Lessons from the Wild: How to Survive With Change

Watch the story of two captive Tigers, Julie and Raj, as they learn how to adapt, hunt and survive for release into the wild. In today’s fast moving business environment we are all faced with “change”. To survive we must learn to seek and embrace change, however daunting it may be. Often individuals resist change because they view the world through bars (paradigms) – our beliefs and attitudes. 

Lessons from the Wild: Leopard in Your Business - Planning

One of the fastest and most beautiful occupants of wild Africa, the leopard – is a focused, independent and opportunistic predator. Look at business planning in a fresh new way by comparing the characteristics of the leopard to the principles of good planning.

Lessons from the Wild - Joy In Work

In this humorous narration, we see the joyful, yet purposeful antics of baboons.
The message is clear – when we are balanced, we attract a team that exudes energy, innovation, creativity and joy.

How much fun do you have when you work?

Tusks or Fangs? – Leadership Styles

This program from the Lessons from the Wild Series, gives a metaphoric perspective on leadership styles required in the 21st century using compelling footage on the behavior of elephants and lions in the wild. The video tells the story of the communicative styles of elephants and the competitive styles of lions and how these relate to the behavior of the herd and the pride, their relationship with their environment, their relationship with other species, and their ability to communicate. The program was inspired by the book “Beyond Reasonable Greed: Why Sustainable Businesses Is A Much Better Idea” written by Wayne Visser and Clem Sunter (published by Human and Rousseau Tafelberg – 2002). Most authors of Management books point out that the leadership style required in the 21st century is very different to that of the 20th century. This video is a critical analysis of the principles driving modern business and demonstrates that the predatory behavior of the lion is symbolic of the way most companies are run today - but that the world cannot go on like this. The video argues strongly for an alternative and more positive vision involving sustainable business in both the social and environmental sense and that in order to achieve this, companies will need to change from the tooth-and–claw logic of the lion to the more caring, holistic philosophy of the elephant.

KEY LEARNING POINTS: 
• Goals can be achieved ethically and in community • Develop a nurturing team culture which strives for the common good • Effective communication and sharing of information is critical and ensures the team stays together in difficult times • Valuing relationships based on strong leadership and compassion for others is in the best interests of the team • Planning ahead, and considering strategies and people from all angles, is critical for survival, especially in tough times • Celebrate success and accommodate failure

VIDEO RUNNING TIME: 12 minutes
TARGET AUDIENCE: Managers, Supervisors, Team Members
SUPPORT MATERIAL: Guide, Workbook, OHP
PRODUCT FORMAT: Video

The Ecosystem in your Business – Celebrating Diversity

In this program from the Lessons from the Wild Series, the zebra, through the use of stunning wildlife footage, is used as the metaphor to explore the concept of Managing Diversity. The video tells the story of the diverse behavior of different animals in the wild, while at the same time comparing how different species collaborate and work together in order to ensure their own survival. The video starts with spectacular footage of the big 5 and then explains the little known behaviors of the Wildebeest, the Dung Beetle, Oxpeckers, Vultures, Hyenas, Hippos and finally the Zebra. It demonstrates how these animals have unique characteristics and how they differ in terms of their social interaction, eating habits and the manner in which they protect themselves. Furthermore, the video also demonstrates how they collaborate to deal with the competition of predators and the challenges of survival on a daily basis. This metaphor demonstrates the manner in which diversity is most effectively managed in the workplace – by acknowledging and accepting differences while building on similarities.

KEY LEARNING POINTS: 
• Every individual is unique in their own way - it is important to understand and respect differing viewpoints and belief systems • Every individual has a unique contribution to make - the wonderful thing about being different is that each person can make contributions in their own unique way • Sharing differences is important - this enables working together in the same space • Building a common vision of the future is critical - celebrate similarities as they outnumber differences and allow the opportunity to build a better and more culturally enriched world. • Agreeing on shared values is essential - irrespective of background or history, developing a shared value system will be the glue that keeps people together

VIDEO RUNNING TIME: 8 minutes
TARGET AUDIENCE: All Staff
SUPPORT MATERIAL: Guide, Workbook, OHP
PRODUCT FORMAT: Video

The Story of Shingalana - Working With New Ideas

In this program from the Lessons from the Wild Series, a lioness, through the use of stunning wildlife footage, is used as the metaphor to explore the concept of innovation, allowing for new ideas and developing implementation techniques. The video tells a story of a young 2-day-old lioness cub that was found by the Varty’s and reared to adulthood. The manner in which they did this challenged the conventions of human/animal interaction as well as the traditional wisdom of lion pride behavior. The story includes spectacular footage of the interaction between Gill Varty and the young, adolescent and then fully-grown lioness, named Shingalana. Filmed at Londolozi, Mphumalanga and then in Zambia as they prepare for Shingalana’s release, the drama unfolds when they introduce Shingalana into a local pride of lions. While the males appear to be friendly, the females adopt a very different set of behaviors – with disastrous consequences. This video demonstrates the metaphor of resistance to change; of how new ideas and new ways of doing things are often rejected simply because they are new.

