The Lessons of the Holiday Havoc GooseChase

Let's try another staff GooseChase, I thought.

Let's have a great big departmental prize, I thought (with the magnificent assistance of our principal and bookkeeper, of course!).

It will be a fun team-building activity, I thought.

Well...

I was right.

And I was somewhat of course in that I didn't anticipate the true depths of competitive spirit of some of our staff members.

There are only seven missions, and the prize is $500 in instructional funds for the winning department! It immediately started with one department going to the administration telling them, "It's on!" This started the first rivalry. Once another department realized what could be purchased with the funds, things started heating up.

Accusations of possible improprieties, insinuations of cross-team assistance leading to "banishment (albeit temporary)," and other situations calling for me to become judge and jury suddenly arose. This after the issue of the "free" program required in one mission showing it's ugly hidden side in that IT'S NOT REALLY FREE!

OH, MY.

However, all of this was done with smiles, laughter, and a lot of good-natured fun so we'll see who wins!