Unusual business training. What do you need to play

Would you like to visit with your growing child one of the most unusual and interesting museums in Hamburg, which is called "Dialogue in the Dark"? In fact, it is rather a social event, because all the guides in the museum are… blind. "Dialogue in the Dark" is one of the most popular museums in the city, so be sure to visit it with your child. Perhaps, after this excursion, he will be able to think about something serious ...

How is the Hamburg Museum "Dialogue in the Dark" different from most of its "brothers"? First of all, the fact that it does not contain a single more or less valuable exhibit. Moreover, there is not a single thing here that rests under museum glass. In the first hall you will be met by pitch darkness and ... a personal blind guide. It is on his voice that you have to navigate in rooms without light. Just think that you have to spend a short time in the dark, and these people live their whole lives like this!

To make it easier for you and your child to follow your guide, you will receive a thin white stick at the entrance - a constant companion of blind people on the streets of European cities.

During the hour and a half that this unusual tour lasts, museum guests get to know their guide and listen to his interesting stories. You will move from hall to hall, you will still be accompanied by absolute darkness and the unobtrusive voice of a blind guide, who for a while has become a real guide.

In each room, a new era of development of Hamburg awaits you, you will get acquainted with its main signs by touch. So, at the local vegetable market, you can feel the poured fruits and ripe vegetables, and your nose will feel all the charm of fragrant oriental spices or coffee. In another room, a mysterious forest will be waiting for you, rustling with fallen leaves and murmuring with wild streams. And there is a room where you will sit in the boat and feel the pleasant coolness of the river spray on your face.

Do not forget to listen carefully to your guide, he will tell you where there are treacherous steps that you can trip on, sharp corners that tear clothes, and small holes.

This fascinating journey to the land of the blind ends with an invariable conversation with the guide. You can ask him any questions that interest you, including asking about his own life: how a person became blind, how he lives in a constant world of darkness, and much more. Local blind guides never evade the answer, they always tell honestly and frankly even about the most delicate.

By the way, if you get hungry, you can look into the cafe at the museum, where even the waiters are blind. For this reason, the cafe will not offer you hot meals, but you can always eat a salad, a pie and drink a glass of soda or juice. By the way, the process of eating also takes place in complete darkness.

A trip to the Dialogue in the Dark Museum can be seen not only as an attraction, but also as a great opportunity to develop in yourself and your child a sense of tolerance and understanding of other people who are physically limited.

— Tobias, you managed to turn the limitations of blind people into advantages. Tell me, is your project a business or a charity?

— The point of the Dialogues in the Dark training is not to talk about people who cannot see. Our idea is that these are standard trainings, but we involve the blind as trainers, as they do this work best and orient themselves perfectly even in complete darkness. The program was developed by Andreas Heinecke, who launched it in more than 30 countries. "Dialogues in the Dark" is the first project in the world that combines the employment of blind people with a business approach. Our project is engaged in social entrepreneurship, which should not be confused with charity.

— What is the difference?

— We do not have sponsors, we spend the money that we earn on the project. Charity, philanthropy and social entrepreneurship are three different things. Charity - you were given money, and you helped someone, and usually this help is provided only for a short period of time. Philanthropy - you have created a socially oriented project that exists on the money of sponsors on a long-term basis. Social entrepreneurship is a special type of activity, its meaning is that we enter the market with our project and look for those who are ready to buy our product. This is a special type of business. We invest all our profits in the development of the project.

Business training "Dialogues in the dark"
Photo courtesy of Marketcompass LLC

How is your training going?

For us, darkness is a completely non-standard situation, but for a blind person it is a common one. All communications during the training are voice. A blind trainer gives and checks tasks, prompts and directs participants. The training lasts 3-8 hours, it has two main parts. About two hours people are in the dark, the rest of the time is taken up by individual and group reflection of the participants, drawing conclusions for their practical activities. Globally, of course, this is not about career growth, but about meeting with oneself.

- In Russia, there are many prejudices associated with disability. People are afraid to discuss this topic, "so as not to call."

— Not only in Russia. Everywhere. What do you think is the percentage of people who were born blind? 2%, and all the rest lost their sight as a result of illness, accident or because of their age. This statistic is astonishing. People are beginning to understand that no one is immune from anything.

— And what are your requirements for blind employees when applying for a job?

- The main thing is qualifications, experience in such a position. We need people who can communicate on an equal footing with our clients, mainly managers from various companies. Requires a college degree and the business qualities required of a good business mentor. If an employee speaks a foreign language, he can go to another country for an internship.

"Dialogues in the Dark": participants and trainers
Photo courtesy of Marketcompass LLC

— How to turn an idea into a successful business project? Share the recipe.

“We need an idea and an idea of ​​how to build all the processes. Secondly, you must have a business plan and an understanding of how it can be monetized. And third, you need a team. And you also need to be patient. Most likely, the reality will be different from your business plan.

Is this situation only in our country?

- The first years of "Dialogues in the Dark" did not bring profit. Nowhere, not only in Russia. Sometimes I wonder how we survived? In Russia today, I see a positive trend, a large number of trainings have been booked recently. We plan to launch "Dialogues in Silence" with the participation of people with a hearing impairment, "Dialogues with Time" with trainers aged 70-92 talking about what age brings us.

Why do you keep doing this?

You won't earn all the money. When I build another business, including a social one, I get positive emotions and grow as a person. And I also see noticeable results from attending trainings, including in Russia. This enthralls me. This is the reward.

December 11 at the Geological Museum. V. I. Vernadsky held the action "Dialogues in the Dark". Deputies of the State Duma, representatives of government agencies and the media, public figures in total darkness under the guidance of professional blind trainers performed various tasks.

