Who couldn’t use a little more energy? In a work environment, it’s always a good idea to get a burst of positive energy that can be carried over into whatever activities you have planned. Group energizers are fun activities that shift participants’ focus for a few minutes and help everyone to rejuvenate and bring a fresh attitude to whatever is happening next. 

These energizers are also great for helping attendees to interact more with each other as well as reduce the monotony of long work sessions or meetings. Large group energizers are perfect for conferences, team training sessions, team-building retreats, or anywhere that a big group of people is present in a work environment.  Ready to get a breath of fresh air and bring some new energy into your next event? Let’s dive into our favorite large group energizes that are perfect for 30 or more people.

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General large group energizer activities

1. Field day-style games

What’s more energizing than playing outside? If you’re in a session that is partly outdoors or allows for outside activity, set up a few simple games that people can take turns playing. For example, you could set up a three-legged sack race or a short relay. The goal is to have people compete in low-stakes, high-energy fun while getting fresh air. Moving your body around is a natural, healthy energizer, and field day games like these allow people plenty of space to chat with each other, laugh, stretch, and just generally shift their mind from whatever is being discussed in your meeting or event. You don’t need a ton of prep work or any in-depth plans - just an outdoor space and a few simple supplies make this easy. 

2. “Hot takes” break

During breaks, encourage people to share unpopular opinions around a certain topic. You start by announcing a subject that is normally non-controversial. Then, let people raise their hands and share a “hot take”, which is an opinion not usually shared by others in general. Here’s an example: the topic is “movie villains”. Someone might raise their hand and say that their hot take is that a certain movie villain is misunderstood and shouldn’t be viewed as bad. Or, maybe the topic is “ice cream”. A hot take might be someone claiming that chocolate ice cream is the worst flavor. It’s important to keep these topics light and fun so that everyone is comfortable and finds the situation humorous. Now is not the time to bring up politics, religion, or even sports teams if you have a particularly passionate group. You can do a few rounds of this throughout the day whenever you need a pause or refresh. 

3. Sit-stand

In this physical activity, there will be a facilitator instructing the larger team. You’ll also need ample space so make sure you are in a location that can accommodate a large group moving around. Have the facilitator start by instructing people to do some simple, engaging activities. For instance, they could start by saying “stand up”. Then, the facilitator says “stop” and then the instruction is flipped to its opposite. So, if they say “stand”, that really means “sit”. If they originally had said “walk”, that would now mean “stand still”. As you can imagine, this leads to pure chaos and a lot of laughter. This is helpful for getting more physical but also in encouraging people to communicate better throughout the day. 

4. Smartphone bingo

Some variation of bingo is helpful in nearly all scenarios, and this is no exception. Start by creating bingo cards with a random assortment of prompts based on your phone. For example, “has a to-do list”, “has Amazon as a bookmark”, “has more than 300 contacts”, or “has a photo of their dog”. Have a facilitator randomly pull these prompts and call them out, and attendees will fill in the square if it applies to them. This is a fun way to learn a bit more about your coworkers while also improving listening skills. 

5. Name that tune

Inserting music into your working sessions is good for a lot of reasons, and many people find music naturally energizing even without making it part of a game. As you plan your retreat or training session, make sure that you have an electrical set up that can accommodate playing music from your phone. Play short snippets of songs from a playlist that you set up in advance, and have people raise their hands to be first to name the song. The first person who does so correctly, wins. You can keep score and have a real winner, but you don’t need to. It’s fun just to hear the music and try to guess. 

6. “Who am I?” game

This classic game is very interactive, which is perfect for groups who have varying degrees of comfort with each other. You’ll start by passing out sticky post-it notes and pens to everyone present. Every participant should write down the name of a celebrity or other person who is likely to be known by the group. Then, put all the papers into a hat and let each person draw one without looking, and put it on their forehead (to really prevent seeing the name, it’s often easier to have someone else place the note on your head). Then, set a timer for 20 minutes and have everyone walk around and mingle, using questions to try and get more information about the name on their forehead. Only yes or no questions should be used - think of it as a sort of 20 questions for people. One of the best parts of this game is the movement required. It’s ideal for getting people out of their seats and talking to others. 

