Hobbies And Interests
Scavenger Hunts
Arrange for a computer-based scavenger hunt, lasting for between two to four weeks, which encourages the managers in various departments to gain more interest and knowledge about their workplace. Every morning, send out clues by email to the managers to solve or complete. Clues and questions can relate to company history, names of employees' children or current stock availability for a certain product. Include silly work-related riddles, including "How do fish go into business?" (on a small scale) or "For what person do all managers take of their hat?" (the hairdresser). Don't make the tasks too complicated, as to become a nuisance in addition to the leaders' every day workload; make them fun and helpful reminders that leading is more than just pushing for success and figures. Upon successful completion, give out small prizes such as chocolates, books or vouchers as rewards.
Boardroom Activities
During leadership meetings within your company, arrange for a few activities that remind department and local leaders about their responsibilities, and help them evaluate their skills. Place banners on the walls stating various leadership actions, including directing, collaborating, observing, reflecting, explaining or disciplining. During the meeting, ask everyone to pick one of the actions. Have each person tell the group why the action is important, and on what occasions to use it. Alternatively, make a list of the activities and give them out to the leaders, asking them to note how much time they spent on an average day on each of the actions, and how much they want to spend on it. During the exercises, encourage the individuals in the group to assess themselves and their leadership role, and take an active approach to making changes in their behavior, if necessary.
Teambuilding Games
Traditional team-building games, including the "Human Knot" and "All Aboard," encourage leadership skills and instigate a sense of community. Both games are easy to play at work, and require a minimum of space. In "Human Knot," players are entangled by holding hands with other players, and are dependent on leadership guidance and directions to get disentangled without letting go of the hands they hold. In "All Aboard," colleagues assemble on a stretched-out bean bag, where they have to flip over the bag without losing a player through stepping off the area. Team building exercises inspire colleagues to work together for a common goal, and help leaders to discover if there are problems within the team, displayed through lack of co-operation or disregard of advice.
Online and Video Games
Online resources and videogame developers produce a variety of games and activities that can be helpful to develop and enhance leadership skills. Playing games with multiple players helps to develop strategies, team building and problem solving skills, as well as creativity. Players build their characters by giving them certain traits and tools before sending them out to perform tasks by using problem solving skills. The games can be played at work, with teams consisting of managers or entire departments. Popular multiplayer games include "World of Warcraft," "Eve Online" and "Guild Wars."