Can you imagine being one of the most creative collaborators in the company, with complex skills and capable of solving all kinds of problems? This scenario could be yours if you are willing to believe that games, video games and exclusive spaces for sharing are the key.
The most recent ManpowerGroup study revealed that 2.5 billion people around the world have honed their on-demand skills, teamwork, critical-thinking collaboration, and decision-making thanks to their knowledge and skills from playing some kind of game.
Although it seems like an activity reserved exclusively for children and seen as lack of seriousness and waste of time for adults, the truth is that games impact the social, cognitive, and physical aspect of employees.
According to the Human Talent Solutions firm, games cultivate not only technical competencies, but also soft skills, such as creativity, emotional intelligence, and complex problem solving, increasingly valuable as the automation of routine tasks is increasing.
The opposite of playing is not work, it is depression
Stuart Brown, researcher on the effects of gambling on the brain at the National Institute for gambling in California, United States, explains that “the opposite of playing is not work, it is depression”. In addition, climate studies for creativity, position humor and playfulness as one of the main components that promote creativity and innovation in organizations. That is why it is so important that companies give space to have fun.
Since last year, the human capital market is changing rapidly in the wake of the pandemic. Now employers are reallocating resources, shifting to remote work and thinking of the best ways to usher in a “smart restart”. For this reason, new job candidates have been developing many of the skills necessary to fit into the available positions and those that will be generated in the immediate future.
Strategies to promote more creative collaborators:
Include board games or online games.
If you are at the office, taking time to share and practice a board game -such as chess, jenga, ping pong, puzzles, quizzes, or something else- will free up ideas. Playing is effective in creativity because when we play, high levels of dopamine are released, which produces pleasure and increases motivation to repeat the task. In addition to promoting the generation of new perspectives, games develop many skills that are transferable to work life, such as cooperating with others, strategic thinking, and awareness of choices and consequences.
Make more use of digital or online whiteboards, projectors, and screens.
These types of tools should not become our enemies and their use should not be limited only to work presentations. Using these technologies for play will bring the team closer together, such as by playing online games that allow increasing skills, sharing teamwork, and generating motivation.
Go towards more open spaces.
More and more companies use this type of space to promote the connection between collaborators and generate more ideas. Interaction at these places favors work flowing as well as improve productivity, relax and get out of the routine. Change the space, even if you are at home, and distract yourself with some extra activity.
Promote more creative meetings.
If you aim for the typical meeting, you just lose the potential stimulus. Get out of the rut by making riddles, telling jokes, or taking 5 minutes to do some quick and fun dynamics. Online roulette can help you incentivize participation. These moments stimulate the processes of incubation of ideas and relaxation and become stimuli to create. Humor and play are also related to dopamine and that is why to develop cultures that encourage creativity, you must have environments in which play is more promoted, even in meetings.
