01 The Global Service Jam’s warm-up playlist on YouTube includes videos explaining this warm-up and showing it in action. See http://bit.do/JamWarmups.
This warm-up exists in many forms and under different names. [01] It is especially intense, and can be used to make a powerful start to the day, to clearly punctuate the process, or to shake people out of a rut.
Step-by-step guide
- The basic form is a group of four people. The subject starts in the middle, and the warm-up proceeds as follows:
— The person standing behind the subject’s left shoulder (Color Canvas) asks simple visual questions, immediately repeating each question until the subject answers correctly. (“What color is the sun? The sun? The sun? The sky? The sky?”)
— The person standing behind the subject’s right shoulder (Math Professor) asks very simple math questions, immediately repeating each question until the subject answers correctly. (“Two plus two? Two plus two? Half of six? Half of six? Half of six?”)
— The person standing in front of the subject (Puppet Master) makes very slow, precise movements mostly with their hands, waiting for the subject to copy each pose precisely before moving on. - The three people all demand the subject’s attention at the same time. The subject answers all the questions and mirrors the movements simultaneously.
- When the subject is warm (eyes bright, face full of life, usually after about 30 seconds), change positions so everyone gets a new job. Always change all teams at the same time, so everyone can start and finish each round at the same time, sharing the experience and building the dramatic arc.
- At the end, debrief the warm-up (see “Method notes.”)
