Training Activity
Scoring with Trust!
Purpose: To identify leadership behaviors that promote trust and credibility. I use this exercise as an introductory activity when I train on building effective relationships with your employees.
Preparation:
Materials:
*One plastic 10 inch child's bouncing ball per 6-8 people*One Magic Marker per Table*One round top wastebasket or toy/ pool basketball netCreate your own list in advance of high trust behaviors for leaders. Stephen M. R. Covey has a list of 13 Behaviors for high trust leaders you may useful that are listed in the Coaching Corner article below. This list will help you prepare for the debrief and / or areas you might want to focus your discussion around.
Room Set: Participants should be sitting at round tables with 6 - 8 people at each.
Time Frame: 15-25 minutes
Delivery:
Ask the group: Think of the best boss you ever had. How did he or she gain your trust? Share your stories with your team (or with the person next to you). As a team, discuss the behaviors that generate trust in leaders. Choose the 3 behaviors your team feels are most important for building trust and write them on your ball. Give table teams a time limit. I suggest 6-10 minutes. Keep in mind you will need to allow additional time for shooting balls into hoop and to debrief, so plan accordingly.
After teams finish writing on their balls, ask each team to send a representative to the front of the room:
- to share the 3 behaviors on their ball
- to explain why the team felt they were important
- to shoot their ball into the basket (Allow 1 to 3 shots per team)
As each team representative comes forward to read their ball and shoot, write on a flip chart their top three behaviors. *Note: Hoop shoots should generate enthusiasm and cheering. This helps set the stage for an energetic and engaged discussion.
Debrief:
After the Hoop Shots are complete, take a look at the list of trust behaviors the teams have come up with. For discussion, some questions you might ask include:
- Which behavior is the most important to you?
- Which behavior comes easily to you?
- Which behavior is the most challenging for you as a leader? What could you do differently to improve the way you come across?
- When have you displayed one of these behaviors in a strong positive way and what was the outcome?
Another way to approach the debrief discussion is to pre-target specific behaviors from your (or Covey's) list and ask question about those specific areas.
Enjoy!
