Training Industry Magazine - March/April 2020 - 42

12 to 24 printed images. Groups are
to come up with as many different
meanings as possible in two-minutes
by combining different images. For
example, a picture of a rock and a
picture of a jail cell could be combined
to create the saying, "between a
rock and a hard place." Cards can
be reused multiple times. After the
game, debrief this as a metaphor for
the work to be undertaken. There are
no wrong answers. It's about creative
exploration and participation to solve
the challenges at hand.

THE STRENGTH OF A CROSS-DISCIPLINARY
TEAM IS IN THE COLLISION OF IDEAS.

TOOL 3: THE
PLAY BUTTON
When thinking about psychological
safety, it's common to think about the
brain, rather than the body. Yet, the body
produces two key hormones involved in
establishing psychological safety.
The first is serotonin. Serotonin is
closely linked to cognitive functioning,
regulation of cognitive biases, social
affiliation, fairness and mood - all
important to innovating and problemsolving. Exercise is one good way to
boost serotonin levels. The second
is oxytocin, which improves social
skills and bonding, trust, positive
recollection of memories, well-being,
and stress reduction. Laughter is one
great way to release oxytocin.
Play combines both laughter and
exercise. Not only does it boost
oxytocin and serotonin levels, it fasttracks psychological safety by fostering
creative mindsets, enhancing social
connection and silencing your inner
critic leading to enhanced vulnerability.

SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS:
There are plenty of ways to play. In
cross-cultural teams, a fun way to
get the team moving and laughing
is the laugh game. Ask everyone to
write down how they would convey
laughter over text message. You will
be surprised at how diverse this is -
from the French "mdr" to Thai "5555."
Assign everyone a laugh. Then get
them to pair up and try to pronounce

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the laugh they've been assigned,
changing to a new partner every 10
seconds. Watch as hilarity ensues.
This has the added bonus of helping
people suspend judgement and fail
fast for enhanced teaming.

TOOL 4: THE
FRICTION FEEDER
The strength of a cross-disciplinary
team is in the collision of ideas: the
creative tension that occurs when
differences in perspective ostensibly
oppose each other. Done well, this

enables new ideas to be unleashed.
Done poorly, it fragments the team as
people defend their ideas and resist
other viewpoints. The trick is to create
enough friction so that people don't
slide back into comfortable habits, but
stay open to possibility and explore
potential solutions.
In his book, "The 4 Stages of
Psychological Safety," Dr. Timothy
R. Clark explores the crucial role
of the modern leader in increasing
intellectual friction while decreasing
social friction. Intellectual friction is
testing ideas to ensure that the result

https://www.helpguide.org/articles/mental-health/benefits-of-play-for-adults.htm https://www.helpguide.org/articles/mental-health/benefits-of-play-for-adults.htm https://www.booktopia.com.au/the-4-stages-of-psychological-safety-timothy-r-clark/book/9781523087686.html?source=pla&gclid=CjwKCAiApOvwBRBUEiwAcZGdGHWM6kXRRbOwWlhlDjFQQvnkOqgMeTpEWO7xf5mFCVKUyhSQMoqTJRoCsIEQAvD_BwE https://www.booktopia.com.au/the-4-stages-of-psychological-safety-timothy-r-clark/book/9781523087686.html?source=pla&gclid=CjwKCAiApOvwBRBUEiwAcZGdGHWM6kXRRbOwWlhlDjFQQvnkOqgMeTpEWO7xf5mFCVKUyhSQMoqTJRoCsIEQAvD_BwE

Training Industry Magazine - March/April 2020

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