We haven’t met an organisation yet that doesn’t have an elephant in the room just desperate for attention.
And we’re no different.
Last week we made time to name the beast using the Stinky Fish team exercise.
The stinky fish is a metaphor for “that stuff that we carry around but don’t like to talk about – but the longer we hide it, the stinkier it gets.”
By putting our “stinky fish” on the table as a team, we are able to relate to each other, get more comfortable sharing, build trust and uncover areas for learning and development.
Here’s how to do it.
1) Introduce the purpose of the exercise – to explore and share our individual concerns/worries about the theme or about the future as a way to start a conversation and begin to confront or overcome them.
2) Give your team 5 or so minutes to capture their personal stinky fish on post-its, or using a MIRO template. We used this one from Hyper Island.
3) Once all team members have captured their own stinky fish, invite each participant to share their stinky fish with the rest of the group.
One at a time, for 30-60 seconds each. Continue until all participants have shared. The key here is to let the person share without judgement. No jumping in or trying to defend. Recognise that what the person feels is their reality. Don’t forget to say thank you to them for sharing and being so honest. Be kind.
4) Take a break, go for a walk, have lunch. Next, group the stinkies and decide as a team what you’d like to tackle first. Then brainstorm ideas around this. Empower your team to take ownership of the changes needed.
Compare notes. Address silent issues, fears, anxiety, and uncertainties.
It’s okay to be nervous or afraid about the future; it’s not okay to watch the fish rot and do nothing about it.
