Library of teambuilding games & icebreakers

How to play Most difficult prospect

Every sales person has come across a prospect that is full of objections and generally makes their job harder. The better that people are able to deal with such individuals, the more effective they will be at a sales job. Sort people into pairs and have them act out a sales meeting, with one of them playing the role of a difficult prospect. That individual should impersonate the toughest prospect they have come in contact with, rolling out all the usual objections and talking points, while the other person tries to overcome them and answer questions. Then, bring everyone back together for a discussion about how the conversations went. Everyone will have something to learn about how to deal with their next challenging sales meeting.

Explanation:

Each team member describes themselves using traits from a famous movie or book character, without saying who they are. The rest of the team has to guess the character based on the clues.

This game is perfect for hybrid teams! Whether remote or in the office, everyone gets a chance to participate. Each person describes themselves using personality traits or quirks of a famous character via video call or chat, and everyone else guesses who they are. It’s an easy-going virtual icebreaker that gets people laughing, thinking creatively, and learning more about each other.

How to play Blind sketching

This is a great communication exercise and is simple to play at work. The goal of the game is for a player to draw an object that was described correctly. It’s similar to charades, with a player sketches something based on gestures instead of words. You don’t need any special drawing skills, but you do need a pen and paper. It’s also helpful to have a larger open space where people can spread out and draw. Start by pairing off two players as a team. One player will make gestures describing an item and the other participant will draw. If the pair comes up with an accurate drawing of the described item, they win!

How to play Kiss, Marry, Kill

Looking for a quick and funny way to start a meeting? Try Kiss Marry Kill. A perennial crowd-pleaser, this question game involves choosing which of three people you’d rather kiss, marry, or – you guessed it – kill.

They can be fictional (e.g. characters from well-known movies) or real (e.g. singers, sports stars, or people in the office) and you take turns presenting three names for the other players to choose from. Expect light-hearted debate to rage as each participant justifies who they’re kissing, marrying, or killing!

If you want to make this game slightly more PC, then consider the alternative: “Kiss, Marry, Avoid.” The process is the same, just with slightly less offensive language.

How to play Team Building Relay Race

Instructions: Set up a relay race with different stations representing team-building activities, such as trust falls, problem-solving puzzles, or communication challenges. Each team member completes a station before passing the baton to the next person.

Materials needed: Various team-building activity props.

Brace yourselves for the Team Building Relay Race, where sweat, laughter, and team spirit go hand in hand. It's a rollercoaster of physical activity infused with mind-bending challenges. As teammates make their way through each activity, they'll forge unbreakable bonds of collaboration, trust, problem-solving, and communication.

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 Red ball game

A group of people pass around an imaginary red ball and must come up with a story about where it has been. You can change the color of the ball or even the imaginary object, the point is to mix up the start and stop of the story and get creative.

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This indoor team-building game involves together to write a story on a sheet of paper. The catch? You do it one line at a time, taking turns to contribute a sentence before folding over the sheet (just enough to cover the line) so the next person can’t see what you wrote.

You continue in this fashion until everyone has added a sentence! Whoever goes last then unfolds the paper and reads the story aloud. Not only is the game fun to play, but the random (and often amusing!) nature of the story demonstrates how valuable clear communication is in a team environment.

Explanation:

‍Team members switch roles for the day—the accountant becomes the designer, the manager takes on the IT role, and everyone gets to try something totally different. It’s all about experiencing a new side of office life.

In the hybrid version, both in-office and remote employees swap roles, but the twist is they’ll shadow their swapped roles virtually if they’re in a different location. Remote workers can sit in on video calls or collaborate on shared tasks, while in-office workers can hop on a call to learn about the ins and outs of a remote teammate’s role. The key is to walk a mile in someone else’s shoes, even if it’s virtually.

It’s a fun way to gain empathy for each other’s daily challenges and maybe even discover hidden talents along the way.

How to play Minute to Win It Challenges

Instructions: Set up a series of minute-long challenges where participants must complete a task using everyday objects. Examples include stacking cups or moving cookies from the forehead to the mouth using only facial muscles.

Materials needed: Everyday objects (cups, cookies, etc.).

Prepare for the Minute to Win It Challenges, where lightning-fast antics and friendly rivalry collide. These challenges ignite creativity, force adaptability, and unveil hidden talents as team members scramble to conquer the clock.

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.

Teams will navigate a web-like course blindfolded, guided only by verbal instructions from their teammates. This task sheds light on the importance of clear communication, active listening, and trust. As participants navigate the course, they'll realize that effective communication is the cornerstone of successful collaboration.

Instructions

• Set up a course with obstacles, twists, and turns.
• Divide participants into pairs – one blindfolded and one giving instructions.
• Teams take turns guiding their blindfolded partner through the course using only verbal cues.
• Encourage descriptive language, patience, and adaptability.
• Evaluate based on successful navigation and the quality of communication.

How to play Bin Basketball

Grab two trash bins in the office and play ball! You can purchase a ball for this game but also just as easily use a tightly crumpled up piece of paper. Split into teams of two and play for around 10 minutes so each team member gets a chance to take a shot. Winner is determined by the team that makes the most baskets.

How to play Heads up, heads down

This one is ideal for small or medium size groups. The goal of the game is to eliminate players who make eye contact. First, choose a person who will shout out the directions. Then players should gather in a large circle with their heads down. When the leader calls “up”, the players must raise their heads simultaneously, look towards another player, and pause. Then the supervisor will say “down” and players put their heads down. These actions go back and forth and if two players happen to look at each other directly, they are out of the game. This continues until there is a winner.

How to play:

Organize a debate on various safety topics (e.g., the importance of PPE, the best ways to handle emergencies). Divide employees into teams and assign them different positions to argue. Judges score the debates and the winning team receives a prize.

