Library of teambuilding games & icebreakers

Red Light Green Light is another popular team warm-up/energizer that you may remember from childhood.

How to play Red light, green light

Simple to play and fun to participate in, your team has to line up on one side of a room and move toward a finish line whenever you – the facilitator – shout “green light”. When you yell “red light”, they have to stop.

If they keep moving forward, fall over, or do anything other than stand completely still, then they’re out. The winner is the first person to get to the finish line.

You can also play in separate teams instead of doing it individually though. In this version, you’d split everyone into 2 main groups, with the winner being the first group to get everyone across the finish line.

Top tip: Like many large group energizers, Red Light Green Light works best when you have a bigger space to do it in. Consider going outdoors to a local park if your office can’t accommodate the exercise.

In this speedy activity, the team carry out a rapid pulse-check on recent work, honing in on the focus of continuous improvement, even when time is short. Here’s how to set this one up quickly:

Set up:

Hand every employee three sticky notes, and set a timer for one minute. Have them think about their last project or sprint period, and jot down one thing they think went well, one area for improvement, and one quick idea for moving forward. At the end of one minute, they stick their notes to your board, and you reflect on common themes or action items. Quick, simple, and to the point.

There’s nothing like a spot of mischief to bring colleagues closer together. With office makeovers, different teams within the company have the chance to “redecorate” another team’s space. From unraveling rolls of toilet paper to putting up posters of people’s favorite boy bands, the options are endless.

Set some ground rules beforehand to stop the pranks from going overboard though. The atmosphere should be light and full of laughter – not frustration at the state of your redecorated space!

Explanation: ‍

Teams work together to create a custom soundtrack using a digital music app. Each person adds their own section—whether it’s a beat, melody, or harmony.

Remote and in-office employees can use a digital music app to collaborate on a unique team soundtrack. The process is simple: one person starts by adding a beat or melody, then passes it along to the next team member (whether they’re remote or in the office) to layer in their musical twist. The song builds up as it moves from person to person, combining everyone’s creativity. At the end, you’ve got a one-of-a-kind soundtrack made by the whole team. It’s a fun way to make something together, no matter where you are.

How to play Lucky Charms

Give all players a large bowl of Lucky Charms cereal. Have everyone sort the charm marshmallows into categories as fast as they can (for example, all hearts together and all clovers together). Whoever sorts through the most cereal in a minute wins.

Scrabble is a household classic that has brought people together for years. After building a word, countless people have scrambled to check their dictionary, and shout to their opponent “There’s no such word!” It’s a word-building game that comes with more than a handful of strategic play.

How to Play:

1. 2 to 4 players set the board up
2. Each player gets seven letter tiles.
3. Take turns forming words on the board, building off existing words.
4. Rack up points by placing words on bonus squares for extra scores!

Get your thinking-caps on and your dictionaries on standby for this classic letter game!

How to play “If I were”…

One of the easiest games to play, this activity allows players to describe themselves in different situations. Simply read the prompts out loud and give everyone a chance to respond. Some things you can suggest are:

• If I were a country, I’d be….
• If I were a song, I’d be…
• If I were a food, I’d be…
• If I were a brand, I’d be…
• If I were a cocktail, I’d be…
• If I were a wild animal, I’d be…
• If I were a mythical creature, I’d be…

How to play Knowledge-based quizzes

If your company is especially reliant on customer loyalty, then anything you can do to increase dedication is a smart move. You can put together a quiz for your biggest fans to take to prove they know your business better than anyone. For example, an athletic shoe brand may have a timeline of shoe designs going back 20 years, and whoever can properly label the timeline is a winner. Or, a television show might put together a quiz about the TV characters and their history.

Though radio is not as popular as it once was, many stations used to engage in a form of this loyalty testing by sharing codes throughout the day. If someone could call in with all the codes (to prove they listened all day), they were a winner. This adds another layer of fun and excitement for customers, and works particularly well for consumer goods that tend to have high degrees of repeat business.

