Team work!

           Why is teamwork important? Well it’s one thing to create a team, but quite another to create teamwork.

Just as it’s one thing to join a team, but quite another to perform as a team member. To put it simply, teams don’t work without teamwork.

What is teamwork? There are several ways to define teamwork but for some colour why not think of it as the French do. The French language has an excellent expression to describe it: esprit de corps.

This means a sense of unity, of enthusiasm for common interests and responsibilities, as developed among a group of persons closely associated in a task, cause, enterprise, etc.

Teamwork can be likened to two compounds, almost essential to modern life. It’s the glue which keeps a team together, a bond which promotes strength, unity, reliability and support.

Teamwork is also the oil that makes the team work. It can enable smoother movement towards targets, can prolong forward momentum, and can help teams to overcome obstacles.

Teamwork has the potential to underpin so much of what is valuable in work. In fact, the benefits to be gained from teamwork synergies are essential for the effective management of resources. More in http://www.the-happy-manager.com/articles/why-is-teamwork-important/

Don't kill creativity!

Some thoughts about creativity and innovation.

Group trip to Nurnberg, Saturday July 20, 2013

'Connect the dots', Saturday July 20, 2013

        It all started on Saturday, July 20, 2013 when we were running to the train station and were to late for our train. Like the dots groups started to connect and we decided to go and search out the shop that was in the station. Talks were going on and then the special musical card was found and the trip 'connecting dots' started. We came together and worked as a group and let's see the results. Look at our creative way to 'Celebrate good time, cam on!' 

“You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something – your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. Because believing that the dots will connect down the road will give you the confidence to follow your heart even when it leads you off the well worn path; and that will make all the difference.” (Steve Jobs) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF8uR6Z6KLc

Look our video using this link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqCP0GVwNXg

Friday, July 19, 2013

Friday, July 19, 2013

What makes a good leader in creativity and innovation? Visiting 'Stabilo'...

   Firstly, Egita Gritane told us about achievement motivation to reach our goals. After that we had a nice group work bricko -group, where each had a role, such as manager marketing, sales, HR, engineer and finance. It was really interesting to think about our product (bricko safe). 

   After lunch we visited a Stabilo office. It was interesting, because each of us knows this company and maybe everyone use their products. For me was great to see how from the beginning to the end are made markers, pencils.

    After Stabilo we had a round discussion about diversity in creativity. I liked that everyone opinion was respected and that also a teachers had participated in discussion.

Long but active day, July 17, 2013

Long but active day, July 17, 2013

                  The day started with Dr. Egita Gritane (RPIVA) lecture about 4Ps of Creativity and innovation in Business.  She gave us a lot of theory about creativity in business. Also, we had a group work, where we answered 4 questions: What is the product? What is the benefit? What is meaningful life-style? What is authority?

                 Second session was with Prof. Dr. Christian Werner (UAM) and  he was speaking about management of creativity and innovations in business.

                 For as it was really interesting to think about creativity myths, because we have never thought about them. The main myths were:  Innovation is always good; The more innovations, the better company; More innovations means more profit; Innovation without risk.

          Also, we really enjoyed a team work "Ice Cube-Marketing". Our group had a lot of fun thinking about what we can make with/from ice cubes. All group presentations were very creative and we had a lot of fun. 

          We discussed about many questions. We talked about little c – creativity every day, average C and about BIG C - WHICH IS VERY RARE. We also like this sentence. This small word „TRUST” is also key of creativity. We are living in a business world. We think working as a team you achieve more and various ideas than working alone. Working effectively as part of a team is incredibly important for output quality, morale, and retention. My experience working in teamwork has simple, but we are still learning how to work as a team.
         Just remember T.E.A.M. - Together Everyone Achieves More!

       The most coolest part, of course, was the evening! Because all groups went to the city center. Finally we were all dancing... it was amazing! Guys,  we were really happy that we are so crazy and nice!!  It was nice to know a little more about each other and to spend time in free environment

Active day in our teams. Field project.

              Let the pictures speak about very nice day were we had a possibility to work in teams, interact and work together and overcome problems. 

                                   The third day in a different perspective. 

