Building Ideas Brick by Brick
LEGO Serious Play exemplifies how a childhood pastime can transform into a serious tool for innovation. Through structured workshops, participants use LEGO bricks to convey ideas, fostering a hands-on, playful approach to problem-solving. The familiar medium unleashes creativity and encourages collaborative thinking, showcasing that sometimes, the best solutions come from the joy of play.
LEGO Serious Play is a facilitated workshop methodology that uses LEGO bricks as a medium for communication, problem-solving, and creative thinking. It is not a traditional game but rather a hands-on, interactive approach to collaborative thinking and decision-making. The methodology was developed by the LEGO Group in collaboration with organizational development experts.
Here are some key aspects of LEGO Serious Play:
- Purpose:
- LEGO Serious Play is designed to enhance creative thinking and problem-solving within teams and organizations. It encourages participants to express their thoughts and ideas through the construction of physical models using LEGO bricks.
- Process:
- The workshop typically begins with a warm-up activity to familiarize participants with using LEGO bricks as a form of expression. Facilitators then guide participants through a series of structured activities and questions, prompting them to build models that represent their thoughts on specific topics.
- Hands-On Communication:
- LEGO bricks serve as a form of „language“ in the workshop. Participants build models to represent concepts, ideas, or challenges they want to communicate. This hands-on approach helps bypass traditional communication barriers and encourages a more direct and creative expression of thoughts.
- Collaboration and Storytelling:
- Participants not only build individual models but also contribute to collaborative builds. This collaborative aspect fosters teamwork and encourages participants to listen and respond to each other’s ideas. The models created tell a story, and participants share the narratives behind their constructions.
- Strategic Planning and Problem-Solving:
- LEGO Serious Play is often used for strategic planning, team building, and problem-solving sessions. It helps teams explore and visualize potential scenarios, identify challenges, and collectively develop innovative solutions.
- Equal Participation:
- One of the strengths of LEGO Serious Play is that it promotes equal participation within a group. Everyone, regardless of their role or position, has an opportunity to contribute and share their perspective through the construction of LEGO models.
- Facilitated Sessions:
- LEGO Serious Play sessions are typically facilitated by trained professionals who guide the participants through the process. The facilitator ensures that the activities align with the workshop objectives and encourages a positive and open atmosphere.
- Applications:
- LEGO Serious Play has been applied in various organizational contexts, including business strategy development, team-building workshops, organizational change initiatives, and innovation sessions.
The key idea behind LEGO Serious Play is that the act of building with LEGO bricks engages different parts of the brain, unlocking creative thinking and enabling deeper insights. It has been embraced by organizations around the world as a playful yet effective method for fostering collaboration and creativity in the workplace.
