Do you roll your eyes a bit when you hear phrases like “emotional intelligence”? Or maybe you just feel paralyzed with fear when you’re told you have to talk about emotions with your coworkers? It’s uncomfortable and sometimes comes off as a bit cheesy.
What if we told you that it doesn’t have to be like that? Have you ever noticed how easily you’ll talk about something emotional that happened in a film? There might be a traumatic event or something you relate to but because it happened to a character in a movie, it’s one step removed. It’s often easier to talk about emotions when we talk about them in the context of films. We want to harness the power of the stories told in films to build deeper connections.
No more bowling alleys or trust falls
At REEL Experiences, we’re anti-team-building. Bowling alleys are fun, but they’re not going to teach you much about your coworkers and while trust falls may show trust for one split second, that’s not a lasting connection.
We think it’s time to go beyond the traditional idea of team-building. It’s time to get philosophical! We want team members to talk about their personalities, families, and life stories. But we know you can’t just put people on the spot with those conversations, it has to be organic.
Build connection in a way that’s organic
You can’t force people to bond and putting them all in the same room to do the same activity doesn’t just make that happen. Meaningful bonds happen when we share something personal with others and hear someone else’s story in return.
That’s a scary thing to do though, especially in a work environment. That’s why there needs to be a buffer. We believe that movies are the perfect way to talk about someone’s personal story through something that is universally enjoyable.
Emotional intelligence reveals more about people
We all have some personality traits that we’re used to rattling off in an interview or when we met someone new. “I’m a hard-worker who is extroverted and loves helping others.” Most of the time, we default to some simple personality traits so that we don’t need to share anything too deep.
If you stick to a team-building activity, that’s probably what will be discussed. Emotional intelligence means you’re learning something deeper about yourself and others. Those types of conversations make you more empathetic and can even help define your personal narrative.
Easy to remember connections
Since movies are so universally relatable, there’s bound to be some crossover between your coworkers’ favorite movies and movies you’ve seen before. If Linda from HR says that When Harry Met Sally is one of her favorite movies and, with the help of REEL Experiences, you understand why, you’ll begin to associate that movie with her.
Now you’ll know more about your coworker’s sense of humor, how they see themselves, what kind of praise they like to receive and so much more.
Provides the opportunity for further engagement
This opens the door for further conversations. Maybe Meg Ryan is talked about in the news and you can bring it up to Linda or you see another film that relates to the theme Linda talked about. You can easily start conversations and understand a bit more about who Linda is outside of her position.
After all, you don’t want a team-building experience that feels fun for an hour and then doesn’t translate to anything afterward. That’s why we’re anti-team-building but pro-emotional intelligence. We want to do something deeper, more meaningful, and lasting. It doesn’t hurt that you’ll all have a blast talking about movies though!
