The Daily News

A group of area business people found themselves holding a rope. They had already been told they could not talk but had to shape this rope into a square. It can be done, but "how" it can be done depends on the participant's communication skills.

The 60-plus people who attended the "The Challenge of Change, Culture, and Leadership" seminar this week at the Wahpeton Eagles Club were given a hands on opportunity to attempt difficult tasks to develop their leadership skills. The exercise, which involved attendees being separated into groups, used exercises to demonstrate what happens when one communication sensory (in this case speech) is removed. "It was difficult," said Mary Jacklitch who attended the seminar. Jacklitch is the director of public relations and marketing at St. Francis Healthcare Campus and attended the seminar to refresh her team-building and communication skills. Describing another exercise, she explained a group was tasked with trying to get 18 nails to balance on one nail without touching the wood. "We were given time to all be quiet and think and then we discussed it," she said. The interactive exercises were integrated to help bring people out of their comfort zones and encourage communication that otherwise may not have taken place. The customer service-oriented format approached issues of culture and change in the workplace, and gave people an opportunity to look at old things with new eyes.

Tim Hutchins has presented this seminar across greater North Dakota and presents it as part of his duties with Job Service Employer Committee.

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"It was fresh coming from him," Jacklitch said, expressing the seminar put things into a new, updated perspective. "He had a way of making the information fun to receive," Jacklitch said. She had a good time during the four hour seminar. "He had a wonderful sense of humor," she added.

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