              So, 16 July- was another crazy, but very creative day for us! Some of us in the morning prefer to practice,  so they get up when it is still dark and run an unfamiliar direction. But, others of us who are "smartest", prefer more to sleep in the morning. So we all meet at the breakfast.

 

          Lectures were very creative. Theory we do not love, that is why we don`t listen it, but the practical tasks we really enjoyed! In our academy any creative group work ir rarely happening. Or maybe often happens, but we are not this time at the academy, as usual.

            The task, where we should make an instruction of how to tie a shoe was really crazy! It seems so easy at the beginning, but..when you start to think about it, it is really funny. Because you can`t explain simply things! Another task, another team work also was shocking. It was also group work. We needed to stand together in the way, to take as little as possible a place on the paper. In this task one group showed that we can break rules! They stood together on the table, but one was sitting on the table and just putted one finger to the paper! It was so unexpected!

             After hard work, we hoped, that the evening will be free. Yeah, nice dreams. We had another session, which started at 20.00. It was dancing session. And maybe it was the best part of these day. Because we experienced different styles of dancing and some students showed they dancing skills. The atmosphere was just amazing!

             So, we hope that you now know how about our third day in the summer school. To be continued...

    The Second Day in IMCE Summer School.

Our day started with Creativity & Innovation: Social and Psychological Foundations with

Professor Dr. Guna Svence (RPIVA) from Latvia. As Dr. Guna Svence said: "all together we will make  new feelings, thoughts, aspects of perceptions about creation, we`ll be open, positive and playful, serious and as children - open with curiosity for innovations for life." The day sarted very good, because it was interesting to get to know how to preare and incubate to be creative.  We were doing dynamic activities, using our bodies as a way of expressing our feelings connecting with ourselves. Music has an important role on it since it let us to be more concentrated, taking into account individual and groups work, knowing that we also need from the others to create something inside us.

             When we very reflecting the day, we thought that movement and dance can be also be useful in the classroom setting. Teachers can perform a brief movement exercises prior to testing to help awaken the mind and help student gain the focus they need to perform their best work. They also noted an improvement in behavior after the students had completed the BrainDance. A music teacher in Minnesota reports that by taking five minutes at the start of each class to perform the BrainDance that she is able to accomplish much more than she ever had in the remaining twenty-five minutes remaining in the class. Students enjoy performing the movements of the BrainDance. Students report that the braindance makes them feel awake, ready to learn, alive, and calm (Simons, 2003).
       

      
        The Second part of the day was focused on models of  creativity and especially on process which takes into account the process that is connected with personality of people.  Preparation-> Incubation-> Illumination->Verification. The things you are taking in to account when you are making product (how to create something new with a team collaboration) and press (the importance of the environment to create the proper atmosphere to develop our creativity). 

Our trip to Treuchtlingen, Germay

     Our story starts in the Riga airport where we – Kristīne Lopeta, Liene Knope, Lelde Šenberga, Irita Jermacāne, Anna Kvelde and profesor Guna Svence and Dr.Egita Gritāne met to travel to Treuchtlingen, Germany to take part in Erasmus IP summer school. First we had to fly to Frankfurt and then we went to Munich. But one girl had flight 1 h later and that was a problem for us, because she get lost in Frankfurt airport station! Finally after 1 h she found us and we continued to travel. So everything turned out well because people were very helpful. We tried to find a train to Treuchlingen together, but we lost right direction. By the way, the one person that helped us with the problem was Fabricio from Italy. He was waiting for us a couple of hours in a train station, he helped us to buy ticket to Adventure camp in Treuchtlingen. Then we continued to travel together and spent a really good time by discussing and getting to know each other. We had very interesting discussions about our first task in IP summer school: “Who was the first – chicken or egg?” The ones who had chosen chicken could get to campus with taxi faster, bet the ones with the egg, had to wait.

     We were happy and relieved to see that campus is in a beautiful, green and nice town, with polite and positive people.But the day didn’t end so fast. We had a nice evening were we had to make a little self-introduction. It was nice possibility to get to know each other and to brake the first ice. First steps were taken to have creative and innovative experience.