UberNoggin

I’ve just finished reading Seth Godin’s Tribes amidst countless news stories with predictions for the new year and Twitters of friend’s resolutions. The end of December always rouses in us that urge to make change, to start something new, to somehow make the new year better than the last. Personally, I don’t make resolutions but I do try to pause and reflect to be sure that my trajectory is what I want it to be and the end of the year seems a good time to do it.

Reading Tribes (a great book btw) has got me thinking about leadership. Most of us let our brains wander to politics or management when we think about leadership but it doesn’t have to be that big. You can be a leader in your own life, in your family, or among your friends. It doesn’t have to be formal or announced. But it does have to be deliberate.

I think about my kids playing “Follow the Leader.” The game doesn’t work if the one in front doesn’t move, doesn’t head off in some direction. It also doesn’t work if no one is willing to follow which is more often the case with our kids who seem to wander off from one another and make their own paths. What can I say? Apparently we’re raising four little iconoclasts.

What I do know is that leadership requires passion. You have to really want to see a change even if it’s a small one. We have to care about an idea or no one else will join us. The great leaders I’ve known have had infectious passion for their causes and it spreads to those around them who then pass it on to others.

So, if you do nothing else new in 2009, will you lead? Is there an idea you care about that you want to share? A change you can make that will make others want to follow suit? How will you inspire those around you with your example? How will you transform your ideas of “Gee I wish more people…” or “I really think *blank* is important” into action?

We can all lead. In little ways every day we can effect change around us. For good and for bad.

How will you lead in 2009?

I’m normally super prompt about responding to emails, tweets, SL messages etc but I’ll be much slower for the next week or so. I’m having surgery tomorrow that will plant me on the couch playing a bit of Wii Animal Crossing for about ten days.

See you all back here and on all the other social streams in a week or two. As Garrison says…”Be well, do good work, and keep in touch.”

It’s not always easy to see how Second Life can be useful for training. In many cases it’s just not the best tool for the job but sometimes a training need just matches perfectly. Kelley Executive has a great face to face training program to help companies understand the differences in generational management needs. In their current sessions, participants learn how each generation’s views on management, technology, employer feedback etc can be different and how to work around those differences to leverage strengths. But we wanted to be able to offer the training to geographically disparate groups while maintaining the interactivity so I translated it into a SL experience.

Introducing the Work Style Totem Activity. Participants get a copy of the totem (as seen above) which asks eight questions related to their preferences for management, collaboration, and technology in the workplace. Darker colors represent more traditional views; paler colors match Millenial workstyles. After each participant had completed their totem the group has an easy to understand visual representation of their preferences and a great discussion ensues.

It’s a simple activity. The totem was easy to build. And yet, the delivery method (ie in SL) allows for groups from all over the world to come together and participate in the session. It works because it focuses on the strengths of the SL platform while maintaining the interactivity crucial to the training.

Have you translated a F2F activity into SL? Did it work? Tell us about it!