Adventure Past Kilimanjaro:
Training Program With Fun Team Building Activities

By Kurt Beerline, PhD

Africa ! Leadership!—two topics that connote adventure, mystery, danger, awe, and wonder! Whether you are on a safari or leading employees in the boardroom or out in the field you never know what may be lurking behind the next bush or corner. You must be aware, prepared, equipped, ready with an alternative plan, and surrounded with a team of experts, effective technology, and savvy instincts.

 

• This action-packed workshop is full of team-building activities that include exciting stories, analogies, allegories and SURPRISES that keep participants on their toes at all times
• Games, simulations, and interactive scenarios challenge thinking skills
• Sometimes participants plan, and then must change their plan with a charging Rhino or changing situation; other times they must react and lean on their values and instincts to guide them through
• Each adventure includes a debrief by the campfire so participants learn what went right, and what could
• This adventure is ideal for developing and reinforcing real world leadership skills and perspectives, thinking skills, and team dynamics.

In this leadership adventure, participants start with a simulated climb up the famous Mt. Kilimanjaro. The ascent represents our education, successes, and lessons learned that moved us into a position of leadership. But the learning and adventure doesn’t stop here. Take the journey of self-awareness as you descend on foot down the mountain then walk with your team through the beautiful yet treacherous Tsavo National Parks of Kenya. Learn about Africa and your business environment as you adapt to the harsh conditions, find inner strengths, survive the danger, and finally capture the beauty of the wildest place on Earth.

Learn the challenges and adaptive skills of the predators such as lions, hyenas, leopards, and crocodiles; the territorial nature of the hippo; and the survival skills of gazelle and antelope. Avoid getting trampled by elephants, chased by rhinos, stalked by lions, and how to watch for crocodiles in the river. Understand the complex political-economic history of the land, and develop and protect the animals and people from poachers and political corruption. Study the indigenous people and develop a strategy for peace, and economic prosperity, for Africa and your leadership, team, and organization. Stay safe through the journey, capture the beauty, and keep it wild!

Outcomes:

The course can be customized to fit your selection of leadership competencies such as:

• Adaptability and Flexibility
• Conflict Management and Consensus Building
• Creativity, Problem Solving, Critical Thinking, and Solution Generation
• Crisis and Change Management
• Decision Making
• Ethics and Following Codes of Conduct
• Guiding, Coaching, and Mentoring
• Inner and Team Communication
• Inner Drive and Determination
• Interpersonal Skills and Relating
• Leadership Conditioning, Learning, and Preparation
• Performance Management and Feedback
• Planning, Organizing, and Scenario Thinking
• Political and Business Awareness
• Results Orientation, Issue Identification, and Goal Setting
• Risk Taking and Entrepreneurship
• Self-Awareness
• Storytelling and Promoting your Teachable Point of View
• Team Building and Partnering

Sample Outline:

(NOTE: The agenda will include modules designed around core competencies above and include role playing, lecturettes, and “campfire debriefs”)

• Ascent up Kilimanjaro
• Descend and walk through self-awareness and Tsavo National Park
• Keep safe, capture the beauty, and keep it wild
• Adapt to your environment and learn the ways of the animals
• Manage the land, protect the animals from poachers and beware of the temptations of corruption
• Finalize your plan for survival and prosperity

Time Frame:

One to two days.

 

[top]