Real World Skills #2

Last week we started to examine some skills participants may not even realize they are taking back to the “real world” at the end of a Challenge Discovery program. If you haven’t had a chance, check out last week’s post with insights about helpful feedback. This week, we are going to take a closer look at the art of “Thinking Outside of the Box.” During a field trip to Challenge Discovery, we talk about thinking outside the box often, but what does that mean?

2. How to think outside the box

We all have our own idea about what that phrase means. What we don’t know too much about is how to actually think in this way. Why is this important? Parents, teachers, and employers are always trying to encourage this thought process in their children, students, and employees. At our ropes course in Richmond, Virginia, our facilitators lead teams through problem-solving activities in order to give participants a common goal. While some of the “answers” to the problems in these activities are fairly straightforward, many solutions involve thinking outside the box.

Most people think you have to be talented, lucky, or have something the rest of us don’t in order to look at things in this “big picture” way. All you need to do, however, is learn to change your perspective, and look at the world a little differently than you are used to. We all get into our repetitive routines (we wake up, eat breakfast, brush our teeth, etc.), and because of this, so does our brain. When you participate in a challenge course program at the University of Richmond, nothing is a part of your normal routine. Our programs give you the opportunity to get out of your comfort zone. Getting into your “Learning Zone” causes you to change your perspective, and you begin thinking outside the box.

The skills gleaned from a challenge course program are limitless if you keep an open mind and use every experience as an opportunity to learn. Join us again next week when we explore our third and final real world skill, “Confidence in Others.”

Have questions? Want to share your thoughts about thinking outside the box and how to get there? Visit our Facebook page and join the discussion.

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