A Strong Wind Blows is a fun group introduction method that I learned from attending Penguin Day lead by Allen Gunn director of Aspiration.
It is play with a group of between 20 and 100.
The whole point is to support people being able to get to know one another and a sense of who in the room.
You start with a circle with the number of chairs for people minus one. You can be that person in the middle. This is like musical chairs sort of. The person in the middle says – ‘a strong wind blows for Canadians’ so all the people who are Canadian must get up … and run/walk to a new chair. The person in the middle then is the person who says something true about themselves that is likely a quality, interest or skill that others in the group have ‘a strong wind blows for ruby programmers’ or ‘a strong wind blows for make magazine subscribers’ or anything else. This can go on for 10 min and is really fun. It helps identify common qualities and experiences in the room.
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[...] To “break the ice” of a meeting we played the “game” called “A Strong Wind Blows…” akin to musical chairs. Everyone sits in a circle except for one person standing in the center. The center person states a quality about themselves like “a strong wind blows for all linux users”. Those who use linux get up and scramble for a new open seat, including the center person. The one left standing then takes a turn. I have to admit I had some reservations at first but was amazed at how well it worked. There was quite a bit more openness and energy in the room after only about 10 rounds. I wouldn’t try this technique at the next board meeting; however, it really seemed perfect for an offsite. It is a technique to get people to know one another and get a sense of who is in the room. [...]
[...] Ice Breaker – A strong wind blows [...]