152 - Facilitating the ‘Board Game’ with Janek Panneitz

There’s no room for frivolities like board games in the boardroom… Right?

Not so, says Janek Panneitz!  Janek is a facilitator, trainer, moderator, and a certified board game superfan and, as with so many guests on this podcast, has found a fascinating way of joining dots between his professional and personal passions.

Janek has been exploring and experimenting with the serious implications and effects board games and game mindsets can have in professional settings and how we can harness these learnings to create better workshops.

We discuss his flourishing experiments, the mechanics of bringing game mindsets into workshops, and how professional identities are an act of role-playing.

Pull up a seat at the table, choose your figurine, and let’s play!

Find out about:

• Why there can be a disconnect between problem-solving for fun and for work
• The three layers that make up a board game and a gamified workshop - and how to use them in your designs
• Why converging our expectations is essential for the success of a workshop
• How a lack of context can sometimes be a boon to your workshops
• Why it's better to aim too high than too low in your aspirations for a workshop
• The surprising 'flattening' power of board games in established hierarchies

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Questions and Answers

Part one

[01:05] When did you start calling yourself a facilitator - if you do?

[02:19] How do your sessions change if you are wearing your facilitator, trainer, or moderator hat?

[06:58] Can you share more about your background in organisational psychology - and how board games interact with that?

[09:39] What does self-determination theory mean, in simple words?

[12:48] What's your theory for how a site like Wikipedia has developed, grown, and maintained itself through voluntary contributions?

[18:03] How much of what we bring to board games reflects who we are in private and at work?

[21:50] What makes a board game night - and a workshop - fail?

[25:23] Even if you have set expectations about an activity, how can you account for the different personalities that engage in playing a game?

[30:15] To what extent is gamification an act of manipulation?

[32:10] What are the other two layers that make up good board games and gamified workshops?

Links

Website

Meetup group 

Connect to Janek

LinkedIn

Any thoughts? Share them with us!

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