Library of teambuilding games & icebreakers

How to play Three-Word Check-In

This isn't exactly an activity but rather a practice you can encourage your employees to adopt on a daily basis. People come to the office with varying moods every day. It could be due to a challenging workload that makes someone feel on edge and emotional, or it might be personal issues like a recent breakup that leave them feeling angry. In reality, it's not your role to pry into the reasons behind someone's mood unless they choose to share with you.

So, if they don't open up to you, how can you gauge how they're feeling? This is where the "Three-Word Check-In" comes into play. Encourage individuals to express their emotions for the day using just three words.

For instance:

Imagine Martin is having a particularly difficult day where everything seems to be going wrong, leaving him agitated and frustrated. If a co-worker asks him how he's feeling, Martin can simply respond with "Agitated, frustrated, sad." In this way, his colleagues now have a better understanding of his emotional state and can give him some space and support until he begins to relax.

This could be perfect for preventing a potential conflict and is great for team cohesion!

Where Do You Stand? Is a simple energizing game that’s perfect for large groups and easy to set up. All you need is an open space and a handful of ‘this or that’ questions.

Great for: Energization, session icebreaker

Duration: 10–15 minutes

You’ll need: Cones to divide the room

How to play:

• Divide the room in half with a line of small cones and then ask your group to stand more or less along the line.
• Ask a ‘this or that’ question to the group such as “pizza or pasta?” and assign an answer to each side of the room. For example, if a player wants to answer “pizza”, they need to run to the left side of the room.
• Keep the energy up by asking questions in quick succession. The idea is to get your group moving and acting impulsively.
• By the end of the game, your employees will know a little bit more about their colleagues’ preferences.

How to play Social media shoutout

A social media shoutout on internal workplace channels and public ones (as long as the person getting appreciation is okay with that!) in the workplace is a great way to show gratitude and appreciation for your employees.

A shoutout is a simple yet effective way to boost morale and strengthen the sense of community within your workplace. Make sure when doing a shoutout you are prioritizing using a gratitude-focused message that shows appreciation. This message highlights specific achievements, projects, or team efforts that the company is grateful for. Encourage Engagement with team members and customers if applicable, but always ensure dialogue remains professional.

By publicly acknowledging hard work and dedication in the form of gratitude, organizations can foster a positive and collaborative work environment.

Recurring group activities like after-work running clubs are a great way of making team-building a regular feature in your team’s schedule.

What’s more, healthy activities like jogging and yoga boost employee well-being, job satisfaction and company culture while giving employees a chance to bond outside of the office.

Great for: Company culture, job satisfaction, employee well-being, interpersonal relationships

Duration: 30 minutes

You’ll need: N/A

How to start:

• Arrange a regular running schedule for your employees to register. It’s wise to create multiple groups for different fitness levels.
• Pin a running calendar to the staff room wall, detailing the different group times.

How to play:

Fill a box with random objects, such as office supplies, toys, or miscellaneous items. One participant selects an item from the box and describes how it can be repurposed or used creatively in a different context.

Materials needed: Box, various objects

Benefits:

• Creative problem-solving: Stimulate participants' ability to think creatively and find innovative uses for ordinary objects, fostering resourcefulness and adaptability.
• Divergent thinking: Encourage participants to explore multiple perspectives and consider alternative uses or functions for everyday items.
• Perspective shift: Develop the skill of looking beyond the obvious and seeing the potential in the ordinary, which can translate to finding innovative solutions in the workplace.

How to host Video game projection

Do you have some gamers in your crew? If so, set up a large projection screen, some comfy seating, snacks, and drinks, and let everyone go nuts. Make sure you have a variety of controllers and games available and plenty of space for everyone who is not actively playing a game at the moment. Keep things really comfortable and casual. This is a great activity for an office-takeover type of event or a fun Friday activity to close out the week.

The Marshmallow Challenge puts your employees’ engineering, teamwork and communication skills to the test as they attempt to build the highest tower using only dried spaghetti, masking tape and string.

Great for: Teamwork, communication, problem-solving, leadership

Duration: 30 minutes

You’ll need: Marshmallows, dried spaghetti, masking tape, string, scissors, measuring tape

How to play:

• Divide your group into teams of approximately 5–6 players and give each team a package of dried spaghetti, a roll of masking tape, a ball of string and a pair of scissors.
• When the timer starts (approximately 10 minutes), teams will start constructing the highest possible tower using only the materials provided.
• When the time expires, ask each team to present their tower and briefly discuss their thought process.
• Approach one team at a time and measure the height of the tower and record the result.
• Place a marshmallow on top of the tower. The tower must support the weight of the marshmallow for 10 seconds without collapsing.
• Repeat this process with the remaining teams.
• The team whose tower was the highest and successfully withstood the weight of the marshmallow wins.
• Follow up with a debriefing session where employees can discuss what went well and what could be improved next time.