How to play Value vs. feature

Knowing the difference between a feature and a benefit is essential, especially for more complex offerings like technology or industrial supplies. To begin with, everyone will need to review a document or a matrix that lists features as well as the benefits associated with each (obviously this is something you’ll need to prepare in advance if you don’t already have something like this created). Then, bring your group together for a virtual meeting and run through the different features or benefits. Pick them randomly so there’s no pattern.

After you share one, participants should chime in with whether that was a feature or a benefit. Finally, host a discussion about how easy or difficult the process was, and how people can better differentiate in the future.

How to play Case study problem solving

Many consulting firms and other businesses include small case studies as part of their interview process. You can do the same by having a single small group (or even smaller pairings) consider a particular problem and come up with a solution. This can be something a bit silly, like “How would you survive if you were stranded on a desert island?” but it’s more effective if the issue is centered on your real work.

For example, if sales of a certain product line are lagging, have the team discuss strategies for what they would do to fix it. It’s a good way of getting everyone’s brains channeling the right energy before digging into more complex work.

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 Parachute Volleyball

Imagine playing an ordinary game of volleyball. However, there’s a catch: you can’t use your hands. Instead, you and your team are holding a parachute – having to work together to move around the court so you can catch the incoming ball and sling it back over the net at your opposition!

That, in a nutshell, is parachute volleyball. As you can imagine, it’s a recipe for pandemonium! But it’s also great fun, fantastic for team-building, and another unique sporting activity for your upcoming Field Day.

How to play Balloon challenge

Start this fun and active energizer by inflating lots of balloons in the office (the more the merrier!). When you’re done, the challenge can commence:

The team’s job is to stop the balloons from touching the ground at all costs! Play for 5 to 10 minutes and explain there’ll be prizes if they succeed.

Want to give the game a competitive edge? Divide everyone into smaller teams and assign each one a bunch of balloons with the same color. They then have to work together to keep those particular balloons in the air (while simultaneously sabotaging the other teams’ efforts).

Bonus points if you can inflate all the balloons before anyone else arrives at the office! Trust us, the look on peoples’ faces when they walk through the door will be worth getting there early…

How to play Sinking boat

This popular team-building activity involves participants imagining themselves stranded on a boat that’s sinking. You’ll need to break people into small groups and instruct them on this exercise. The objective is for the group to work together to decide who should be saved from the sinking boat based on their overall importance to the group and what they value. This encourages communication, collaboration, and critical thinking skills. It’s also a good way to spark discussions about teamwork and decision-making and can give everyone insight into the talents and personalities of their colleagues.

This is your opportunity to recreate one of your favourite family game shows, think Family Feud or The Price is Right, to name a few. The idea is simple, create a list of questions, divide players into teams and let the games begin!

How to play Company game show

Company g ame shows are a fantastic opportunity for employees to foster new relationships while enjoying a light-hearted and engaging online game. You can create separate group chats for your teams so they can discuss their answers before giving them.

This activity is a hands-on, engaging, and safe way for employees to develop crucial conflict resolution skills that they can use effectively in their professional roles.

Instructions

1. Set a conflict scenario or topic for discussion.
2. Participants can only communicate nonverbally (no words).
3. Designate one as the communicator and the other as the recipient.
4. Set time limits for interactions.
5. Discuss experiences and challenges after each round.

Why it's awesome for learning conflict resolution

• Practical Skill Development: Conflict resolution often involves understanding emotions and unspoken cues. This game offers practical experience in interpreting nonverbal signals, a crucial aspect of resolving conflicts effectively.

• Enhanced Communication: The game hones participants' ability to communicate without words, which is essential when dealing with emotionally charged conflicts where verbal communication may be challenging.

• Active Listening: Conflict resolution relies heavily on active listening. This activity encourages participants to pay close attention to nonverbal cues, which is a key component of effective listening.

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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Visual puzzles are all about teamwork through description. One person describes an object, and their teammates sketch it based on those instructions—without seeing the original object. The results? Usually hilarious, but also a great way to test communication skills.