7. Most likely to…

This energizer game can be really fun when played amongst people who know each other fairly well already. Have a facilitator read out a series of prompts based on "Most likely to” statements like “most likely to star in a movie” or “most likely to run in a marathon”. Other players should raise their hands and give a name, along with a reason why they believe that person is the most likely to XYZ. To make sure everyone gets a chance to participate, it’s important to have a broad range of statements across a variety of areas. It’s not a great feeling if none of your colleagues think you’re “most likely to” do much, so the more inclusive you can be, the better. 

8. Scavenger hunt

If you follow our blog, you know that we are big on scavenger hunts. These activities are perfect for all sorts of group gatherings and can be done inside, outside, or even virtually. You can make them as large-scale or simple as you want. For example, if everyone is in a conference room together, have a mini-scavenger hunt where people search for items within their own laptop bags or purses. Or, you could put together more complex searches that necessitate getting into groups and taking photos of various landmarks. Consider how much time you plan to spend on this activity, along with your surroundings, and come up with a unique scavenger hunt that will get everyone moving, thinking, or talking. 

9. Backward names

This energizer activity is best for people who have at least some familiarity with each other. It’s a simple format which means it's easy to execute. Divide everyone into groups of less than 20 to make things even easier. Hand each attendee a piece of paper and pen, and they should write their name down. After that the team leader should collect all of the papers, and have each participant draw a slip of paper. That person will read the name on the paper backwards to the entire group. The first person to guess the actual name being said wins. You can keep score and have a winning person or team, or just do open-ended guessing and enjoy the laughter that will ensue. 

10. Simple stretching

Sometimes, just moving your body and getting some good, deep breaths is enough. Several times throughout the day, use the natural breaks that occur to have everyone stand up and stretch. If you want to be more formal, you could have a team leader facilitate some group stretching or even introduce a short yoga session. As long as you can get people’s bodies moving, it’s a great thing. Plus - it’s free and no special supplies are needed! 

11. Red light, green light

This take on a childhood classic is another good option for facilitating movement. You’ll need to make sure you’re in a big enough space where people can move freely, preferably even outdoors. Start by having all participants line up on one side of the room. When the leader says “green light”, everyone moves toward the finish line at the opposite end of the room. When they say “red light”, everyone must stop immediately. Anyone who fails to quit moving during “red light” is out of the game. This continues until there is only one person left, who is the winner. If you want to make things more challenging, you can add in a few more elements. For example, maybe “yellow light” is hopping. Or, if you don’t have a huge space, you could change the instructions so that red light and green light don’t involve running. 

12. Telephone

This large group energizer drives home the importance of communication (and why it’s a bad idea to gossip). Have everyone stand in a circle, close enough that they can whisper in the person’s ear next to them. The first person should make up a sentence of no more than 5 or 6 words and start the chain by whispering it to the person on their right. Then, that person whispers it to their neighbor, and on it goes. The last person in the circle should announce the sentence to the group, and everyone will see if it stayed the same or changed. Some of the variations end up being quite funny, but even if they make no sense, it’s a good real-life example of why “playing telephone” is detrimental. 

13. Don’t laugh

This activity is great if you have some especially funny team members. Start by having all attendees stand in a circle, and then have a volunteer stand in the middle and make some jokes. The attendees should not laugh, no matter how funny the person inside the circle is being. This is a great way to lighten the mood during heavier topics or serious meetings. One caveat: make sure that the “joker” is based purely on volunteers only. It’s not easy to stand in front of a group, particularly when it comes to trying to be funny. Not everyone will be up for this, so you need to know your team before you proceed. 

14. Rock, paper, scissors tournament

Most people know how to play rock, paper, scissors, so this activity can get a lot of participation. It’s also a chance to get a bit louder and use movement while flexing a competitive muscle. Have everyone get into pairs and play each other until one person wins (best out of 3, usually). The “loser” then becomes part of the cheering section for the winner. The winner of each round continues until there is only a final pair left, with each side having cheerleaders to support them. This game scales easily and can be used for even very large groups with no special supplies. 

15. Group postcard

For a more creative game, have your team collaboratively use postcards to make a bigger picture. Hand out several blank postcards and have the team work together to determine how they’ll create their picture. Some people like to have a cohesive image in mind and then discuss how they’ll each do a small part. Other people like to bring up and color the postcards one at a time, adding a small piece to the growing image, and seeing what it becomes. Either way, this is a great way to facilitate teamwork, cooperation, and creativity all at once. For other team-building activities for large groups, check out our website. 