In What's My Name?, team members use clues to help a participant guess the famous person's name on their forehead.

Instructions on how to play:

1. Write the name of a famous person on a Post-it note for each participant without letting them see it.
2. Place the Post-it note on each participant's forehead.
3. Team members provide verbal clues without saying the actual name, helping each participant guess who they are.
4. Rotate turns until everyone has guessed their famous persona.

Why it's a great team building game:

• Communication and collaboration: Encourages effective communication and collaboration in providing clues.
• Fun and engagement: Adds an element of excitement as participants try to decipher the clues and guess the famous person.
• Icebreaker: Facilitates conversation and laughter in a light-hearted setting.

Top tip to help the game run smoothly: Choose a diverse list of famous people to cater to different interests within the team. Encourage creativity in providing clues and celebrate the humor that arises from the game.

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How to play:

Set a time limit and challenge team members to write a short story, poem, or piece of creative writing within that timeframe. Encourage them to unleash their imagination and explore different genres or styles.

Materials needed: Paper, pens, or laptops

Benefits:

• Strengthened bonds through storytelling: Gather 'round and share the written masterpieces. Through storytelling, your team members connect on a deeper level, their narratives intertwining and creating a tapestry of shared experiences. Like a literary campfire, this activity kindles a sense of unity and camaraderie that'll keep the creative flames burning bright.

This game is perfect for groups that don’t yet know each other very well.

How to play Two truths, one lie

Each person will take a turn at having their colleagues guess which of the three statements is the lie. The more believable the lie, the harder it is for the guessing team!

Not only will the team get to know one another better, but there will certainly be some big laughs and surprising moments along the way.

How to play Story challenge

For the language lovers on your team, try this version of an ongoing story icebreaker. To play, each person receives a number of words (a word bank) that they can use to create a story. Then, everyone reads their piece out loud or presents it to the group. To come up with the words available for each person, you can use a random word generator online, or get creative. For example, consider instructing participants that they can only use words from the company website, or from the emails they received in their inbox yesterday.

Companies can use milestone celebrations as a way to show gratitude to employees and recognize their contributions.

By hosting an event to honor a team member or a group project, here are some ideas companies can use to host a milestone celebration in their community to express gratitude:

• Anniversaries. Acknowledge employees' years of service with the company, typically done at the 5, 10, 15, or 20-year mark. Personalized gifts, extra time off, and even raises are great ways to honor someone's years of service.
• Employee of the Month. Recognize outstanding employees by designating them as the Employee of the Month or Quarter. Organize a small ceremony to present them with an award.
• Employee appreciation. Dedicate a day to celebrating your employees' hard work and dedication. Arrange activities, games, and treats.
• Company-wide recognition. Recognize milestone achievements by sending a thank you message through a newsletter or social media. Highlight the accomplishments and contributions of the employees and celebrate these successes by offering an incentive like professional development opportunities, flexible work options,
• Peer-to-Peer appreciation. Encourage employees to appreciate and recognize each other's contributions by letting them offer gifts, public acknowledgments, etc.

Recognition programs that celebrate milestones effectively ensure leadership expresses gratitude, letting employees know their hard work does not go unnoticed. Showing appreciation for your team's hard work will boost morale, increase job satisfaction, and foster a positive workplace environment.

Archery is a classic game that also can be a little dangerous if you don’t know what you’re doing. Luckily, there is a way to play the game, office style, using a common stationary material: the rubber band.

How to play Rubber band archery

Instead of a bow and arrow, players use their fingers to pull back the band and shoot it at the target. Marking out a spot on the floor with packing tape, team members all shoot from the same location at the target, which can be anything that makes it evident that it was hit, like a bell or bowling pin.

How to play One-word story

Storytelling exercises help people to overcome shyness and work on their articulation skills. In this game, a group of people takes turns saying one word to create a story. Start in a circle and move clockwise or counter-clockwise. Many times this exercise starts with “Once upon a time” and goes from there. The final players should say “the end”.

