Recap: 6/22 Flash Fifteen
🪰 Fireflies 🪰
🚩BLUF: Bottom Line Up Front🚩
What does it take to let go of individual control and find a rhythm together as a team?
It turns out Fireflies have an answer. So Chris Federer led a connection activity that he borrowed from facilitator Mirjam Leunissen where participants mimick the fantastic forests of 🪰 synchronized fireflies 🪰.
🚩 Instructions 🚩
Set The Stage: You can find a mangrove forest in Thailand with fireflies lighting up all at once, plunging into darkness, then lighting up all again – in near-perfect synchrony. How do thousands of fireflies coordinate with each other? Who is the conductor of this silent symphony?
Each firefly has its own individual internal clock, and every time the clock “strikes twelve”, it flashes. And instead of synchronizing their clocks to a central leader, each firefly does the following:
Step 1: when you see a nearby firefly flash, nudge your clock slightly forward.
Step 2: that's it.
Can such a small, short-ranged interaction really cause an entire forest full of fireflies to flash in synchronous harmony?
Invitation: We’re here to heighten awareness of the group, practice patience, and have some fun trying to accomplish a challenging group task. Today we’re going to try a rhythm game called Firefly. Firefly invites participants to sync flashing hands like fireflies.
To begin, pick someone to follow (don't tell!)
Close your 👀 and start flashing your hand
Open your 👀 and continue flashing
Sync with the other person with a slight delay.
Variation: You can prompt some disruptions from time to time: telling them to pick a new person to follow or asking someone to slow down or speed up. It can also be interesting to see what happens when you let it totally free, no following. See if people have a natural tendency to sync.
Debrief(1 min): Get off mute and go popcorn style. Can also use chat to share takeaways.
🚩 DEBRIEF 🚩
This activity is perfect for getting groups to feel a deep sense of presence together. And it’s not easy to sync up like fireflies! Fortunately, the intention created as much fun and connection as achieving any specific outcome would have.