Experiential Learning
Individual and group exercises

"I don't want to get involved."

We've all heard of or experienced situations when someone needed help, there were people all around, and no one wanted to get involved.

Very often the same phenomenon occurs at business meetings, conferences and seminars. Some people would rather sit on the sidelines as spectators and watch the "show" rather than really getting involved in the meeting. Unfortunately, these individuals generally come away with very little. They may have been exposed to tremendous life-changing information and motivational content, but because they didn't get involved, they didn't grow from the experience.

No more hiding in the crowd

Buford P. Fuddwhacker is not a lecturer. He gets people involved. And in addition to using madcap humor, karaoke and on-stage stunts, he involves everyone in the group in the learning process through the use of individual and group exercises.

In many of his programs, Buford calls on his alter-ego, Roger Reece to run portions of the meetings, bringing a more serious tone and deeper level of teaching. Roger also makes extensive use of exercises in his sessions. The intention of motivational messages and training programs is to move people to action. If they leave the room exactly as they entered it and don't change their behavior, the program was of little value.

Whether the intention of the program is to motivate or teach new skills and habits, Fuddwhacker seminars, training and team building programs and keynotes accomplish the goal because they get people involved.

Action exercises

People need to get up out of their seats and move around. Buford and Roger's action exercises accomplish that purpose, but more importantly, they are great teaching tools. By asking members of the group to act out various role-plays and situations, participants learn about themselves in surprising profound ways. Action exercises are also a great way to create an atmosphere of interaction and fun, allowing people to get to know each other in new and interesting circumstances.

One-on-one dyads

One of the most effective tools for learning and thought-provoking interaction is the dyad. Dyad exercises involve two people, paired up to interact based on a set of instructions.

Some dyads involve discussing specific issues or questions.

In other cases, dyads may involve role play, or what-if scenarios in which each person is given instructions and guidelines. Often, the scenarios are "loaded" in order to invoke surprising responses and reactions.

In all cases, dyads are a great tool for self-discovery and one-on-one interaction. They give each person the opportunity to exchange opinions, thoughts and ideas with someone else, often providing a far greater learning experience than listening to someone behind a podium.

Group discussions, games and activities

Group exercises provide an opportunity to initiate lively and provocative discussions. Buford and Roger also use them to foster situations in which all kinds of group dynamics are experienced. Group behaviors, roles, personalities and motives are exhibited in a fun and entertaining, non-threatening environment.

These exercises may take only a few minutes, or may last up to an hour in the case of more complex learning games, used in one and two-day seminars. Participants may not understand the point of the exercise when they begin, but it always ties back to a specific point Buford or Roger is making. Group exercises are always followed by a debriefing during which individuals have the opportunity to share what they experienced with the whole group. Often the insights and discoveries that come through group exercises are the most memorable and useful experiences of the entire seminar or meeting.

Written exercises

Written are generally brief, but are an excellent means of causing each individual to reflect on their own values, opinions, beliefs and ideas. Buford and Roger use these exercises, generally found in the Fuddwhacker workbooks, to get participants to stop and think about the message being delivered

For each person, written exercises help answer the question "what does all this mean for me?" These are generally individual exercises, but sometimes they are done in groups, where the group arrives at concensus and a "scribe" writes down the results.

Written exercises have an added value in that each participant takes them home after the seminar or meeting. In goal-setting exercises for example, the written goals can be an invaluable tool for the future. In sales seminars, participants develop specific key-account strategies, telephone scripts and work plans. In time management seminars, detailed programs for scheduling work and personal time.

Just plain fun

Buford and Roger always select the right exercises for each keynote, seminar, training class or team building program. Sometimes the exercises are simply designed to break the ice and to get people up out of their seats, so they can laugh at themselves. In other cases their purpose is to teach new ideas and skills. In every case, Fuddwhacker exercises are just plain fun!

Contact Buford right now, and book him for your next meeting or conference and make it a truly memorable and motivating experience.