1. Introduce the activity. State that each of us is different in hundreds of ways. Give each participant a copy of the We Are All Different handout and a pen or pencil.

2. Ask the participants to circle all the words on the sheet that they would use to describe themselves. (Emphasize that the words chosen should reflect their current state, not as they would like to be.) Tell them to take 2 or 3 minutes to complete the task.

3. When the participants have finished, ask them to stand up (taking their sheets with them). Explain that their task is to find someone else in the room who circled the same words as they circled. Give the participants 4 minutes to complete this activity.

4. After 4 minutes, call time and ask, “How many of you found someone who circled the exact same words—no more or no less—as you did?” It is rare that this would occur, so don’t expect any matches. Ask the group:

• Why did this happen?
• What does it tell us?

5. Explain that, in the next part of the activity, the participants’ job is to find someone who has circled none of the same words. Give them 4 minutes to complete the activity.

6. After 4 minutes, call time. Ask, “How many of you found someone who circled none of the same words as you?” Ask the group:

• Why did this happen?
• What does it tell us?

7. Tell participants to sit down. Summarize learning from the activity with questions such as these:

• Who circled the most words? How many?
• Who circled the fewest words? How many?

8. Have the two people who circled the most and the least stand and ask the group to identify ways in which they are the same. Ask, “What can we surmise from this comparison?”

9. Have the two participants sit and resume with these questions:

• What did you learn about yourself and others?
• How do the words people chose reflect what is important to them?
• How do you define diversity? Is it just culture and ethnicity? What else is it?
• Why is it important to have a broad definition of diversity?
• How can you implement something you learned today in the workplace?
• How does what you learned carry over to your personal life?

1. Introduce the activity. Explain the idea that a quilt is made up of multiple squares and that sometimes the squares are similar and sometimes each square is very different. Tell the participants that they will be making their own quilt. Say that the activity they are about to do involves drawing a picture or shapes or writing words that best express who they are as people.

2. Encourage the participants to explore possibilities by asking themselves questions such as: What is important to you? What is unique about you? What is your personal brand? Lead a brief discussion about the values, beliefs, culture, heritage, and traditions of the participants. Suggest that the pictures they create might reflect certain knowledge, hobbies, or special interests. (You may wish to share your own example with the group before beginning the activity.)

3. Distribute one colored piece of paper and colored markers to each participant. Tell everyone to turn the paper in a landscape orientation before beginning work.

4. Allow 10 or 15 minutes for everyone to complete their drawings. Provide a time warning at about 4 minutes.

5. Call time and ask the participants to display their patches on the wall using the masking tape you brought. Invite them to make a pattern on the wall by placing their patches in a pattern to mimic a patchwork quilt. Give them 10 or 15 minutes for this activity.

6. Allow the participants to view and walk around the quilt. Ask them what some of the obvious similarities and differences are among the patches.

7. Ask, “What happens if we change a few of the patches? For example, what if new people join the company or someone leaves?” Illustrate your point by swapping patches with blank white sheets, illustrating the unknowns that others bring to the group. Lead the participants in a discussion around the fact that, initially, these white sheets stick out and don’t conform.

8. To illustrate the impact of change, swap out more quilt pieces with sheets of white paper. Lead the discussion around how the “blanks” impact the rest of the culture. Ask what they might do to get to know others and embrace the diversity.

9. Debrief the activity by asking questions such as:

• How is a quilt like a company?
• What “aha” did you have during this activity?
• What is the relationship between organizational change and diversity? How does one affect the other?
• What will you do more of based on this activity?
• What will you do less of based on this activity?

10. Summarize by adding some of the following observations, if not already made in the previous discussion:

• By upholding corporate values and personally embracing integrity and respect, we make all individuals feel valued. This is fundamental to a culture that embraces diversity.
• The quilt is best when it conforms to a pattern and when all the squares are in place. (You can make a point about the importance of respecting difference, but at the same time developing a rich pattern or culture that is joined together by a common purpose.) Note that this is all a part of “life’s rich pattern or tapestry.”
• No two squares are alike in terms of color or content, but the sum of the parts is greater than the whole. You may think one square is not as artistic as others, but without all the squares the quilt is not complete. If we lose one square or add one square, the quilt changes.
• Some quilt squares are similar, creating bonding points; others are different, creating celebration points.
• Note that there is always room for more patches.