How to play Name that tune

This classic never gets old. Play five-second snippets of 12 songs - this will total one minute. Have players write down each song they think they heard. Whoever has the most correct answers wins! You can streamline this process by creating your one-minute compilation in advance, so you don’t have to keep stopping and starting music.

How to play Pass the clap game

Pass applause around the circle! To play, participants should gather in a circle and the leader will start the clap. Other players take turns clapping in a clockwise direction until the leader makes the final clap. There are some other variations, too. For example, the participants can start the clap slowly and then gradually increase the tempo over rounds.

How to play One-word icebreaker

This is a perfect exercise for kicking off a specific event or meeting. You need a group of 4 or 5 people, or to break larger groups into teams of that size. The goal is to have everyone describe their feelings on the event that is about to take place using only one word. Give them a few minutes and then go around the room having everyone state their word, like “excited”, “nervous”, or “curious”.

How to play Personal treasure box

This exercise takes a bit longer and is a bit more involved, but involves a lot of introspection which can be a powerful exercise. Ask everyone to create their own personal treasure box and place items inside. You can get really creative and have literal treasure boxes at each seat, with different items symbolizing various aspects of life. Or, you can just use a pencil and paper.

The important thing is that everyone has time to think about what should go into their personal treasure box - the items, values, and people that are most special to them. Then, have everyone share with the group what they included and why. Since this exercise is more in-depth, it’s best to reserve at least an hour and maybe more for proper sharing and dialogue.

Explanation:

‍Remote workers solve clues sent by in-office colleagues to identify specific office landmarks or objects, using virtual walk-throughs or photos.

In-office workers come up with cryptic clues about various spots or objects in the office (like a quirky poster on the wall or the location of the best coffee machine), and remote workers have to figure out the location using virtual office walk-throughs, photos, or even quick video tours. The remote team submits their guesses, and the in-office team reveals the answers.

It’s a fun, puzzle-solving challenge that makes both in-office and remote workers feel like they’re part of the same environment.

How to play Egg and Spoon Race

An egg and spoon race is another game that’s as fun for adults as it is for children! It’s also incredibly simple. As the name suggests, all you need is an egg and spoon for each participant. From there, you set a start and end point, line everyone up with the egg balanced on their spoon, and blow a whistle for the race to begin!

The first person to cross the finish line with their egg still intact wins. If someone drops their egg on the way, they must stop and pick it back up using only their spoon (no hands allowed!) before continuing.

Want to make the game less messy? Consider boiling the eggs beforehand. It’ll stop them from cracking when dropped, reducing the amount of cleaning up you’ll do when everyone’s ready to go home. You’ll be able to re-use the eggs, too – a bonus if you’re running multiple egg-and-spoon races throughout the day.

Oh, and don’t hesitate to combine this Field game for adults with the three-legged race we mentioned earlier! Making participants balance an egg on a spoon while their leg’s also joined to a teammate’s is a recipe for fun.

Dabble is another great letter game that combines elements of Scrabble with crossword puzzles. 2 or more players compete to create five unique words. These words must be 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 letters long each, using 20 tiles. Easy to pick up, difficult to master!

How to Play:

1. Each player receives 20 letter tiles
2. Race to create a 2-letter, 3-letter, 4-letter, 5-letter and 6-letter word using your tiles.
3. The first player to finish all five words wins the race, but then scores are counted depending on the value of each letter.

This one is fast, fun, and utterly addictive!

Got a team that likes to read?

Five Minute Book Talks is not only a great excuse to get the team together once a month, but it also develops their public speaking and presentation skills.

How to play five minute book talks

Every week or month, choose a member of your team to give a small presentation on a book they recently read, including a brief synopsis, positive and negative points.

How to play Near and far game

Get everyone outside and then have them choose one person to stay away from and one person to stay close to. Have everyone start moving according to the choices they picked, and you’ll see interesting dynamics develop. See who is the first person to figure out the near and far choices.

How to play Trading post

Understanding pricing and its effects on supply and demand is a natural skill in the business world. This game can help your employees to focus on this area in new ways. You can do this game for any length of time, so it’s perfect for fitting into most agendas. Start with two groups, a pile of fake money, and some simple items to trade like paper clips or pencils. Each group should have their own money and supply of items. The groups will need to decide what things cost and come up with trade terms.

Then, they should get busy buying, selling, and trading. At the end of the exercise, bring everyone together and see who came out ahead. Why did one group do better than the other? What did everyone learn? Supply and demand are pretty simple economic concepts that most people know, but this is a fun reminder and refresher.