The other day I found myself in a corporate conference room, for the first time in years. There was a digital projector of course. And speakers for a multi media experience. That’s pretty normal. What surprised me was the paper mounted on the wall, and the variety of tape types, Post-It® Notes, scissors, and markers available for Conference attendees to write down their thoughts, and make them known to the others in the room. This tool set was replicated in several baskets like this all around the room.
It used to be that conference rooms were for top-down announcements. This looks like a set up for bottom-up, or peer-to-peer relationships, for solving problems. And coming to decisions. With Ivy’s recent appearance on Gordon’s podcast, we should remember that these are also magical tools – if we recall that Magic is “the art of changing consciousness in accordance with will.” They’re no less magical tools than
There’s very little you can do in a top-down conference except take notes. Sometimes that’s not even a good idea. But in a peer-to-peer setting or a bottom-up conference, you have a lot of power and potential. The trick is to learn how to use these tools.
And I recommend Gamestorming, by Sunni Brown and Dave Gray, as the grimoire par excellence for turning these tools to your advantage in the workplace. So when you see a basket like this, sit up and take notice. You’re now in a position to make the magic happen for yourself, and your co-workers. But you have to see these tools in the right light.
