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After verbally communicating and arguing in the cosy indoor environment, your batch will now be
facing the heat and dust in real sense. The indoor tasks (Group Discussions and GPE) help the group
blend up and at the same time, provide a mental set for the leader follower equation. Those who
proposed superior arguments and ideas during the discussions and planning exercise are differentiated
from the ordinary and average. Reasoning, logic, knowledge and information are individual attributes. It
is hypothesised that those with superior individual attributes will influence the group by their
intellectual superiority and take suitable decisions for the group in achieving the group goals (lead the
group). The group will place trust and faith in them and will accept their ideas without resistance or
reservation. Outdoor tasks in a way seek to confirm the leadership attributes of a person.
Group tasks, like group discussion are leaderless tasks. But unlike group discussions, group tasks
need leader to steer the group through. Group discussions primarily are verbal in nature and only
ideas are exchanged. Group tasks need ‘preformance’ and while performing both your mind and
body act. Your interaction with the group members is more wide and comprehensive. Qualities of
tolerance and tact, social and emotional intelligence can be witnessed with sharper focus during
the group tasks.
The GTO does not nominate as leaders in outdoor tasks. (Command Task is exception for a
different objective. It is different even in structure and composition). The outdoor tasks provide a fertile
ground in which the seeds of leadership would spontaneously spread. Those who are real leaders will
certainly establish themselves while the paper tigers will now slip into the background and the group
will find new leaders who steer the group through obstacles.

Lesson 17
Categories of Outdoor Tasks

There are two categories of outdoor tasks :—
— Group Tasks, and
— Individual Tasks
Group Tasks. As the name suggests these are the tasks to be performed by the group. Each group
member must find a sense of accomplishment in contributing his bit toward achievement of group
objective. Even in face of the pitched competition, rivalry, differences of opinions and approaches, the
group is expected to maintain unity and cohesiveness. Interest of the group reigns supreme and
individual objectives are to surrender in favour of the group goals. Group tasks thus are the wonderful
examples of co-operation and competition in a single fold.
What you are required to do in the group tasks—The group is required to move from one
position to another crossing/negotiating a set of obstacles. A ‘load’ or parcel is supplied by the GTO to
add the stress factor. The load is never to be disowned. It is to be carried all the while by the group
members as a sacred and inescapable responsibility. In other words, group-members and the inanimate
object (the load) together make a unit.
To negotiate the hurdles/obstacles some helping material are also provided by the GTO.
Normally these include a rope (sometimes two pieces) and two wooden planks/beams. (In
selection boards the most common phrase used for beam is ‘balli’). The helping material are to
imaginatively applied to bridge the gap between structures for advancing. Helping materials
too become the inseparable possession of the group and can never be discarded. The group has
to complete its journey with the load and the helping material.
The group has to observe certain rules and regulations while advancing. While the GTO will brief
you in detail about various rules. some of the commonly applicable rules are mentioned below :—
Start and Finish Lines—The obstacles may be of a single or multi stages. Every stage of obstacle
set has well defined start and finish lines. All members of the group have to assemble at the starting