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trust fall

/ˈtrʌst ˌfɔl/
IPA guide

If you're part of a working group, don't be surprised if you're asked to do a team-building exercise called a trust fall, letting yourself drop backwards into the arms of another team member. Let's hope they catch you!

To trust someone is to know that you can rely on them. The theory behind the trust fall exercise is that if you can learn to trust your teammates to catch you when you let yourself fall, you can trust them to help you in all kinds of other situations. It's an exercise used in corporate or educational settings to foster and strengthen bonds between members of a group. The phrase trust fall also sometimes refers figuratively to any risk a person takes by relying on others for support.

Definitions of trust fall
  1. noun
    a team-building exercise where one person lets themselves fall, expecting one or more others to catch them
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