GAME #50: The Art of Self-Review

Game	Opener	Team-building
Categories:	Energizer	Review
	Communication	Topical

 Purpose: To lead participants through a self-review session.

 Time Required: 5 to 10 minutes.

 Size of Group: Unlimited.

 Materials Required: None.

 The Exercise in Action: An hour or so into a session, Robert Schwarz, a professional trainer with the International Association of Lions Clubs, Oak Brook, IL, divides learners into pairs for a self-review process. One member of each duo is instructed to pretend that the other has just arrived and needs help in catching up with what was missed. The first person takes five minutes to update the “latecomer” on everything covered thus far and how it can be applied to his or her work. When the person providing the review is through, the listener steps out of character and states any important information that was missed.

Says Schwarz: “Requiring each participant to articulate what he or she has learned not only enhances memory but greatly reduces my burden to periodically review and consolidate, which is now done more meaningfully by each individual.” The exercise, if done occasionally throughout the day, makes an end-of-day review unnecessary, Schwarz says.