This game is perfect for enhancing your team’s ability to give and follow clear directions. Plus, the unexpected drawings add a bit of fun and laughter, making it an enjoyable way to break up the workday while sharpening those communication skills.

How to play:

• One person describes an object (e.g., a mug or a bike).
• Teammates sketch the object based only on the description.
• Compare the drawings to the original for some laughs!

How to play Dot voting

Does your team tend to go off on tangents and get into circular discussions when talking about projects or issues? Meetings that devolve into unrelated conversations are a big challenge in many workplaces. You can practice these skills with this exercise, dot voting. To do it, all you need to do is present the issue and then have everyone suggest ideas for a solution.

Write them down on the white board so everyone can see. Then, hand out sticky notes and have everyone place their papers under the ideas they like best. You might let them choose only one, or up to 3. Once everyone has had their turn, you will have an obvious visual that shows which of the ideas was most popular. This is a great tactic that can be used in many different meetings, discussion, and brainstorming sessions.

Some of the best improv games for team collaboration are also the simplest. Here’s one that falls into this category, while still helping to a) lighten the mood and b) build the connections that are so fundamental to successful teamwork.

How to play Near and far

Near and Far asks participants to do 3 things:

1. Stay as close as possible to one person of their choice
2. Stay as far as possible from someone else of their choice
3. Stay silent throughout the game

They decide in secret who they’ll be sticking close to and who they’ll be avoiding, then set to work! What follows is a fun and fascinating process of trying to accomplish these 2 competing tasks.

The office becomes an ant’s nest, with employees in constant motion, weaving around the room in a bid to dodge some people and stay next to others.

For example, what happens if Person A has picked Person B to stay close to, but Person B chose them as the employee they have to stay away from? A chase ensues! The fact nobody can talk adds another fun element to proceedings.

Near and Far doesn’t just force teammates to adopt creative systems and behaviors to achieve their goals, but it also opens up interesting conversations about group dynamics. Consider debriefing at the end of the task to see how everyone felt about it. What was it like to have to do both things at once? What were their takeaways?

How to play Moral dilemma

Similar to a “would you rather” game, this activity centers on ethical dilemmas. Players should try to flex their moral problem-solving muscles by tackling a social issue. For example, Scruples is a popular board game that can be played. Or, you can look online for versions of games like Dilemma or Quandary. This is a great way to learn more about your colleagues while getting a peek at the way they think.

Instructions:

‍Create a space for leaders to express appreciation for each other's contributions and strengths.

Gratitude is the secret ingredient of exceptional leadership. The appreciation circle allows your team to acknowledge and celebrate the strengths and achievements of their coworkers. It creates a positive and uplifting environment, fostering a culture of appreciation and recognition. By expressing gratitude, leaders build stronger relationships, boost team morale, and inspire their team to give their best. Gather in a circle, shower each other with praise, and watch your leadership bonds grow stronger.

How to play:

Write down different safety scenarios on slips of paper (e.g., handling a chemical spill, evacuating during a fire). Employees draw a scenario and act it out while others observe and provide feedback.

To build on the last suggestion, why not roleplay the winning scenario? Role-playing allows employees to practice their responses to potential hazards in a realistic yet controlled setting. It encourages active learning and helps identify any gaps in safety protocols. Watching coworkers immerse themselves in their roles can be entertaining.

You know that friend who's always got your back? Consistency is like that—being reliable, so colleagues know they can count on you. It's the secret ingredient for building trust and teamwork.

Consistency activity - Recognition raffle:

• Establish a recognition program that rewards consistent behaviors and contributions.
• Introduce a system where colleagues can earn tickets or tokens for displaying consistent positive actions, such as punctuality, collaboration, or going the extra mile.
• Collect the earned tickets and hold regular raffle drawings where participants have a chance to win small rewards or incentives.
• Celebrate the winners and highlight their consistent efforts to reinforce a culture of reliability and teamwork.
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This activity motivates colleagues to maintain a high standard of performance and contributes to a harmonious and supportive work environment.