Learning from Legacy Games

Legacy games are games that add some form of permanence to the game, where the game changes over time with each progressive gameplay. This could mean unlocking new content or it could mean modifying or destroying existing content. Either way, what you do during one game affects all future plays of that game. Usually this means that these games are only good for one playthrough.

Legacy games are currently very popular in the board gaming industry but due to the design of the game, very few good legacy games are created each year. Here are some of the most successful legacy board games:

Pandemic Legacy (several seasons), Betrayal Legacy, Gloomhaven and Clank! Legacy. A standout in this list is Gloomhaven which has arguably been the most popular board game for the past few years.

So the learning we can instill when playing legacy games is linking to business strategies and the potential impact of what we do. Systems Thinking is also a good subject to bring up as we have to consider future repercussions of our actions and plans that permanently change, and those changes affect other situations downstream – a cascading effect. Do you have any legacy games that you enjoy?

Destroying a card in Pandemic Legacy

Learning from City Building games – Alhambra

City Building – Quite simply, games about building a city. City building games are usually all about efficiency and are almost always also Economic games. They can be about building the most attractive city, the biggest city or the most lucrative city, or could be a combination of all of that. So by introducing a city building game it is to encourage staff to look at how they can be more efficient at work, develop better outcomes in projects and also learn to be more economical with resources. Here is an excellent game we like to introduce today in City Building:

At the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains, one of the most exciting and interesting project of the Spanish Middle Ages begins: the construction of the ALHAMBRA. The best master builders in the whole of Europe and Arabia want to demonstrate their skill. Employ the most suitable teams of builders and make sure that you always have enough of the right currency. Because no matter whether they are stonemasons from the north or horticulturalists from the south, they all want a proper wage and insist on their "native" currency. With their help towers can be constructed, gardens laid out, pavilions and arcades erected and seraglios and chambers built.

In Alhambra, players are acquiring buildings to be placed within their Alhambra complex. The money in Alhambra comes in four different currencies and is available in the open money market. The 54 buildings of six types become available for purchase in the building market four at a time; one building is available in each of the four different currencies. On a player's turn, a player may 1) take money from the open money market, 2) purchase a building from the building market and either place it in his Alhambra or reserve, or 3) engage in construction and re-construction projects with buildings that have been placed in the player's Alhambra or reserve. The game rewards efficiency, as when a player purchases a building from the market for the exact amount of money, the player may take another turn.

Players with the most buildings in each of the six building types in his Alhambra score in each of the scoring phases, and points are awarded for players' longest external "wall" section within their complex. The game ends when the building market can no longer be replenished from the building tile supply, and there is a final scoring, whereupon the player with the highest score wins.

#alhambragame #citybuildinggame #experientiallearning #learnbydoing JJFS ThinkLab

Learning from City Building games – Machi Koro

City Building – Quite simply, games about building a city. City building games are usually all about efficiency and are almost always also Economic games. They can be about building the most attractive city, the biggest city or the most lucrative city, or could be a combination of all of that. So by introducing a city building game it is to encourage staff to look at how they can be more efficient at work, develop better outcomes in projects and also learn to be more economical with resources. Here is an excellent game we like to introduce today in City Building:

Welcome to the city of Machi Koro. You've just been elected Mayor. Congrats! Unfortunately the citizens have some pretty big demands: jobs, a theme park, a couple of cheese factories and maybe even a radio tower. A tough proposition since the city currently consists of a wheat field, a bakery and a single die. Armed only with your trusty die and a dream, you must grow Machi Koro into the largest city in the region. You will need to collect income from developments, build public works, and steal from your neighbors' coffers. Just make sure they aren't doing the same to you!

Machi Koro is a fast-paced game for 2-4 players. Each player wants to develop the city on their own terms in order to complete all of the landmarks under construction faster than their rivals. On their turn, each player rolls one or two dice. If the sum of the dice rolled matches the number of a building that a player owns, they get the effect of that building; in some cases opponents will also benefit from your dice (just as you can benefit from theirs). Then, with money in hand a player can build a landmark or a new building, ideally adding to the wealth of their city on future turns. The first player to construct all of their landmarks wins!

