Library of teambuilding games & icebreakers

How to play Categories (similarities)

The goal of this game is to have everyone find a certain amount of things they all have in common. You can make this into a competitive icebreaker game between smaller teams or a larger group. For groups of more than 20 or so, you’ll need to break people up into smaller teams. You don’t need any supplies to set up the game, simply use a piece of paper and a writing utensil for each team to record their similarities on. Each group should talk about things they have in common and try to come up with at least 6 similarities. Things could be as simple as hair color or favorite food, or dive deeper like holding certifications or having visited a country.  The first team to get to 6 commonalities wins.

For remote teams, staying fit and healthy can be a challenge. No longer do we need to walk or cycle to work, we just roll out of bed and place ourselves at our desks.

Sometimes, a little healthy competition is enough to give people the incentive they need.

How to play the ‘Healthy together‘ challenge

‍To play this game, think of a challenge like ‘run 1 kilometre every day.’ Everybody needs to prove that they completed the challenge each day (by showing a GPS route, for example). Every time the challenge is completed/failed it gets marked on a calendar. At the end of the month, the team member with the most completed days wins a prize!

Explanation:

‍Office and remote workers team up to match pairs of items. Remote workers describe their items, and office workers try to match them without seeing them.

Remote participants start by picking an item from their home (like a weird-shaped mug or a funky pen), but instead of showing it, they give the office team a detailed description. The in-office team then tries to find a matching item in the office based on that description alone. It’s all about great communication and attention to detail. Once both teams think they’ve found a match, they reveal the items on camera to see if they actually paired them correctly!

It’s a light-hearted, fun way to boost listening skills and teamwork between remote and in-office employees.

Office Apples to Apples is a hilarious twist on the classic word game, perfect for bringing some shenanigans to a corporate event. Here's how to get the party started.

Set up:

1. Get your cards ready. A spin on the traditional Apples to Apples card game, you need to create cards with office-themed words or phrases, like “coffee break” or “Monday meeting madness”.
2. Lay Down the Law: Explain that one lucky soul plays judge in each round while the others throw down their wackiest associations to the green apple card played.
3. The judge picks their favorite, and that team scores a point. Set a point limit for winners.
4. Keep the laughs rolling by rotating judges each round.

How to play 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.

A substantial amount of agile principles can be improved by having your team members step into the customer’s shoes. Problem-solving and conflict resolution through role play can yield some creative results. By mapping out a fictional customer’s journey your teams get a better understanding of the company’s goals, so here’s how to set it up:

Set up:

Before you deliver the activity, craft some customer scenarios. They could be scenarios you’ve faced in the past or more challenging hypothetical examples. As a group, map out each step of the customer’s experience, from the purchase to aftercare support. Some example challenges from the customer’s perspective could be:

a. Complex sign-up process

b. Confusing app navigation

c. Slow loading times for features

d. Not enough customer support when calling

Map out the customer’s journey and seek those points where the frustrations could be soothed. Prioritize those changes and explain how agile collaboration can improve the customer experience.

Explanation:

‍Teams brainstorm and design the ultimate office gadget that solves an everyday problem, like a self-cleaning desk or a coffee cup that never gets cold. The goal is to sketch out the concept and explain how it works.

In this hybrid version, remote and in-office workers team up to brainstorm their gadget ideas. Remote workers can use virtual tools to create digital sketches and presentations, while in-office workers can build mockups or create physical prototypes using whatever’s available. Everyone collaborates on how the gadget would work and why it would make office life easier (or just more fun). At the end, each team shares their gadget ideas via video call, showing off both the digital and physical aspects of their creation.

It’s a fun way to mix creativity and problem-solving across both work environments!

How to play Shout Out

In this game, members collaborate and contribute by shouting out some ideas. You’ll need some sort of white board or flip chart, and plan for 3 - 10 people in a group. First come up with a problem that you want to discuss. For example, “How can we reduce waste in our production process?” or “How can we bring that new product to market one week faster?” Give each person the opportunity to yell out an idea so that the whole group can hear. Once everyone has had a chance to speak, ask the group to come to a consensus on the best option, and then hold a discussion about it. Why is it the best idea? What makes it workable, etc? Also, did everyone feel listened to? How did the results from this process differ from just speaking to each other?

This gives your employees a chance to learn more about problem solving processes and cooperation, in addition to potential solutions to real business issues.

In speed stack showdown, teams race to stack cups into pyramids and then break them down as quickly as possible. It’s a fast-paced, high-energy competition that tests agility, coordination, and the ability to keep cool under pressure!

