At Playworks, we want to lead with the same values we teach children on our playgrounds. For us, this means nurturing an emotionally intelligent workplace. Emotional quotient, or EQ, is our ability to recognize emotions, to manage them, and to draw on information from emotions to guide our thoughts and interactions.
Social skills are just as important for adults as for kids. By practicing them every day in the workplace, we improve the quality of our work, the health of our community, and our ability to model these skills for children.
Here are a few ways we build our social and emotional skills at Playworks:
Gratitude Day
Every year on the third Wednesday of November, Playworks celebrates #GratitudeDay. We take a break to share our thanks with as many people as we can. Practicing gratitude for the people in our lives—from our grandparents to our postal workers—keeps us grounded in what matters most. Join us on November 16 by thanking someone in your life.
Recess
Play is important for adults, too! We already know play helps kids practice skills. The benefits continue when we grow up. From spontaneous 5-minute foursquare breaks to elaborate group games, playing together helps us build community and go back to work refreshed. Want to bring recess to your office and support Playworks at the same time? Check out our Corporate Recess opportunities.
Facilitation 101
Check-in Questions
We start all of our meetings with check-in questions to get to know each other better. These range from the silly (“What kind of donut would you be?”) to the philosophical (“Would you rather have 10 normal lifetimes, or live 1,000 years?”) and the nostalgic (“Most embarrassing Halloween costume”). In a time crunch, questions with one word answers (“Favorite condiment?”) work just as well.
The Mood Meter How is your team building social skills? We’d love to hear your ideas.
