tural, gender, thinking styles, and so on. The logic was that people
would work better if there were an inclusive, trusting, cooperative
environment. The company in question used a survey to determine
the attitudes of department members on these matters. Statements
to be evaluated included: “I am treated with respect and dignity,”
and “The environment fosters a sense of trust and openness.”
Respondents ranked these statements, as applied to their situations,
using a spectrum from “definitely no” to “definitely yes.”
The workshop was mandatory and participants (professional
investors) were resistant, to say the least. I’m sure half of them
would rather have had root canals performed without anesthesia
than be in an experiential “touchy-feely” workshop. The body
language and general chill in the classroom on the first morning
did not bode well. Furthermore, my cotrainer and I had not deliv-
ered this version of the workshop before, so this was our maiden
voyage. (Actually, my cotrainer, a woman, had never delivered any
workshops before.) The investment professionals in the room,
mostly thinking types as we’ve discussed earlier, turned their ana-
lytic abilities up to “high” and posed every possible objection as to
why this class was a complete and utter waste. By the second day,
I had already dubbed this the Chernobyl of training experiences.
Toward the close of the workshop, in an effort to turn the mood
more positive, I asked the group, “Well, what can you say that is
positive about this experience?” Frank, an attorney in the invest-
ment department, raised his hand and said, “I knew all this mate-
rial already, so I think this has been a huge waste of my time.” (At
this point, my cotrainer—the smart one—left the room in tears. I
remained in the room and did my version of Mohammed Ali’s “rope-
a-dope.”)
The only positive learning from the day came at the very end,
when I told this group that the workshop was over. I got a new
appreciation for the time interval of a nanosecond, because the room
emptied in one.
The story has an interesting epilogue, though. The survey ITeamwork Today? 7308-13 ware 73 1/19/01, 1:10 PM