LEGO SERIOUS PLAY MODELS CREATE IDEAS THAT STICK
One thing I hear over and over again in LSP workshops is how amazed people are by the fact that they remember the models so easily - and the meaning of those for a long time. Just out of curiosity about how and why people remember some things more vividly, I did some research.

I learned that people have used mental pictures, instead or words or phrases, to remember things since the times of ancient Greece and Rome and have used picture-based memorization techniques such as the memory palace. According to a Roman legend, the memory palace technique was created by Simonides of Ceos, 2500 years ago. Others believe that the technique actually originated in hunter/gatherer times. The technique involves storing a picture in your brain with a series of elements or “pegs” and each item in your mental picture is then linked to something you need to remember.
3D OBJECTS ARE EASIER TO REMEMBER
More specifically related to LSP models, there is also research demonstrating that three-dimensional objects are easier to remember than 2D pictures. It is hypothesized that the difference in how two eyes process the geometry of 3D objects and the fact that 3D objects “afford action”, such as touching and manipulating, impacts how the brain processes, and retains, the information. The lasting power of images and models is further reinforced by research on learning styles. It has been found that 65 percent of the general population are visual learners and the brain can process images 60,000 times faster than text.
NOTHING IN LEGO SERIOUS PLAY IS REALLY NEW
In one LSP workshop focused on how multiple offices could work together more effectively, an emerging leader stood up holding a LEGO model of an airplane. He said, holding the plane in the air, “we need to fly to each other’s offices more often.” Even though this occurred almost twenty years ago, it is as vivid in my memory as if it happened yesterday.

This should not be surprising because nothing in the LSP process is really new. I have discovered over the more than 20 years that I have worked with the process that the reason is works so well is because it combines science with practical and predictable ways of implementing scientific theory.

This is also the reason that LSP probably never will become a FAD (the latest flashing thing), because it taps into our genetic code somehow. Learning through pictures and images pre-dates learning through language. When groups or teams work together to solve complex challenges, the visual shorthand of LSP models create a memorable landscape summarizing future plans and actions.
Best Regards.
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Rasmussen Consulting specializes in using LEGO SERIOUS PLAY to effectively harvest an organization's collective intelligence to build a better business. We are also the leading organization for training and certifying facilitators in the LEGO SERIOUS PLAY method. You can view our training schedule at www.rasmussenconsulting.dk.