steelcase blog

Need for Play…

… when I was growing up play was something I did after my homework was done, and I recall repeating my parent’s rules to my own kids.  Play was positioned as a treat, a reward, for getting the important; the serious stuff done.  But today, much has been written about the fact we had it all wrong,… play is a critical component of serious work, and an ingredient in producing really powerful results.  The basis for much of this writing is the fact that play excites that part of the brain, the right-side and specifically the right frontal lobe, which contributes to an understanding of big picture concepts and ideas.  Just think about it, in which situation are there more variables to bring into contextual alignment in rapid fashion; when solving a math problem, like planning a budget, or in playing a video game like Gears of War…?  Neither has one right answer, so the left brain still needs to do some work.  And even a budget involves some creativity.  But solving for constantly changing situations, discerning patterns and drawing connections, all required in play,… is a much more demanding mental activity.

The outcome of this activity called play, is new thinking.  If you play as a group, in addition to new ideas, you can also get alignment with others.  LEGO has built a service business around the use of play, called SeriousPlay.  Their website defines SeriousPlay as a “radical, innovative experiential process designed to enhance business performance.”  Later they claim the process “deepens group understanding, sharpens insight,… and participants come away with increased confidence, more committed to shared/common goals.”  Wouldn’t that be a treat, if every team meeting ended with such a shared commitment…?  I suggest the magic occurs because play moves people to an emotional level of involvement with others, a much deeper bond than an intellectual understanding gets you.  And the result is a group commitment, that every individual takes personally.

Daniel Pink, the author of Free Agent Nation and his new book A Whole New Mind,… positions ‘play’ as one of the six key ‘high-touch’ senses required for survival in the Conceptual Age, an economy built on the inventive, empathetic, big-picture capabilities of a very different kind of mind.  A mind with a network of one quadrillion (1 followed by 15 zeros) connections, that guides how we think and act.  One bit of history that Pink reflects on, is that up until the mid 20th century most scientists believed the right brain to be inferior and not really needed.  Roger Sperry’s work at Cal Tech turned that belief upside down.  He agreed the right brain was different than the left brain,… but far from being inferior or subordinate to the left brain, the right brain was indeed superior when performing ‘certain’ mental tasks.  The important point is that both sides of the mind are important in guiding/reacting to activities and understanding, they need each other.  But since each side takes a different approach to thinking,… the left more sequential, analytic, literal; the right more simultaneous, synthetic, metaphorical,… Daniel Pink concludes that the changes happening in society will increasingly demand the right brain approach.  I agree with him.

Back to play.  Neuroscientists also believe that the right hemisphere plays an essential role in understanding and appreciating humor.  Humor often involves incongruity, the surprise of the punch line.  It causes one to place situations in context, and to create alignment out of differing perspectives, all in real time.  These are the same attributes needed for effective ideation and brainstorming in team sessions; playfulness, expressiveness, storytelling, yes even laughter.  Play as an effective activity in work, business and well-being is growing in importance.  Can we play…?

That Sounds Interesting…

… it’s that internal voice responding to auditory signals that have captured my attention.  Not everything does, catch my attention that is,… a lot of it is just there, as if an audio backchannel.  But discerning the good from the bad is getting more and more difficult, due to the shear number and volume level of sounds our mind processes on a daily basis.  A certain amount of the ‘good stuff’ we create through our individual iPod, MP3, Bose stereo, surround-sound TV lifestyle.  But even when it is something we have selected, sometimes we are listening and other times not.  I know I do.  Put on a head set and crank up the sound,… but not because I’m listening to the music.  It’s because it helps me concentrate on what I really want to be attentive to.  Not only does it block out much of the ‘noise’ around me; it’s as if it tricks my mind into focusing even more intently, to not let the music through.

And there is no more challenging place to concentrate than in today’s office (whether outside or inside a cubicle).  Office sounds are multiplying, triggered by the use of cell phones, personal speakers, desktop video, etc.  I’ve heard this problem referred to as today’s ‘second hand smoke’.  The initial promise years ago was that general masking systems (also referred to as ‘white noise’) would be ‘the’ answer.  And to some extent, with improvements in its basic technology it is much better,… certainly better than the echo-like silence you have without it.  It has its problems though.  Within any work group you’re sure to find those that think the ‘white noise’ is much too loud (some say the ringing it creates in their ears is actually painful) and others who would prefer it be dialed-up.  A better solution would be one that could be set by the user within ‘zones’ on a floor, so the masking over your work area is tailored to your liking.  Or better yet, a zoned system that dynamically adjusts based on its electronics sensing presence (number of people) and the amount of sound being generated,… think of it as room-sized noise cancelling headphones.

I’ve concluded that some office noise, even beyond white noise, is better than no noise at all.  Bill Freund, an entrepreneur, thinks so as well, as he offers a CD called Thriving Office,… that is filled with office background noise (ringing tones, file cabinets closing, general conversations, etc.).  It has two tracks; one titled “Busy” and the other title -- you guessed it – “Very Busy” (a lot more noise I guess).  His inspiration came from working at home, and not wanting the people calling him to know that.  So the idea is that you could turn this CD on when a phone call came in, and the caller would assume they are calling ‘the office’.  And it worked.  He also heard from his customers that many keep the CD on all the time, because it helps them focus.  This background ‘buzz’ keeps their energy up and mind in the game,… and I agree (for the reason I mentioned above).

The key distinction between sounds that are disruptive and sounds that are productive is their intelligibility – do your senses pick up something that grabs your attention or not…?  If your mind hears something that you recognize, and which peaks your curiosity, then your concentration shifts,… from what you were working on to trying to decipher and process what you just heard.  That’s why verbal conversations are some of the most disruptive.  You hear names, keywords, or phrases that draw you in (even though you’re generally not supposed to be listening in),… and your attention shifts.  Then once you decide it’s not that important, or the conversation ends, it takes some time to get back in the ‘flow’ (that deep, focused state).  The only option you have if there is too much conversation around you, is to seek a space that is free of such interruptions.  Hopefully your office has a place like this (maybe the café, maybe a conference room, maybe smaller spaces we call enclaves or retreats),… and if not, tell your facilities group you need more quiet zones.

So the technologies will continue to improve.  Some will capture sound so it doesn’t find it’s way to another’s ears,… and some will create sound to cancel out unwanted sounds.  In either case, the objective is to create a balance.  Add productive sounds that create focus, and subtract disruptive sounds that destroy focus.  Until the technologies catch up, we can all help the cause by being conscious of those around us,… and regulating our volume appropriately.  Instead of forcing someone else to walk away to find a quiet space, get up and walk away and leave the quiet behind.  Sound about right…?