#machikoro #citybuildinggame #experientiallearning #learnbydoing JJFS ThinkLab

Machi Koro game with components

Learning from City Building games – Kingdomino

City Building – Quite simply, games about building a city. City building games are usually all about efficiency and are almost always also Economic games. They can be about building the most attractive city, the biggest city or the most lucrative city, or could be a combination of all of that. So by introducing a city building game it is to encourage staff to look at how they can be more efficient at work, develop better outcomes in projects and also learn to be more economical with resources. Here is an excellent game we like to introduce today in City Building:

In Kingdomino, you are a lord seeking new lands in which to expand your kingdom. You must explore all the lands, including wheat fields, lakes, and mountains, in order to spot the best plots, while competing with other lords to acquire them first. The game uses tiles with two sections, similar to Dominoes. Each turn, each player will select a new domino to connect to their existing kingdom, making sure at least one of its sides connects to a matching terrain type already in play. The order of who picks first depends on which tile was previously chosen, with better tiles forcing players to pick later in the next round. The game ends when each player has completed a 5x5 grid (or failed to do so), and points are counted based on number of connecting tiles and valuable crown symbols.

Learning from City Building games - 7 Wonders

City Building – Quite simply, games about building a city. City building games are usually all about efficiency and are almost always also Economic games. They can be about building the most attractive city, the biggest city or the most lucrative city, or could be a combination of all of that.

So by introducing a city building game it is to encourage staff to look at how they can be more efficient at work, develop better outcomes in projects and also learn to be more economical with resources. Here is an excellent game we like to introduce today in City Building:

In the game 7 Wonders, you are the leader of one of the 7 great cities of the Ancient World. Gather resources, develop commercial routes, and affirm your military supremacy. Build your city and erect an architectural wonder which will transcend future times. The game lasts three ages. In each age, players receive seven cards from a particular deck, choose one of those cards, then pass the remainder to an adjacent player. Players reveal their cards simultaneously, paying resources if needed or collecting resources or interacting with other players in various ways. Each player then chooses another card from the deck they were passed, and the process repeats until players have six cards in play from that age.

In essence, 7 Wonders is a card development game. Some cards have immediate effects, while others provide bonuses or upgrades later in the game. Some cards provide discounts on future purchases. Some provide military strength to overpower your neighbors and others give nothing but victory points. Each card is played immediately after being drafted, so you'll know which cards your neighbor is receiving and how her choices might affect what you've already built up. Cards are passed left-right-left over the three ages, so you need to keep an eye on the neighbors in both directions.

Learning from City Building games

City Building – Quite simply, games about building a city. City building games are usually all about efficiency and are almost always also Economic games. They can be about building the most attractive city, the biggest city or the most lucrative city, or could be a combination of all of that.

So by introducing a city building game it is to encourage staff to look at how they can be more efficient at work, develop better outcomes in projects and also learn to be more economical with resources. Here is an excellent game we like to introduce today in City Building:

Carcassonne is a tile-placement game in which the players draw and place a tile with a piece of southern French landscape on it. The tile might feature a city, a road, a cloister, grassland or some combination thereof, and it must be placed adjacent to tiles that have already been played, in such a way that cities are connected to cities, roads to roads, etcetera. Having placed a tile, the player can then decide to place one of their meeples on one of the areas on it: on the city as a knight, on the road as a robber, on a cloister as a monk, or on the grass as a farmer. When that area is complete, that meeple scores points for its owner.

During a game of Carcassonne, players are faced with decisions like: "Is it really worth putting my last meeple there?" or "Should I use this tile to expand my city, or should I place it near my opponent instead, giving him a hard time to complete their project and score points?" Since players place only one tile and have the option to place one meeple on it, turns proceed quickly even if it is a game full of options and possibilities.

