What If We Brought More Play Into Training? I Part 1: From Listening to Learning

Some training sessions feel heavy from the moment the first slide appears.

As the minutes pass, eyes drift toward the clock, hands reach for coffee, and minds start wandering somewhere else.

The trainer talks.
The slides move forward.
Participants listen.

And before long, learning gives way to boredom.

But training doesn't have to be this way.

Sometimes, a simple game, the right question, a little competition, or a problem participants can experience for themselves can completely change the atmosphere.

In this series, we'll explore how we can bring a little more movement, play, and curiosity into traditional training.

So, Why Play?

In Homo Ludens, published in 1938, Johan Huizinga described human beings not only as Homo sapiens — the thinking human — or Homo faber — the making human — but also as Homo ludens — the playing human.

For Huizinga, play is as old as humanity itself.

It is part of how we socialize, have fun, and learn. Unlike many activities driven by everyday necessity, play is voluntary. It gives meaning to the activity itself and goes beyond simply meeting an immediate need.

That is exactly why it is worth asking:

What if we didn't keep play outside the learning process, but brought some of its elements into it?

Of course, this doesn't mean turning every training session into a game.

Some training simply doesn't need that.

Explaining theory still matters. But adding small moments where participants have to think, decide, predict, discuss, or experience something for themselves can completely change the dynamics of a session.

How Can We Bring Play Into Training?

Gamification is often associated with points, rewards, and competition.

But it doesn't have to be.

The goal isn't to add a game to every training session. It is to bring some of the mechanics of play into the learning process.

For example, before introducing a concept, give participants a real problem and ask:

“What would you do?”

Listen to their answers first.

Then introduce the concept and explore together where their ideas work — and where they might not.

When introducing a new topic, ask participants to put key concepts in the correct order.

Use Bingo to review what they have learned.

Or try Taboo and ask them to explain a concept without using the words that come most naturally to them.

The participant is no longer simply listening to information.

They are doing something with it.

When Should We Use Gamification?

It doesn't have to affect the entire training session.

It could be used:

• to introduce a topic,
• to review a concept,
• during a problem-solving activity,
• or as an evaluation at the end of the session.

Sometimes, making just one of these learning moments more interactive is enough.

And it doesn't necessarily require sophisticated apps, special software, or a big budget.

A deck of cards.

A few questions.

A stopwatch.

Sometimes, all you need is a well-designed task.

A few minutes of play, a thought-provoking question, or a little competition can change the flow of a training session.

Because the goal isn't simply to make training more fun.

The real goal is to get people thinking, talking, making decisions, and using what they have learned.

In the next parts of this series, we'll take a closer look at some of these approaches and explore how they can be used in real training situations.

So, what do you think?

Is play at work still seen as “child's play” — or are we beginning to recognize it as a powerful way to learn?

In this mini-series, we explored how gamification can be used in corporate training. The goal is not to turn the entire training session into a game, but to design learning moments that encourage participants to think, make decisions, try things out, and use what they have learned.

What If We Brought More Play Into Training?

✅ Part 1 | From Listening to Learning
⬜Part 2 | Bringing Training to Life with a Deck of Cards: Bingo & Taboo
⬜Part 3 | What Else Can We Use in Training?
⬜Part 4 | How Can We Gamify Our Own Training?

Links to new parts will be added to this page as they are published.