Icebreaker energizing activities

16. Name game

For this 5-minute energizing activity, have each person add an adjective to their name as they introduce themselves to the group. For example, “Amazing Anita” or “Resourceful Ron”. Make sure each person present gets the chance to share their enhanced name. Then, go around in a circle and have each person try to recall 3 of the names they heard, along with their adjective. This is a fun memory-jogging activity and it also forces people to pay more attention as others are introduced. It’s an easy first icebreaker for teams who don’t work together too often. 

17. Candy questions

For this game, you’ll need several different colored candies. Write on the board one question per color, for example purple means “Do you have a pet?” and red means “Did you go to college and where?” Then, have everyone take 3 candies randomly from your supply. The 3 colors they get represent the three questions they’ll ask their neighbor. In this way, people can have fresh conversations and not just repeat the usual getting-to-know-you questions over and over. For more get-to-know-you games, make sure to keep up with our blog. 

18. Show your phone

A very simple and easy icebreaker involves asking everyone to share the latest “something” on their phone. The “something” could be their most recent photo, or the last app they had open. As long as it’s work appropriate, you can get creative about what you’ll ask people to show. A popular take on this game is to share the last 3 emojis you used, but you can get as creative as you feel comfortable. For a super fast and effective icebreaker, have each person stand up, introduce themselves, and share this tidbit of information based on your prompt. 

19. Share your superpower

Another easy variation on an icebreaker is to share what your superpower would be. As everyone stands and introduces themselves, ask them to include some information on the special talents that make them unique. They can use their imagination for most desired superpowers like teleporting, or they can list some actual talents such as speedy present-wrapping or fantastic filing. It’s a nice way to learn a bit more about the people around you and what makes them special (plus, you might learn about who you can go to when you need some help with certain tasks). 

20. Business card collection

To introduce people who haven’t met before, you can try this game. Set a timer and have everyone try to collect at least 3 new business cards in the room. Through the conversations they have with others, they should write down at least 3 details about the person on their business card. So, once the timer goes off, you can go around the room having each person name the people that they met and the information they found interesting (from their notes on the card). If people want to collect more than 3 cards, that’s fine, as long as they are taking the time to also get to know some details about each individual. Remember, the goal is to get to know others, have real conversations, and recall both names and other facts about each person. 

21. 3-Question mingle

This is a bit like the previous game, but also a different game in its own right. For this one, every participant should write down 3 separate questions on 3 pieces of paper. The questions should be thoughtful and meant to engage in real conversation, not just things like “where do you live?” Then, have everyone begin to mingle around the room and start to engage in discussions in pairs. People will ask their questions and get answers. The trick is, after asking a question and getting the answer, you hand over that piece of paper to the person you’ve spoken to. They’ll do the same. This way, in your next conversation, you’ll have new questions to ask your next partner. On and on the game goes until everyone has paired off or the timer that you set goes off. Many people find this is ideal for a large group of over 50 or 60 people, and is good for encouraging participation among even your quietest team members. 

22. Interactive group map

In this engaging team warmup exercise, you have the group imagine the space that you’re in as a map. Their goal is to place themselves where they are from. The first few steps have the most energy, as people try to find relative geographies and move around the space and each other. This game can be played with teams of any size, but it tends to be more fun when people are from more diverse, spread out areas. If everyone is from the same state, simply scale down your map and have everyone stand in the town they’re from. This game is really adaptable and offers a great visual for how near and far your colleagues are. For more interesting team warmups, make sure to follow our blog. 

There are lots more icebreaker ideas for large groups and large group games in our resource center; be sure to check them out for more inspiration! 

Energize your team retreat

If you are organizing a team retreat, all-day meeting, or training session, it’s important to include some energizing activities no matter the size of your group. That being said, these energizing activities are perfect for larger groups which can sometimes be harder to accommodate.

If you need some assistance planning in-depth team-building retreats or working sessions that not only energize your employees but also facilitate camaraderie and build morale, reach out to Surf Office. We can help you to plan great out-of-the-office experiences that your team will appreciate and remember.