Playing Carcassonne

How To Make Mornings Better, Faster, And More Fun

BETTER

Exercise and meditation are healthy ways to start the day, but you can also get mood-boosting benefits from spending time in light. Scientists at the Neurobiology Research Unit at the Copenhagen University Hospital in Denmark found that 30 minutes of bright light–from the sun or light-therapy lamps–reduces anxiety.

FASTER

Make mornings about execution and not assembly, says Julie Morgenstern, author of Never Check Email in the Morning. Everything you need to start your day should be premade, packed, or prepped the night before. Don’t leave ­decisions–such as what to wear–for the morning. “We clutch under pressure, and choosing takes more time,” she says.

MORE FUN

Improve your mood by traveling to work on public transportation, bicycle, or foot. Researchers from the United Kingdom’s University of East Anglia found that commutes involving physical activity improved the effects of sleepless nights and general unhappiness, and traveling by train or bus gave people time to relax, read, and socialize. In fact, a study done at the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business found that talking to strangers gives commuters a boost in happiness.

https://www.fastcompany.com/3038321/how-to-make-mornings-better-faster-and-more-fun

productive mornings

How LEGO is tackling the challenges

LEGO is one of the most successful kids brands in the world. LEGO Group’s Regional President of Western Europe, Victor Saeijs recently spoke to #Kidtech to explore how LEGO built and sustained such an iconic toy brand – and how the brand keeps today’s young audiences excited about LEGO products in an increasingly digital world.

• Balancing brand innovation with a continued focus on young audiences 

• Combining IRL play with kids gaming trends 

• Extending the physical play experience with a digital layer 

• Enabling kids to connect and share in safe digital environments  

How will your business use creativity and innovative thinking to survive?

#creativity #innovation #lego JJFS ThinkLab

Leadership activities for workplace and remote teams

Whether you’re a musician or a chess player, being awesome at your job will come down to putting the hours in. The more practicing you do, the better. But to see the absolute best results, you need to be strategic about it. This means being purposeful with your time and ensuring your practice is a varied mix of theory and skill.

The same is true of management. You can read dozens of management books and watch hundreds of TED talks on leadership, but if you don’t get some hands-on experience, then you’ll be missing out (and probably sink pretty fast when faced with a real-life challenge).

One of the best ways to get practical experience (aside from on-the-job learning) is to roll up your sleeves and get involved in some leadership activities. Not only are these a great way to get real-world experience, but they also mean you can make mistakes and get feedback from your peers in a zero-pressure environment. Sound good? Let’s get started!

Creativity and Lego

Creativity is a funny thing. Far too many people think they aren't creative at all, but that's simply not true. The problem is that for most of our lives, we are conditioned to color within the lines. We spend our childhood learning to present ourselves professionally in the hopes that we'll get a job where someone tells us what to do and we're measured on whether we can follow instructions.

Now, following instructions is a pretty important part of life, for sure. In some cases, following instructions is critical to the success of whatever you're doing. If you're a pilot, all of us on board your flight are counting on you to follow your checklist, listen to the tower, and stick with the flight plan. There's not a lot of room for deviation.

But somewhere along the way, people lose the sense of wonder that comes with creating something. We spend a lot of time following instructions, and not much time being creative.

It turns out, Lego is a great parallel to this in our own lives. First, though, let's be sure we all agree on a definition for creativity. I agree with this definition, that creativity is "the use of the imagination or original ideas, especially in the production of an artistic work."

Gamification vs Game-based Learning

As an manager which would you prefer? Staff who comes to work punctually because they know how to do it or because they understand why they should do it? This is also the key difference between gamification and game-based learning. You can gamify a process to make people do the things you want them to do (e.g. come to work on time) or you can help them understand the reason for doing something (e.g. coming to work on time promotes cohesiveness and teamwork) to have them change their own behaviour – something we have good success using a game-based learning process. What are your thoughts or examples of this?

