In August, 27 new apprentices and dual students started with us. In the first few weeks, they had the opportunity to settle in and get to know the company and their new colleagues. In mid-October, the trainee trip took place, which took the group to Papenburg for three days.
Getting to know each other and team building
On Wednesday morning, we set off together on the bus to Papenburg. Once we arrived there, we started straight away with the first, no, second "getting to know each other". As the first meeting had already taken place during our onboarding. After a hearty lunch at the youth hostel, we were able to move into our rooms and settle in for the next two days.
In the afternoon, we continued with exciting team building exercises. In particular, building a domino chain with various obstacles really challenged us as a team and was a real highlight. We ended the evening in a relaxed atmosphere with board games and a few exciting rounds of Mario Kart.
Stream crossing and rope acrobatics
On the second day, our trust in each other and cohesion within the group was put to the test in various exercises. One of them required both good timing and team spirit, as we had to run through a swinging skipping rope in just a few laps. Around lunchtime, we were joined by some of our trainers and took the opportunity to have lunch together and catch up with them.
We then split up into two groups to tackle the next challenges outside. Group 1 had the task of crossing a stream - the problem: there were only two ropes to help us, but they were on the other side of the stream. Although it seemed almost impossible at first, a few clever ideas eventually enabled us to cross the stream together.
Group 2 had to prove themselves on the low ropes course at the same time. All group members had to cross the ropes stretched between the trees without falling off. This task was also not easy at first, but after a few failed attempts, we successfully mastered it as a team.
After a cozy barbecue, there was still the opportunity to ask the trainers personal questions and challenge them in various games - a successful conclusion to an eventful day.
Final seminars and valuable insights
On the third and final day, several seminars on topics such as self-organization, biorhythms and communication were on the agenda. These provided valuable input to help us organize our day-to-day work more effectively and confidently. This was followed by the final reflection. After lunch, our bus made its way back to Lingen.
Overall, we can say that the trainee trip was an absolute highlight. Not only did we have a lot of fun together, but we were also able to get to know each other better, strengthen our team spirit and gain valuable experience for the future.
written by Anna and Judith