Purpose: To show new employees how unfamiliarity with a task or job can be overcome.

 Time Required: 10 to 15 minutes.

 Size of Group: Unlimited.

 Materials Required: Writing materials for each participant.

 The Exercise in Action: Susan Boyd, director of corporate support and development at PC Concepts, Wayne, PA, asks participants to write a word related to the course topic. She times one person to see how long this takes.

She asks participants to switch to their other hand and write the word again. Boyd times the same person to get a comparative example. Boyd observes the following reactions: expressions such as, “You’ve got to be kidding!” nervous laughter, hesitance to start, reluctance to try, attempts to write with the other hand then switching back to their writing hand, deeper concentration, and close attention to the pen and the word being formed.

Talk about the results. Typically, writing the word takes about four to six seconds the first time, and about twice as long with the other hand. Boyd asks the class why it took so long the second time.

Analyze the quality of the second writing sample. Obviously, it will look worse than the first sample.

Relate the exercise to learning. Boyd tells the participants that if they lost the use of their writing hand, what they just experienced would happen over the first two or three weeks as they started to learn how to write with their other hand. By the fourth week, they would see improvement in the time and quality of their writing. By the end of four to six months, they would have assimilated the new skill.

In conclusion, Boyd tells participants that the next two or three weeks will be the hardest, because doing tasks with a new technique will seem to take more time, require more effort, and still might not meet their quality standards. She encourages them to hang in there, because once they get past the three-week hurdle, they will see a tremendous improvement in both time and quality as the new learning is integrated into their daily routines.