Debates of any kind encourage critical thinking and effective communication in your workplace, so why not have a debate about important safety issues? They provide a platform for employees to express their views on safety and learn from each other. Plus, it’s a lively and engaging way to discuss safety.

How to play Treasure mountain

Treasure Mountain can be played with teams of 4-6 people, a team captain is chosen to enter the game and share his/her screen with the rest of their team. The teams then race against the clock, completing challenges and solving riddles in the pursuit of gold.

In this activity, we'll help you and your colleagues discover your communication styles and discuss how to adapt them to improve workplace communication. So, grab your pens and let's get started!

Materials needed:

• Communication style quiz questionnaires (don't worry, we've got those ready for you).
• pens or pencils
• A flipchart or a whiteboard.
• Colorful markers.
• A cozy meeting space where you can comfortably chat.

Instructions:

1. Let's kick things off by talking about why effective communication is so vital in the workplace.
2. Remember, understanding your communication style can make your interactions with colleagues and bosses much smoother.
3. Here come the questionnaires! Take one and answer the questions honestly, without overthinking. Your responses are just for you.
4. You've got 15 minutes to complete the quiz
5. After collecting your completed questionnaires, we'll calculate your scores using the quiz key.
6. Then, we'll group you into different communication style categories, like assertive, passive, aggressive, or passive-aggressive.
7. Now, it's group time!

Chat about:

• What makes your communication style unique?
• How does it influence your daily work interactions?
• What are the strong suits and potential pitfalls of your style?
• Share real-life stories where your style worked like a charm or, well, maybe not so much.

Wrap things up with some key takeaways from your discussion.

Remember, being self-aware and flexible with your communication is the name of the game.

Go forth and apply your newfound wisdom to combat common workplace issues!

Put on your thinking caps for code breakers! Teams are given a series of cryptic riddles and challenges to solve, with each solution leading to the next clue. It’s a mental race to crack the final code and declare victory.

This team-building game is perfect for testing problem-solving skills and teamwork. Plus, there’s nothing like the thrill of solving that final puzzle before the other teams.

How to play:

• Give teams a series of riddles and cryptic challenges to solve.
• Each solution leads to the next clue.
• First team to crack the final code wins!

How to play Apple, orange, banana

Sometimes simple is best and with a larger group you likely want a fun activity without a lot of complexity. For a fast, active game, ask everyone in the group to stand in a circle with their hands on the shoulders of the person in front of them. Then have everyone jump forward when you say apple, jump backward when you say orange, and turn around when you say banana. Work your way up to combining multiple commands so that participants make several moves in one round. This game keeps everyone on their toes and generates lots of laughter too.

The rolling chair race is a great way to get creative and transform the office into a playful space for the Office Olympics. Using different rooms, furniture, and anything you can find, create an obstacle course that can be completed in an office chair. This means making sure spaces are wide enough for the chair to fit, and ensuring that team members can actually get through so all they have to focus on is winning the race.

Time each person completing the obstacle course and the team that makes it through in the least amount of time takes home the gold.

How to play New brand manager (teams)

In this game, you can break a group of 10-20 people into smaller teams. Give each team a product (you can keep it simple by grabbing things from around the room like a pencil sharpener or a soda) and ask them to be brand manager for a day. What is the overall business plan for this product? How about marketing strategy and tactics? How are they selling this product, and to whom?

This is a good activity for teams that need to improve their marketing and sales mindsets. Have each team present the plan for their brand and conduct discussions as a larger team.

In this activity, individuals become the authors of their own success stories. The game plan? Keep a goal journal, a personal chronicle where you jot down the highs, the lows, and everything in between on your journey to crushing those goals. Why? Because journaling isn't just putting pen to paper; it's a map of progress, a mirror reflecting challenges, and a compass to keep you on course.

Get ready to unleash the power of the written word – your goals are waiting to be documented and conquered!

Top Tip for Facilitator:

• Let everyone know this isn't a sprint; it's a marathon of self-reflection and growth. Remind them that every scribble in their goal journal is a step toward victory.
• Foster an atmosphere where sharing the journey, bumps and all, is not just okay but celebrated.
• Create a safe space where the power of putting pen to paper becomes a transformative experience.

That’s right, the classic race from your childhood is just as fun for adults! In fact, it’s probably even better. After decades of being bipedal, strapping your leg to someone else’s and having to move in unison is a significant (and hilarious) challenge – especially when you make it a race.

How to play Three-Legged Race

As you can probably remember, you don’t need much for a three-legged race. Some simple strips of fabric or lengths of rope will suffice. From there, you divide the group into pairs, stand each team side-by-side, and use the fabric/rope to tie Person A’s right leg to Person B’s left leg or vice versa.

Next, mark a start and finish line, get everyone to stand at the start, and blow a whistle for the race to commence. Expect chaos and laughter to ensue as they make their way as quickly as possible down the track!

Got lots of people coming to your Field Day? Try a three-legged relay race instead.

This time, you’ll need to create a longer track with four individual sections before splitting everyone into pairs like before. Assign four pairs to each team then set them around the track to run different sections of the relay. Each “starting pair” needs a baton, which they’ll pass to the next pair in their team, whenever they reach them. The first team to reach the finish line wins!

How to play Who did it?

This game is helpful for learning about what your colleagues do outside of work. To begin with, everyone should get a piece of paper and pen, and write down one interesting thing they’ve done. Then, all the notes are placed in a container, and a facilitator pulls them out one at a time and reads them alive. Everyone else in the room should guess who the individual was who completed that activity. For example, if one prompt is “skydiving”, then everyone would guess who among them was most likely to have done that. The more creative people get, the better!