The idea behind team-building activities is to find ways to encourage team members to learn more about each other, discover how people in the group communicate, tackle tasks, and cooperate as part of a business whole. These activities are intended to be both educational and enjoyable. Though there’s a wide range of different solutions to choose from, the one thing that they all have in common, is their ability to motivate and inspire workers.
Team-building activities can have the potential to improve performance, motivate team members, and enhance employee retention. The problem is, most companies don’t invest enough time in team-building strategies. Here, we’re going to cover some simple and effective solutions that new-age companies can use to deliver more corporate culture to their company, and develop inter-connected teams.
The human knot
Most team-building activities are simply games that are intended to work on building the skills necessary to promote a strong team. The human knot is all about problem-solving. You can have a group that’s anywhere from eight, to twenty people large, and you don’t need any extra tools or equipment. Instead, you simply need to ask your participants to stand shoulder to shoulder. Everyone raises their right hand, and grabs the hand of a person that’s standing on the other side of the circle. At the same time, they use their left hand to hold the hand of another person. Ultimately, you end up with a big knot.
The aim of the game is for everyone to get themselves untangled and back into a circle – without letting go of any hands. If someone does drop another person’s hand, then you need to start the game over again from scratch.
The minefield
If you’re looking for a team-building activity that’s not going to take all day, this is a great option. Introduced by experts, this activity is designed to build trust, relationships and encourage people to communicate more effectively. You can either drive your team out into somewhere in nature to do this, or you can get the help of a professional group. After all, companies that offer team bonding are specialists at creating team building events, and they know how to make these games work.
With minefield, you basically cover a field or space with distributed ‘mines’ in the form of cones, or bottles. Next, you pair your team members up into groups or two, and blind fold one of them. The person who can see directs the other person to the end of the path, while keeping them safe from mines.
The perfect square
This team-building exercise is all about building communication and leadership skills. You’ll need a blindfold for each of your team members, and a long piece of rope. Ask all of your participants to stand in a circle, and hold onto the rope. Then, ask them to put their blindfold on, put the rope down, and move away from the circle.
The aim of the game is to get the participants to come back and try to form a square with the rope, without taking their blindfolds off.
The egg drop
Last but not least, the tools for this game include a range of assorted office supplies and an egg carton. You’ll need to divide your office up into several small groups, and give each of them a raw egg. The office supplies you have can be distributed into a large pile, and each group will need to create a contraption around that egg using the supplies. The contraption is designed to keep the egg from breaking when it’s dropped.
Building team strength
Team-building activities might not seem like a very productive way to get your workers together, but the truth is that they can be essential to improving the productivity and cooperation of a group. Ultimately, if your team knows how to work well in a team, they feel more confident, and capable in the workplace.
Plus, the laughter and enjoyment that comes with team-building games ensures that deeper bonds are formed in the workplace, leading to happier, more satisfied employees.
Further reading on team-building