Gamified vs Game-based Learning

Learning from documentaries – motorsports

Quick quiz – how many sports documentaries about motorsports have won an Oscar? If you said zero, you are correct as there were none even nominated. It’s surprising knowing the love for motorsports like Formula 1, NASCAR or Indy that there hasn’t been a documentary that was good enough to even be nominated. Some of these shows are based on the who’s who of racing where only their names are used as the show title like Senna, Williams, McLaren, Ferrari or Lauda. I have not watched many but the one that I did was Schumacher the Netflix documentary as I wondered what has happened to the 7 time F1 world champion since his skiing accident in 2013.

The new Netflix documentary gave an insight into his life as a driver and a husband, but if you wanted to know about what has happened to him after the accident – you will be left disappointed. There’s a lot to condense in just under two hours of film, but what stands out is the portrayal of different sides to the man, both on and off the track. While the film toasts his numerous achievements, it also delivers interesting insights from his rivals, journalists and commentators on his “other side”. Schumacher was notorious for not accepting his mistakes in a controversy and he would never apologise. But in spite of the skirmishes following track collisions allegedly orchestrated by Schumacher, he still never lost the respect of his rivals. An interesting insight to a multi-time champion. What are your thoughts of Schumacher?

Learning from documentaries / sports

Quick quiz – how many sports documentaries have won an academy award? Since the 1960s, there were only 5. The latest was Icarus by director Bryan Fogel. The film Icarus started when Fogel, a cycling enthusiast, wanted to explore ways to get away with doping to prepare for an amateur cycling race. But halfway through his film, what began as an experiment on himself turns into something much bigger. One of the film's main subject, a Russian scientist Grigory Rodchenkov, who is the director of Russia's national anti-doping laboratory blows the whistle on a massive Russian doping program with links to the highest levels of Russian government. The film pivots to the tale of Rodchenkov, the mastermind behind that program. Fogel then wound up uncovering a major international scandal -- the Russian doping scheme at the 2014 Winter Olympics.

When allegations emerge in the international media over the possible existence of such a program, Fogel realizes that Rodchenkov is in danger of being "silenced" by the Russian government and has him flown to Los Angeles for his protection. The film ends stating that the Russian government continues to deny it had any involvement with the program and that Rodchenkov remains in protective custody.

My one question though is who is the Icarus of this tale? At first, it seems like it’s Fogel, who tries to use the same drugs that cycling legend Lance Armstrong did but he crashes to the Earth. Then it could be Rodchenkov, although he personally never seems to have achieved the fame of the athletes whom he helped cheat. Maybe they are the Icarus of this tale, and Rodchenkov merely Daedalus, the man who built the wings of wax, sure to inevitably burn in the heat of the sun. What are your thoughts?

Learning from documentaries / sports

Quick quiz – can you name any sports documentary that received a 9.1 IMDb rating and a 97% Rotten Tomatoes score? Few shows receive such high scores, much less a sports series. It is The Last Dance, a 10 part documentary series of the career of Michael Jordan, arguably the greatest basketball player ever, with particular focus on his final season with the 1997–98 Chicago Bulls. The series features both interviews and never-released footage with over 500 hours of all-access footage during that single season.

The show was release at the perfect time by Netflix around April to May 2020 when Covid had disrupted everybody’s lives with no live sports available on tv – it was a great escape to watch it and I was one of millions who lapped it up week after week. The film affirmed Jordan’s dominance as we remember, while also confirming darker suspicions. To teammates, Jordan resembled Darth Vader in “Star Wars”, killing anyone who disappointed him. To adversaries, he was Michael Corleone in "The Godfather," unsatisfied in defeating all rivals. Validated by championship results, Jordan sanctified the template of the leader-as-monster, out of necessity. It has been mythologized in sports, by abusive coaches everywhere that punching down on those who are less talented is the champion's way and those who disagree are losers who simply lack what it takes. Business leaders are doing the same thing. Captains and kings of industry are now referring to it.

