Is it just having fun with bricks?

In short, no!

LEGO Serious Play (LSP) is a facilitated thinking, communication, and problem-solving technique for use with organisations, teams and individuals. It draws on extensive research from the fields of business, organisational development, psychology, and learning.

How does it work?

It’s called ‘hand knowledge’.

Our hands are connected to between 70-80% of our brain cells. Our brains are limited in how much information they can consciously handle at one time, the so-called working memory. But with the help of all the neural connections in our hands we ‘know’ a lot more at any given moment than we think we know.

LSP taps into the human ability to imagine, to describe and to make sense of a situation at hand, to initiate change and improvement, and even to create something radically new. When our hands are used in learning, a complicated process takes place that generates a powerful emotional charge. As a result, not only do thoughts and ideas that are built with our hands tend to be expressed in greater detail, but they are also more easily understood and remembered.

Could LSP be right for you?

First you have to ask yourself:

• Is the challenge complex?
• Is the organisation/team ready for an approach that will allow for several different, but equally valid, answers emerge, before reaching one shared answer?

In addition, for it to be successful, leaders need to sign up to six fundamental beliefs about leadership and organisations:

• Leaders don’t have all the answers
• Organisational success is dependent on hearing all voices in the room
• People naturally want to contribute, be part of something bigger and take ownership
• Allowing each member to contribute and speak out results in a more sustainable business
• All too often, teams work sub optimally leaving knowledge untapped in team members
• We live in a world which can best be described as complex and adaptive

In summary, a good Lego Serious Play context takes a complex problem and a courageous manager.

Next steps

LEGO Serious Play is currently available for private group bookings only. Due to the nature of this workshop, it can only be held in the classroom, either at your workplace or at Happy’s HQ in Aldgate. Get in touch with our friendly team to discuss availability and pricing, and for a free, no obligation chat with your facilitator to see if LEGO Serious Play is right for you.

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