruit. Go round the circle and everyone must announce what fruit they are going to be. You cannot have two people with the same fruit. If you have more people than fruit you can use vegetables as well. The team member must say their fruit and then someone else’s fruit. But there is a catch to this game! Throughout the game you are... Continue reading

Tis the Season to be jolly..... So rather than sitting watching the telly, falling asleep after a big dinner, playing with your presents on your own or getting bored this Christmas....Why don't you do what you are great at, get your family and friends bonding by playing some great games together. Here's one of my favourite Christmas Party Games for you! Remember to get your second Christmas gift below. Name: Chocolate Game Time Scales: 30 Minutes Size of Group: 4 + (The More the Merrier!) Materials Required Per Team: 1 Large Bar of Chocolate. A pair of trousers, wellington boots,... Continue reading

Have you ever seen a Trainer or Presenter who looks as though they have not brushed their hair, not ironed their clothes and they really do not look the part? What first impressions do you make about that trainer? To be a professional presenter or trainer you need to gain respect from your participants from the start of your session, you need to impress them within the first 30 seconds of them coming into contact with you. The way that you brand yourself is one of the most important factors effecting that first impression. Here's how to establish your brand... Continue reading

You have just come back from lunch, you are just getting into your afternoon session and your trainees seem to have lost their energy, they are slouching in their chairs, they are not participating nor are they answering your questions. It is like trying to get blood out of a stone. They are half asleep! “ W A K E U P ! ” Here are some tips on how to wake up your trainees and it is NOT by shouting “Wake Up!”. :-) NEVER run a training or presentation where you just read off the power point slides, this... Continue reading

Name of Icebreaker: Going to the Races Category of Icebreaker : Energizer Time Scales: 10 Minutes Size of Group: 5 + Materials Required None: Just know your actions! Aim of Icebreaker: To energize the group and have a bit of fun!! Please Note: This icebreaker is not for the faint hearted! Pre-Organisation Prepare your script and make sure you remember your actions. You can make your script up as you go along. Process Find a clear space and ask your group to stand up and form a circle and face inwards. Explain that they are going to be participating within... Continue reading

Your trainees may fall asleep due to the lack of energy in your training room. You may find it extremely hard to get your trainees to answer your questions or join in discussions because they may not be motivated. Your trainees may lose concentration and may be constantly fidgeting in their seats because they will not have had a chance to move during the Icebreakers. You may have your training day full of content with no interaction and no feedback from your trainees. This will make your training very dull for you and your trainees. You may have NO idea... Continue reading

“Aaaah, the trainees will be arriving in 15 minutes, I know that I have everything prepared, I have ticked everything off my checklist, my equipment is all working, my notes are all in order, I have been to the bathroom, BUT ...... I am still really nervous. This day is really important, I have a really important person attending, I am really worried I am going to mess something up, someone is going to question me and I am not going to know the answer, my butterflies are nearly jumping out of my stomach. Aaaah, my mind just won’t shut... Continue reading

When you run an Icebreaker, ensure that you make time to allow your trainees to share their findings and experiences from the Icebreaker. You can ask them to discuss their findings in their groups, by giving them specific questions to answer. Then they can take their turns to share them with the rest of the group, whilst you write their findings down on the flip chart or whiteboard for everyone to see. Here are 7 reasons as to why you should collate the findings after running your Icebreaker..... Recording what people say about the Icebreaker adds value to their thoughts... Continue reading

Here is a great Icebreaker for trainees who do not know each other but also can be used with those who do know each other..... Name of Icebreaker : Famous Partners Category of Icebreaker : Introductions / Communication Time Scales : 10 minutes or more depending on group size and how hard you make the partners. Size of Group : Unlimited Materials Required : Post it notes, enough for every participant. Aim of Icebreaker : To encourage rapport, communication and questioning techniques. Pre-Organisation Create a list of famous partners. For example: Adam & Eve, Bonnie & Clyde, Romeo & Juliet,... Continue reading

Name of Icebreaker : Sunshine Category of Icebreaker : Motivation and Team Building Time Scales : 10 Minutes + (Depending on number in team) Size of Group : Unlimited This Icebreaker can be used in many group sizes from 1: 1 to 100+. If you do have more than 20 then split your teams into groups of no more than 20. Materials Required : A4 Paper and Pen per team member Aim of the Icebreaker : This Icebreaker helps to boost confidence and motivation of every team member. It helps to bring the team together, boost morale and team spirit... Continue reading

As you might expect, not all Icebreakers are appropriate for every situation and every audience. You’ll find that, with experience and exposure to the different types of Icebreakers, you will almost automatically know what is appropriate for a given audience as you go about designing the subject matter and the running order for the event. Often you will never have met or spoken to your audience. They will be a group of people from different backgrounds whose only common factor might be this day that they spend together in a workshop. Sometimes you may know your audience very well indeed.... Continue reading

My husband asked me last week, “Philly, I have a days consultancy with a new client and I need an Icebreaker that will help us get to know each other quickly and build rapport quickly, can you find one for me please?” Here’s the Icebreaker I chose.... Name of Icebreaker : Acronyms Category of Icebreaker : Further Introductions Time Scales : 10 Minutes Size of Group : Unlimited. Can be used in all group sizes from 1: 1 to 1000’s in your training room. Materials Required : Flipchart Paper and Pens Aim of Icebreaker: To encourage creativity with the use... Continue reading

Have you delivered a training session before when you feel that the energy is really low, your audience are not motivated and whatever you do you feel that it is just not working? Sometimes it may get to the point when you just want to press the rewind button and start over again. The secrets of being a great trainer is to be able to feel the energy in your training room, identify when your trainees are starting to lose concentration, notice when they are getting all fidgety and then be able to change the pace of your training to... Continue reading

Donna's fourth grade classroom looked like many others I had seen in the past. Students sat in five rows of six desks. The teacher’s desk was in the front and faced the students. The bulletin board featured student work. In most respects it appeared to be typically traditional elementary classroom. Yet something seemed different that day I entered it for the first time. There seemed to be an undercurrent of excitement. My job was to make classroom visitations and encourage implementation. I took an empty seat in the back of the room and watched. All the students were working on... Continue reading

The One Theory You MUST Know BEFORE You Use an Icebreaker.... Continue reading

Take a card... One really useful tool to have in your training kit is a pack of cards. It can be used to randomly sort delegates into: Two groups of up to 26, or up to 26 pairs by card colour. Between 1 and 4 groups of up to 13 by suit. Up to 13 groups of four by number - ideal for determining numberical order for presenting or giving feedback. The delegates can see that selections are completely randowm and you can also very easily sort people several different ways within the same session. Thank you to Sylvia Beard... Continue reading

Make your delegates feel welcome and relaxed in your training from the very beginning by getting to know their names within a few minutes of the day starting. (This obviously does depend on the number of delegates that you have). Ask everyone their name as they come into your training room, make sure you are consciously listening to them when they say their name and repeat it in your head. Find out a bit about them, build rapport with them, making sure you repeat their name when you chat to them. Then use it again soon afterwards. It is as... Continue reading

Tiffany is 8 months old today and more gorgeous than ever! I knew that I was going to love being... Continue reading