Looking to improve your office morale and productivity? Team-building activities can get the job done. They have a whole host of benefits, from boosting motivation to increasing problem-solving skills. But repeating the same tired activities can get old. (Seriously, does anyone really want to do a trust fall again?)
Instead, shake things up with five of the most unique, exciting, and useful skill-improving activities. Dive into them here and find out much fun team-building can be.
1) Hold a Scavenger Hunt
If your team is up for a thrilling and totally enjoyable challenge, a scavenger hunt is a great fit. Split your office up into individual teams, then have those teams solve puzzles, do tricky tasks or find interesting items. You can even make the tasks related to your business, like programming puzzles or answering trivia questions about your industry. This is a fantastic way to encourage increased creativity—a skill that’s useful in literally any field.
2) Have a Poker Tournament
Everyone loves the glamour intrigue, and sophistication of a poker night. While these nights are always a blast, they also offer massive team building benefits. Poker encourages strategic thinking, interpersonal skills and risk-reward assessment abilities. Plus, after learning to read each other, the team will know each other better—which makes working together easier. It’s also simple to put together; you just need a table, chips, and cards. Don’t forget, a digital timer, like this one, can help keep things on track!
3) Host a Talent Show
Full-time workers spend a lot of time with their colleagues—more waking time than they do with their spouses or family. But most of this time is spent doing work-related tasks, which can make it hard to really know each other. You can easily fix that each by hosting a talent show! It allows hidden skills to be showcased—and for coworkers to find shared interests. This makes it way easier for them to connect, which is great for team building. After all, having strong bonds between colleagues can improve engagement and productivity.If you want to get your team a gamer gift Personalized By Kate has plenty.
4) Volunteer Together
If you’re looking for a team building activity that also does some good, volunteering is a great solution. Not only will your team connect, but they’ll all be honing their ethics as well—which are vital to a healthy workplace. Whether your team works together to spread awareness, raise funds or physically volunteer, they’ll build skills while changing the world. You can even make this a recurring event and have workers vote on what cause to support each time!
5) Plan a Mock “Shark Tank”
It seems like everyone is obsessed with Shark Tank and the innovative products it promotes. And why not? It encourages entrepreneurship, confidence and ingenuity. It only makes sense to promote those skills in your own company! Have teams come up with original products or services—you can even focus on ones in your industry. This is also a wonderful way to let people speak up and share ideas who may be nervous to otherwise. If an idea is loved enough, you could even decide to start creating or implementing it!
These Unique Team Building Activities Are Anything But Dull
When searching for ways to make your team stronger, more productive and closely bonded, don’t settle for old, stale ways. Not only are these outdated, but their blandness is likely to keep your employees from truly engaging with the activities. And if the team members are passive, bored and checked out, there’s no way any actual team building will happen.
Instead, choose something that’s fun, one-of-a-kind and tailored to the skills you want to encourage. When your team building activity is as exciting as playing poker, solving puzzles, showcasing talents, mimicking Shark Tank or volunteering? Not only will your team improve, but they’ll have a great time doing it. Try one out—and see the difference it can make.