Yet all the fantasy glamorization of Jordan's single-mindedness lands differently now more then 20 years later. The obsessives like Jordan are now more isolated and even, at times, discredited. The culture still loves the result but is less tolerant of the genius-tyrant. Work-life balance is a thing. Even ballplayers now take time off during the season for the birth of their babies -- and the world doesn't collapse. Caring about one's family doesn't make you an unserious professional. You do not need to know or love basketball to enjoy the show. So what did you like or dislike about the documentary?

Learning from Netflix ... Human Resources

Although I have not finished watching the entire season of Human Resources, a spinoff of Big Mouth, it is like an adult version of Pixar’s Inside Out, satirizing office culture but with a lot of emotion (especially Lust but the show calls them Hormone Monsters) thrown in. And yet, the show is also a riot for audiences interested in quick-fire bawdy comedy with a nice helping of intense cartoon violence thrown in. It can be really over the top, it’s incredibly blue, and it’s not for kids.

The show is really about the conflicting impulses that go into being a human, often in their grossest glory. Dealing with adult issues like giving birth and then postpartum depression, or having an aging parent going through dementia, or going to college and whether you stay together with your girlfriend or not. When the first season closes, the workplace drama has some actual heft to it, and the human plots manage to nimbly balance the ridiculous and happy with the loss.

Learning from Netflix … Stranger Things

Dark, creepy, and sublimely intriguing, this 1980s throwback will remind you of many a vintage-era sci-fi/horror movie, in the most pleasant way imaginable. The cast is clad in dated '80s wear, walls are wood-paneled, phones are firmly attached to cords, and kids are free enough to race around on their bicycles, looking for clues. Violence and gore are low, but atmosphere and spookiness are high with characters of kid-age to relate to, someone to root for.

The appeal of Stranger Things has always been its lack of grandiosity or pretension, its disdain of mock gravitas. The show just wants to scare and charm us, to indulge our love of science-fiction and horror tropes and to perfect the pop-cult simulacrum of 1980s Midwestern America. It’s a show that charmed us with the spunkiness of the middle school-age heroes, who are ready, willing, and able to save the day when the adults in their lives are stymied. What are your thoughts on Stranger Things? Are you excited for Season 4 approaching?

Best Netflix shows - and what we can learn from them

There are way too many shows today and Netflix is one of the key culprits of keeping us up all night (or day if you’re WFH) with some rather amazing shows. So to keep our people engaged and to help them learn something new, why not sprinkle some of these shows in your work discussions or learning moments to keep them on conversation and let them think you’re really in the know?

Some popular shows I have watched includes Stranger Things, The Witcher, The Queen’s Gambit, Shadow and Bone, Money Heist (or La Casa de Papel), Arcane and Squid Game. I know I must have missed many of your shows, so which ones are your favorites?

Get a creative session or energizer going!

Get a productivity and creativity spark by engaging in some stimulating activities at work like a gaming lunch session or a breakfast energizer! Start work right!
#experientiallearning #creativity #energizer #boardgames #cardgames JJFS ThinkLab

Elon Musk's Innovation Equation - use it to gauge your Business Idea

In an interview with Lex Fridman, an A.I. researcher at MIT, Musk goes on to discuss the pursuit of innovation, and in doing so he reveals the core of his decision-making process and his innovation equation. According to Musk, "What matters is the pace of innovation, access to resources, and raw materials." In other words, entrepreneurs can quickly and easily gauge whether they have what it takes to turn their wild idea into reality using this simple equation. It breaks down into three basic questions:

1. How long will it take you to build?

2. Do you have access to the right resources? 

3. Can you obtain the required raw materials? 

For any entrepreneur, this is a critical step in the pursuit of a startup. Not only can it save you a great deal of time, money, and energy, but it also answers one of the notorious questions that investors ask founders: Why should you be the one to start this business and does your team have what it takes to do so successfully? It's part of the "Founder's Dilemma" -- something for which Musk has discovered a solution.

https://www.inc.com/kelly-main/elon-musk-reveals-his-innovation-equation-its-an-easy-way-to-gauge-if-a-business-idea-is-viable.html