Leading Edge: Having a Blast While Working!
Hands-down, The Leadership Game—a tool exclusive to those on the John Maxwell Team—is my favorite resource to use when asked to help a team grow together, challenge itself, and plan for the future as a whole team. Why?
What The Leadership Game Is
The Leadership Game is fun! Most participants walk into the room unsure of what to expect other than another training or another meeting. When they walk in and see the cards all laid out, a die, and a timer, they get excited! More than once, someone has said, “Oh wow! This doesn’t look like anything else we’ve done together. It should be fun!”
The Leadership Game is interactive! Like any game, everyone plays. For this one, there are questions ranging from personal to professional, from challenges to successes, from looking back to looking ahead. It requires that everyone participates, and because of that, often voices that are overlooked or seldom heard from are at the table for the first time—and everyone notices. Even better? Everyone benefits when all voices are heard!
The Leadership Game is informative! Because of the nature of the questions—all drawn from six of John Maxwell’s most popular books—the game teaches everyone as it’s being played. One of the best features is that each card tells you which book and chapter it comes from, so when a team or individual is particularly challenged by a question or needs to dig deeper with it, they know where to go to find more to help them.
Facilitating The Leadership Game is always exciting for me because I get to see people come into a space really unsure of what is about to happen and see them walk out with a renewed sense of purpose and a clearer path forward for both themselves and their organization.
Experiences with The Leadership Game
One time I facilitated for a high school leadership team and within the span of the game, the head football coach and dean—a tough guy, of course—heard for the first time someone tell him “thank you” for something he did four years earlier—four years! He gently wiped away tears as they fell and said that he never knew that person even noticed.
Another time, as I was facilitating for a group of daycare teachers and the owner, it became evident that there was some frustration and concern about how some were being treated and about the second campus opening up. Within the timeframe of the game, however, these professionals laughed together, cried together, and, together, came up with a plan to make sure everyone’s voice was heard when decisions were being made and then created a successful plan to expand to the second location.
What You Will Get from Playing The Leadership Game
The Leadership Game is more than a fun time—it is a powerful couple of hours that catches people off guard with how much growth is possible in such a short amount of time. People rarely, if ever, check their phones or even glance at the clock. The questions make you think, reflect, be honest, and plan for the future. At the end, you leave feeling refreshed and ready for going after your own and your company’s next big goal. If you have the opportunity to play it, don’t hesitate! It will be among the best two hours you’ve had at work—and the best part is it won’t feel like work at all.
BIO:
Michael Gueltig, Jr., is a certified speaker, trainer, and coach with the John Maxwell Team. He is a father of two, husband of one, and lover of many things (like reading, writing, teaching, and chocolate, to name a few). He leads virtual mastermind groups and facilitates leadership development programs for schools and businesses. He currently lives in Alexandria, VA and works as an instructional coach for D.C. Public Schools.