The purpose of the action "Dialogues in the Dark" is to give sighted people the opportunity to feel the world around them without seeing it - without light. The organizers of the action (in Russia it is the Just Russia party together with the international organization Dialogues In The Dark and the leading Internet portal for people with disabilities dislife.ru) believe that the experience gained will help the sighted better understand the needs of the blind. Another important goal is to draw the maximum attention of the authorities and the public to the problems of the visually impaired.

At the entrance, the protesters were handed canes, after which they entered a completely dark room. By touch, by voices, or by touching the back of the person walking in front, it was necessary to find a table and chairs. The participants coped with the task and sat down in groups of six around the round table.

Five minutes passed.

What do you feel? - the coach addressed the participants.

I am calm, abstracted from everything ...

I feel uncomfortable and scared.

As if a cloud covered the light.

Warms the thought that there are people nearby.

It's dark all around. Voices are heard from different corners of the room. It calms the thought that you are sitting at the table, feeling the support, and you feel, you hear people nearby. It's only been a few minutes. And they, blind people, live in this darkness not for minutes, but for hours, days and years.

Each person reacts to darkness differently, the trainer notes. - For some, this is stress, fear, others think that they are in weightlessness, others feel calm, others do not experience fear of blindness. Only one percent of the participants cannot bear the darkness at all. In any case, at the training you can learn a lot about yourself.

This situation pushes people to dialogue, gives them the opportunity to feel in the conditions of people with disabilities, to feel their value and appreciate the help received from blind people.

Feelings are amazing. But you understand that in two hours the light will turn on, and you will return to normal life. And blind people always live like that. And everyone who was with me in the dark said that after such a training, when they saw a person with a cane, they would come up and ask if he needed any help, - said the chairman of the Just Russia party. Sergei Mironov.

While completing the tasks of the coach, we enjoyed small successes - for example, when we received a talking clock with the wrong time, we were able to set the exact Moscow time by finding the correct button. How does it feel to feel the time, never in your life seeing the hands of a clock? In the light of day, this is a matter of one second. In the dark - a whole strategy. Or - to count the money, by touch determining the size of the coins, in order to simply buy bread in the store.

According to the trainer, a person receives 75% of information through eye contact, visual vision. One of the tasks was tea drinking in the dark: together, in a group of six people, participants were able to organize tea without seeing a hot kettle, a cup into which coffee or tea is poured.

And it is important to understand how important for blind people is the support of others, the warmth of a person nearby.

It became clear how hard it is today for such people to be without help, protection and support, without our warmth, - said the State Duma deputy Alla Kuzmina.- Today I realized for myself what an accessible environment is. Wherever a person is, he should be comfortable. And this imposes on us, on legislators, on the state, a special responsibility for creating such living conditions for all people. I consider it my duty.

What is absolute darkness? How to communicate and solve simple, at first glance, tasks, if the “look” is just missing? How to overcome stress and get involved in the work, because the success of the team depends on it? It’s not enough to come up with a brilliant idea, you also need to learn how to listen and hear ... or is it still speaking and doing? By the way, in the dark (suddenly!) It will turn out that it is very difficult to accurately formulate thoughts, but it is impossible to understand what is meant, and even more so to realize what was planned ... Or is it still possible? .. To collect a rainbow if everyone suddenly began colorblind? Count the money, which, naturally, does not smell? Build a bridge for a car to drive over... "Dialogue in the Dark" is not only a valuable teambuilding, but also a kilogram of "soft" skills (so necessary for any team).

Purpose of the game

Development of "soft" skills.

Game Features:

This training is based on a patented technology invented in Germany. The tasks that the participants perform in the dark are developed by psychologists, business coaches of international level. For 30 years, similar team building events have been held all over the world, and Dialogue in the Dark has been operating in Moscow for 6 years. Before each game, in the room where the action will take place, a group of specialists creates absolute, reference darkness, where there is absolutely no light. All trainers and moderators of the training are blind, they remember all the participants, determine by their votes who showed themselves during the tests, and on reflection they give out a complete psychological portrait of the team. The issue of safety is also taken seriously here: each team is accompanied by a coach who controls the situation, and there is backup lighting in case of unforeseen circumstances. The team building organizer is ready to adapt to the needs of clients: 1). changing the task of the training (effective communication, development of leadership skills, teamwork efficiency, etc.); 2). by changing the duration of the training and the number of modules in the dark; 3). involving an external coach, incl. client's corporate trainer; 4). playing away games at other venues

What do you need to play

Ready to conquer the dark

Special conditions

Can be held at any site. 1. area of ​​the premises from 60 to 250 sq. m.; 2. The organizer of the game must personally inspect the premises offered for the training. 3. important! Once the room is prepared for the event in the dark, it cannot be used for other purposes until the end of the training. 4. an additional room for trainers, where they can change clothes and prepare props during the training.

Game mechanics:

Participants leave all luminous things in lockers - mobile phones, computers and watches. The same applies to bags, briefcases and other things that participants can bring with them - hands must be absolutely free! After that, the instructors will hold a preliminary briefing and introduce the rules. The team building itself consists of a "dark" and a "light" module. First, the players are immersed in darkness, in which they spend 2 hours. Here they are divided into teams, after which they go through a chain of various tests, including the development of creative thinking. But the main thing here is "soft" skills (active listening, leadership qualities, the ability to negotiate, overcoming stress, working in a non-standard situation, assessing the counterparty (his psychological, emotional state). For example, participants receive parts of the rainbow and they need to agree on the correct sequence details. There is no winning team here, no need to compete, you need to negotiate. In the final - a "light" training module. The light turns on in the room, and everyone sees the results of their work. An analysis of the experience gained is carried out within an hour.

Activity examples