1. Explain that you will read two options from your list of opposite phrases and words. The first phrase or word is Option A and the second word or phrase is Option B. Tell the participants that they must select between the options to determine which is most suitable for them.

2. Ask the participants to stand.

3. Explain that when the first pair of options is read, each person should move quickly to the corresponding area (A or B) based on how closely they identify with it or believe in the option stated.

4. Read the first pair of options as examples before beginning the activity. Use these two examples:

• “Go to A if you have traveled out of the country; go to B if you have never left the country.”
• “If you prefer chocolate, move to A; if you prefer vanilla, move to B.”

5. Step up the pace of the activity by offering some innocuous examples, such as

• “If you would rather vacation in the mountains, move to A; if you prefer the ocean, move to B.”
• “If you would rather read fiction, move to A; if you prefer nonfiction, move to B.”

6. Ask the participants to notice who else is in their group and then to scan the other group and take note of those who made a different choice.

7. Increase the tension by asking questions about current events or ethics or another topic that may interest the participants. Begin to relate the choices to the reasons you are doing this activity. Have you ever had a speeding ticket or not? Are you in favor of the recent legislation that was passed or not? Do you support decision A or decision B made by our team? Remember to have participants take note of who else is in their group and to scan the other group and notice who made a different choice.

8. Encourage participants to silently note their own thoughts and feelings during the activity.

9. Continue the activity and announce the pairs as many times as you believe are required to make the point.

10. Debrief while the participants remain in the last groups they chose. Debrief around your specific goals:

• What did you observe during this activity?
• What did you learn about this group and its members?
• As we increased the level of self-disclosure, how did you feel as the options became increasingly personal?
• If anyone stood between options, allow that person to explain his or her inability to commit fully to either A or B. If some ultimately refused to select, ask why.
• We were only making a selection between two options. What caused the increased tension?
• Where do our intense feelings and opinions come from?
• What might you consider in order to understand someone else’s choices?
• What does this activity say about all of us?
• What might you do differently as a result of what happened here today?

1. Ask the participants to stand and form eight equal subgroups and to move away from each of the other subgroups.

2. Make this statement: “In a few moments, you will have the opportunity to participate in a networking exercise with your colleagues. When I say, ‘go’ you will circulate around the room and meet as many people as you would like. While you are meeting them, you will behave appropriately for your culture. I am going to move to each of your groups and tell you about your group’s cultural norms.”

3. Circulate to each group and quietly assign one of the listed cultural characteristics to each group. Examples of interesting cultural characteristics you could use include:

• No eye contact
• Touchy feely/huggy
• Wait 7 seconds before speaking
• Cannot show a full “frontal” stance when meeting people (side stance only)
• Repeat their own or the person’s name five or six times
• Speak very softly (or slowly, or loudly)
• Squat or sit each time they meet someone
• Repeat everything the other person says before saying something else

4. After all of the groups have been assigned their cultural norms, begin the networking activity. Allow participants to circulate and network until you feel the room begin to “lose energy” (3 to 5 minutes).

5. Stop the activity.

6. Ask groups to stand in one large combined circle, near their original cultural subgroup teammates.

7. Explain that the point of the activity is not to guess the assigned behavior of the other teams. Instead tell the participants to use “feeling words” that describe how they felt about those they met. After a few comments are made (the comments may at first be guarded or not completely honest), ask about anything that they are leaving out. Note: Reinforce that each team behaved appropriately for its assigned culture.

8. Continue taking comments from each of the participants in the circle. You will likely hear a number of negative, loaded words such as “creepy,” “molesters,” “slow,” “dumb,” “sneaky,” and so forth.

9. Once these negative feelings have surfaced, ask each subgroup to state its assigned cultural behavior characteristic. Ask whether the participants have ever experienced any of these cultural norms before (some will admit they have). Ask what the positive aspect of each of these norms might be. For example, someone repeating names again and again might be using a technique for remembering the other person’s name.