This game is perfect for bringing some excitement into the office and getting everyone moving. Plus, it’s a great way to build team spirit with a little bit of chaos.

How to play:

• Split into teams and give each team a set of cups.
• Teams stack the cups into pyramids and then break them down as fast as possible.
• The fastest team to complete the challenge wins!

Discover more team-building activities for adults to energize your team and spark some friendly competition.

Instructions:

1. Divide players into teams.
2. Provide each team with a set of materials such as blocks, cards, straws, cups, and tape.
3. Set a time limit of 10-15 minutes for the teams to build the tallest tower.
4. Ensure that each team follows the same rules and uses the same materials.
5. Once the time is up, measure the height of each tower and declare the winner.
6. Discuss the strategies used by each team and how they could improve in future rounds.
7. Repeat the game with different materials or variations to continue challenging the players' leadership skills.
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This game unleashes potential leaders' creativity, teamwork, and strategic thinking. Just like a tower, leadership requires a solid foundation, balance, and the ability to reach new heights. It challenges leaders to allocate resources efficiently, communicate effectively, and inspire their team to elevate their performance.

Instructions:

1. Divide participants into teams of 4-6 with puzzles and workspace.
2. Teams solve the puzzle within a specified time, demonstrating leadership skills.
3. Assign the role of ‘team leader’ and allow them to oversee progress.
4. Set a time limit for completion, emphasizing collaboration and effective communication.
5. Debrief and discuss team approaches, leadership qualities, challenges, and strategies.
6. Reflect on individual and collective leadership skills, share insights and lessons.

This game is no ordinary puzzle-solving extravaganza. It challenges teams to collaborate, communicate, and showcase their leadership prowess. By assigning team leaders, setting time limits, and emphasizing effective problem-solving, this game hones their ability to guide and bring out the best in your team. So grab your puzzle pieces and get ready to unlock your team’s inner leadership maestro in a fun and engaging way.

How to play Mystery basket

In this game, blindfolded players will try to guess what’s in a basket by feel. To play, gather a bunch of items from around the office. Obviously they should be safe and not have things like sharp ends or spikes. Place everything in a basket or bowl and have blindfolded participants explore the items with their hands and try to guess what they are observing. Keep track of answers with a pencil and paper, and the person with the most correct guesses wins.

How to play Group Map

Are you hosting an event where people come from various locations? Try laying out an imaginary map in a room representing all the areas people may have come from. Have them stand in their “place of origin” and share a bit about where they came from. You could also print a large map and have everyone place a pin on their area. The important thing is to share some information about where they’ve come from.

How to play Suddenly” story

This is a fun game that brings out lots of creativity and improves communication. Have your team sit in a circle and instruct everyone that they will get to share 3 sentences only. Choose a person to start, and they’ll share their 3 sentences. Once finished, they should say “suddenly!” and then the next person in the circle takes their turn.

This cycle continues until you reach the last person in the group, who should conclude the story. For a twist, you can have people make up a completely fictional story, or include real-world information to form a realistic narrative. This makes it amusing but also helps with overall story-telling, which is a key part of effective marketing

This simple game needs little material and is a perfect icebreaker—a perfect in-person game for company retreats and onboarding events.

How to play:  

‍One person from the group, ideally a team leader, calls out the facts or questions that team members just asked one another. Individuals have to make teams as quickly as possible based on the call-outs, like” people with one cat” or “people who play video games.”

Individuals must quickly figure out who meets the criteria and form a team. This exercise can be repeated with as many questions as you like.

Materials you’ll need Just yourselves and some places to sit. If you have a large team, ensure enough space to play.

How many people: Small to large teams (8 to 25+ people)

How to play Worst job ever?

Many icebreakers involve simply answering a question, and this is a fun one to get the responses to. As everyone introduces themselves, have them say what their worst job ever was, and why. Laughter is sure to ensue and you might find out some amazing backgrounds of your coworkers.

How to play Online (useless) talent show

Here’s a game that aims to draw out hidden talents among your teams. Ask each person in the next virtual meeting to showcase a talent they have. The only thing is, a lot of people might feel they have no hidden talents to show, so by calling it a ‘useless’ talent show, you might help reduce any pressure that is felt.

Allow them to be as random and creative as they wish. Older talent videos from the 2000s had some creative gems, like the famous Daft Hands. Simplicity is key for a talent show, as well as an atmosphere of zero pressure, so give a (useless) talent show a shot in your next virtual happy hour.