KEY LEARNING POINTS: 
• Not every new idea works, but often new ideas are “killed” early on - often with disastrous consequences • Every “new mistake” is a learning experience – if organizations want their staff to innovate they need to allow for a culture of mistakes and time to learn from them • Not everyone is capable of thinking up new ideas – few people are creative thinkers, and creativity has no boundaries • Everyone should give a new idea a chance – because most people like boundaries they tend to resist new ideas that challenge them, and resist the people who develop them. Creative people need to be supported • New ideas seldom happen where expected – often new ideas don’t happen at the center but rather on the fringe of the business • It takes time to nurture new ideas and let them grow – new ideas are often met with early resistance and it takes time for people to experiment, to learn new behaviors and adopt new habits

VIDEO RUNNING TIME: 16 minutes
TARGET AUDIENCE: All Staff
SUPPORT MATERIAL: Guide, Workbook, OHP
PRODUCT FORMAT: Video

Bad Fur Day (Meeting opener)

Synopsis: An introductory video on teamwork using the Wild dog as the metaphor.  Suitable for any program dealing with teamwork; team roles; team building; and team success.  The video compares the behavior of the wild dog (the most successful hinter in Africa) with the behavior of other predators and illustrates how teamwork can achieve results way beyond the ability of the individual. 

KEY LEARNING POINTS:

· Always try something new · A good team has the right mix of skills to motivate each other and have clear plans · Be purposeful communicators · Share a common purpose for working together · Exhibit strong disciplines · The best way to avoid ‘Bad Fur Days’ is ‘Teamwork’

The Odd Squad (meeting opener)

SYNOPSIS:  An introductory video dealing with Diversity using the metaphor of the Zebra.  Suitable for any program dealing with diversity; values; equity; similarities; differences and human uniqueness.  Understanding differences enables more powerful sharing of similarities.  Importantly, everyone has the ability to make a unique contribution to issues that are important to the whole organization

KEY LEARNING POINTS:

· Every individual is different and each bring it’s own unique contribution · Great teams recognize great talent · Enhance people’s appreciation for and the ability to work with people who are different · Embrace diversity…form a multi-skilled, flexible and a highly creative ‘Circle if Winners’

Tusks (meeting opener)       

SYNOPSIS:  An introductory video comparing lion (Fangs) and elephants (Tusks) to facilitate a discussion on leadership; corporate governance; values; new millennium organizations; ethics; resilience and the like.  The video compares the predatory, competitive behavior of the lion with the collaborative, communicative behavior of the elephant.

KEY LEARNING POINTS:

· Goals can be achieved ethically and in community · Develop a nurturing team culture which strives for the common good · Effective communication and sharing of information is critical and ensures the team stays together in difficult times · Valuing relationships based on strong leadership and compassion for others is in the best interests of the team · Planning ahead, and considering strategies and people from all angles, is critical for survival, especially in tough times · Celebrate success and accommodate failure

THE JOURNEY – Change

This new session starter is for every session where change and an open mind are needed. Your 3-minute journey offers a meaningful and insightful look at this most vexing of all topics. Evocative music and beautiful scenery are gently interrupted by quotes from some of the world's leading thinkers.  It deals with the imperative to change and the need to adapt to the circumstances we face. This film will beautifully open or close any meeting where change will be the essence of the discussion.

SPIRIT OF THE DOLPHIN – Teamwork

Against the backdrop of beautiful dolphin footage, graphics and a superb soundtrack, this video encourages teamwork and motivates viewers to work together for better results.  An extensive support guide with a PowerPoint presentation, all presented on a CD-ROM for easy reproduction, make it easy to design and deliver a 30 minute or 1 hour session based on the principles in the video. **

MY IDEA – Implementing Creativity

Has your organization ever despaired at the ability to create ideas that aren’t then capitalized? Did you ever wonder why a team could seem so dynamic at meetings it holds, only to never take action? “My Idea” is just the session starter you need to get people focused on progress and action rather than just creative idea generation.

LESSONS FROM GEESE - Teamwork

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Price: Sale - $475/ Rental $175

This moving and stimulating video will boost the people in your conference or training session.  In just over 2 minutes it teaches five key lessons about being a team player and winning as a team.  It will lift the mood and help you develop commitment to peak performance, both within individuals and throughout teams. **

LINCOLN - Perseverance

A stirring story of a man’s journey through life. Through many adversities and failures, he did not give up and kept trying.  Finally succeeding in becoming one of the greatest presidents of the U. S.