10. Use this discussion to segue into your topic.

1. Explain that this is an activity that allows participants an opportunity to be advice columnists.

2. Form three to five small groups of learners and distribute the Dear Generation Genius handout to each person. Then distribute a set of A, B, C, and D cards to each team, remembering that each team should have its own color set. To increase esprit de corps, you can ask the participants to take 4 or 5 minutes to choose a team name based on the color of their cards. Offer some examples, such as the Green Hornets, the Red Raiders, the Blazing Blues.

3. Post the team names on a flip chart and leave enough room so that you can record scores for correct responses in the activity to follow.

4. Introduce the activity by asking something like, “Have you ever wanted to be an advice columnist or thought you’d make a good one? Now is your chance to try out your skills.” Explain that, after you read each question aloud, the teams will have 2 minutes to discuss the four answers that appear on the handout you gave them. The team’s job is to decide which answer is the incorrect one.

5. After you read the question from the handout, allow about 2 minutes for discussion and then announce the end of the allowed time.

6. Explain that each team will provide its responses using their response cards. Say something like, “When I count to three, hold up the letter that represents your team’s answer, A, B, C, or D.’”

7. If all teams agree on an answer, record one point for each, and move on to the next question. However, if there is disagreement, call on members from different teams and ask them to share their team’s thinking about the choices they made. Manage the discussion, gently guiding everyone to the correct response. Once the discussion has come to a conclusion, record points for the teams that chose the correct answer. Occasionally, a discussion may ensue about real-life issues brought up by the question. You may wish to take a short detour to facilitate.

8. The correct responses are listed here. Remember, learners should choose the action that should not be taken.

• 1. d
• 2. a
• 3. c
• 4. d
• 5. c
• 6. a
• 7. d
• 8. c
• 9. d
• 10. a

9. After all ten questions have been answered and discussed, count up the points and award prizes to the team(s) who won or to everyone “for working so hard.”

10. End the activity by stating that in each case they identified the wrong answer, that is, the action that should not be taken. State that the good news is that if they ever face any of the situations discussed, they will know three successful actions to take.

1. As a middle-aged supervisor, I sometimes hear complaints from our customers that our youngest employees treat them disrespectfully. I know it’s not really disrespect, but how can I get these eager young employees to be less informal?

2. I’m in my late twenties, in my first management position. I was just promoted and now will have to supervise four people who are among my best friends. We’re used to doing things together at and after work. I want to keep them as buddies, but I also need to maintain my authority. Can I do both?

3. I have a couple of eager young employees who seem to be “go-getters.” I’ve heard that “you don’t lead this generation by example, you lead by interaction.” I know I should provide frequent feedback, but what else can I do to keep them engaged?

4. I’m a traditionalist trying to fire up my troops with heartfelt “can do” pep talks. My middle-aged employees pay attention, but the younger kids just look bored or embarrassed by my attempts at inspirational “preaching.” What am I doing wrong?

5. My boss insists that everyone rotate to new jobs within the department to “keep us fresh.” Trouble is, I have three older employees who refuse to go along with it. They feel they’re doing a great job in their present roles and think it will only make our department less effective if everyone has to change jobs. How can I handle their resistance?

6. I hear all this talk about what young employees want, but what about what I want? How can I get them to deliver performance, instead of spending time reading I.M. and blogs all day?

7. I’m a thirty-year-old woman and I manage most of my employees pretty well. Most are about my age and we get along well. However, I have one employee in a remote location who has been with the company forty years. I send him emails two or three times a week, but when I actually go visit him (once a month), he patronizes me, as if I’m some Brownie Scout! How can I gain credibility with him?

8. My younger employees (in their twenties and thirties) seem to want direction, but when I provide it, they accuse me of “micro-managing.” What can I do?

9. I’m in my early twenties and started working here two months ago. Already, I have lots of new ideas to bring this company out of the Stone Age, but these managers don’t want to make any changes! How can I get them to consider my ideas or do things my way?

10. I have some sharp employees in their thirties that I don’t want to lose. I can’t promise them big promotions or expensive perks, so what can I do to retain them?