Ready for a mini-adventure? In office quest hunt, teams race to solve clues and complete quirky challenges that lead them to hidden items around the office. It’s a mix of problem-solving, creativity, and—let’s be honest—a chance to snoop around desks in the name of fun.

This is perfect team-building activity for getting everyone up, moving, and working together to crack the clues. Plus, it’s always funny seeing who takes it way too seriously.

How to play:

1. Hide items around the office and give teams clues to find them.
2. Teams race to solve clues and complete challenges.
3. First team to find all the items wins!

In this engaging game, sales reps work as detectives and try to uncover customer needs.

Here’s how it works:

1. Have everyone in the group divide into pairs with one detective and one customer.
2. Give every pair about ten minutes to get as much information as possible. The detective should try to understand as much as they can about the customer's needs.
3. At the end of the session, have each detective present what they’ve learned, with the person who acquired the most knowledge the winner.

This is a great activity for learning more about probing questions, uncovering the things that aren’t being said, and building rapport with prospects - all valuable skills in the sales process!  

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Looking for a classic trust building activity that never fails to bring workmates closer together? Try the “trust walk” – another super straightforward exercise that’s reminiscent of the “minefield” exercise we described earlier.

How to play Trust walk

Start by creating a path for people to follow, complete with obstacles, twists, and turns. Next, divide your team into smaller groups of 2 to 3 people and give one of them a blindfold to wear. The sighted individuals then have to guide whoever’s blindfolded along the path as quickly (and safely) as possible.

When they finish, the blindfold passes to one of the others. Repeat this process until each group member has completed the course. The first group to have each member complete the course wins!

As long as you clear enough space, you can do the trust walk in the office. However, we recommend trying it outside at some point too!

The extra room available adds to the fun. Heck, some teams choose to do this exercise as part of a larger hiking activity – on a team-building retreat, for instance, where the entire experience revolves around boosting camaraderie.

Want a slight variation on the trust walk? You could also do an exercise called “the blind trail”. It’s a similar concept, but this time every person on each team is blindfolded. Have them stand in a line, holding onto a rope.

Their task?

Work together to navigate an obstacle course that you’ve laid out (all while holding onto the rope). They’re allowed to talk and use non-verbal communication – enabling them to help and trust each other as they proceed from A to B.

What you need:

• Blindfolds
• Rope (to make the “path”, or to use in the blind trail exercise)
• Items to use as obstacles

How to play Baamboozle!

In this online game, everything is already set up for you. Baamboozle is a great website with thousands of topics ready to go, all you need is one host to screen-share. 2 to 4 teams can compete, with topics from videogame trivia to icebreaker games.

Allocate more than 3 teams for a more tactical game, as 2 teams can decide to gang up on 1 unfortunate team. Remember to make use of the ‘power up’ function for point-stealing mischief and leader-swapping bonus cards.

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This is another childhood favorite for many, and bringing it into your workplace is sure to create a little nostalgia. It's a simple and fun way to get everyone more comfortable working together.

Here’s how you play:

1. Have everyone sit down, either at a desk, on the floor, or wherever it makes sense (but everyone should be sitting). Everyone should close their eyes, put their heads down, and put their thumbs up.
2. Seven players will go around the room and touch one person’s thumb apiece. Each chooser will select only one person, and they should do so as quietly and discreetly as possible. The goal is for the chosen people to guess who picked them, so the more secret, the better.
3. Once all seven people have been picked, have everyone raise their heads and ask the seven chosen people to stand up. Now, they will guess who touched their thumb. Each person gets only one guess, and if they pick correctly, they will be one of the seven “choosers” in the next round.
4. The game continues with the new seven people, including anyone who guessed correctly in the previous round. Ideally, everyone will get a chance to be one of the “pickers”.

How to play Freeze

Slightly different from the drama-freeze game above, this exercise encourages more individual participation. Two people act out a scene, and then someone yells "freeze," and another person comes in and takes over the scene. It’s best to do this in an orderly fashion where the next participants are in a circle that you move around (or a line that you run down).

How to play Consequences

Kicking off our list of letter games is a fun crowd-pleaser called Consequences. This one works best with groups of more than 4 people, and no materials are needed! Each player in the group is going to add a consecutive line to the group’s story. Sitting in a group, the first person writes a sentence on paper, folds and hides the message, then passes it to the next person.

You’ll need to think of some cool lines beforehand, and the amount of lines depends on the number of people. Let’s create 5 lines for a team of 5 people:

1. A man’s name
2. The word “met”, then a female name
3. “He said…”
4. “She said…”
5. “And then…”