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Top 22 Virtual Problem-Solving Activities to Strengthen Any Team

We live in a fast-paced environment where challenges often arise, both personally and professionally.

Especially in today’s workplace, professionals have to deal with social, ethical, and organisational problems.

This is where problem-solving skills come into play.

Strong problem-solving tactics can improve creativity and help team members make efficient and informed decisions.

While every professional might not be a natural born problem-solver, there are a lot of resources to help develop these skills.

In this article, we’ll go over the definition of problem-solving activities, their main benefits, and examples that can be put into practice in the workplace.

What Are Problem-Solving Activities?

These activities require problem-solving skills, which help find solutions for difficult situations.

Like any other skill, these tactics are best learnt through practice.

To make problem-solving activities worth the ride, participants have to be open-minded, listen to others, and accept alternative ideas and solutions.

An agile mindset can also be beneficial when participating in such activities because they’re based on understanding, collaborating , learning and staying flexible.

As problem-solving games are group activities, participants must be willing to collaborate and embrace agility and flexibility.

Another critical aspect is creating the mindset that there are no winners or losers.

The goal of these activities is to share strategies and learn from each other, rather than compete against one another.

The Four P’s to Problem-Solving

By following the four P’s in the problem-solving guide, one can resolve almost any problem that comes along.

Problem-solving activities begin with a discovery phase, where the problem is identified.

This is the step where you understand, dissect, and learn about the problem you’re trying to solve.

Until the problem has been well defined, you can’t move forward and prepare to form the right solution.

After you’ve analysed the problem, you have to develop several courses of action to solve the issue.

This is the phase where you generate several possibilities to ultimately decide on the best course of action for your problem.

After the problem has been defined and resolutions have been listed, it’s time to take action.

This is the step where you find the best approach and implement a plan that needs to be followed with precision.

You need to first visualise your plan and then execute it.

When the problem has been solved, you need to evaluate the plan and assess whether it could be improved for future situations.

While you should do your best to solve the issue, the truth is that there is always room for growth.

Reviewing and checking for room for further improvement is essential because it can help you achieve even greater results in the future.

Benefits of Developing Problem-Solving Skills in the Workplace

Employees are often asked to think outside the box for projects or find alternative solutions for work problems.

Problem-solving tactics are a great way to practice valuable skills relevant in the workplace.

There are a lot of situations where processes and workflow in organisations need improvement. Or, when deadlines are tight, team members have to find ways to deliver on time.

These are the exact scenarios that can be overcome if the team is able to turn problems into actionable solutions.

After all, performance is closely related to employee efficiency as achieving companies’ goals on time is crucial to success.

Having team members with good problem-solving skills means they can use critical thinking to make better decisions and ultimately increase business productivity and growth.

There are a wealth of advantages that problem-solving activities can bring to teams.

Here are a few benefits you can expect from employees well equipped with problem-solving skills:

Better risk management

Simply put, risk management skills help people know what could go wrong, assess risks, and finally take action to solve an issue.

Some people are very good at handling risk, while others are afraid of risky situations.

Whichever way your team members are naturally inclined, problem-solving techniques are here to help.

Participating in problem-solving tasks trains the mind to handle stressful situations better.

It’s impossible to avoid risk, and this is why it’s essential to be confident that your team knows how to handle risk and turn it into opportunity.

Better thinking

Team problem-solving techniques stimulate better thinking by pushing people to find progressive alternatives.

Better thinking also develops analytical skills, which help people find logical explanations for problems and identify practical solutions.

Better communication skills

As mentioned earlier, problem-solving activities are group tasks that can only be performed if participants work together.

Humans are competitive by nature which can be problematic when trying to create a cohesive team. Problem-solving skills nurture understanding and collaboration within a company.

By solving problems together, employees learn how to better communicate and listen to others.

Having transparent and effective communication improves engagement and productivity and leads to better relationships .

Increased team cohesion

If your team already has good communication skills , this will likely lead to increased team cohesion .

Regardless of your business’s profile or size, success comes from having a united team.

Team cohesion reduces anxiety, brings motivation, and increases employee satisfaction.

Being on a cohesive team means that employees work together for the same goal, and everyone contributes to the group’s overall success.

People are social creatures, so it’s imperative that everybody feels heard, understood, and included.

Efficiency / increased productivity

Exercising problem-solving activities can boost performance and workplace productivity, leading to overall growth and profits.

Having solid problem-solving skills equips employees with the ability to find efficient solutions promptly.

By reducing the time spent solving specific problems, companies benefit from improved workplace productivity , leading to better profit margins.

Problem-solving activities foster creativity and encourage team members to express their ideas.

Creative thinkers know how to find the balance between analytical skills and innovative solutions, thus providing new perspectives.

No matter how well-established company processes are, there are always situations that require alternative ways of thinking.

Creative thinking skills boost people’s confidence in putting forth unique ideas.

List of the Top 22 Virtual Problem-Solving Activities

Virtual problem-solving activities for teams are meant to challenge participants to think outside the box and find solutions to problems while also having fun. Remember that these exercises should be playful and enjoyable.

Here is a list of virtual problem-solving activities that teams of any size can play:

• Dumbest Idea First
• Brainstorm Ideas
• End in Mind
• Stop, Start, Continue
• Idea Mock-Ups
• Be a Character
• Crossword Puzzles
• Online Escape Rooms
• Murder Mysteries
• Virtual Hackathons
• Treasure Hunts
• Moral Challenge
• Improv Games
• Poem/Story Challenge
• What Would You Do?
• Lost at Sea
• Coworker Feud
• Virtual Code Break
• War of the Wizards
• Ultimate Game Show

Online problem-solving activities can be played through video conferencing platforms, such as Zoom, Skype, Google Meet, Webex, etc.

Let’s take a closer look:

1. Dumbest Idea First

Dumbest Idea First, as the name suggests, is a problem-solving exercise in which participants are asked to think of the dumbest possible solutions to the problem presented.

After all ideas have been presented, look through the list.

You might be surprised to find that some ideas are not as dumb as first thought!

Helps with : creative problem-solving .

2. Brainstorm Ideas

One of the most common problem-solving activities is brainstorming ideas with your team.

Brainstorming ideas’ objective is to generate as many ideas as possible.

After the list is complete, team members review them and decide which is most suitable for the given scenario.

There are a lot of methods to aid the brainstorming process.

You can play word games, create a mood board, play improv games, or even doodle.

Helps with : lateral thinking.

3. End in Mind

The End in Mind technique is an excellent activity for solving group problems that require participants to start with the end.

In this exercise, you have to backtrack, finding solutions for the issue.

It challenges team members to think of the “what,” “why,” and “how” of a problem, thus coming up with alternative approaches.

Helps with : analytical thinking.

4. Stop, Start, Continue

“Stop, Start, Continue” is a technique used for delivering or requesting feedback.

This problem-solving activity consists of a list of three categories that each member has to think about:

• Stop: three things that the team should stop doing
• Start: three things that the team should start doing
• Continue: three things that the team should continue doing

This exercise aims to solve problems in new ways while also having fun.

Helps with : team cohesion, critical thinking.

5. Idea Mock-Ups

Idea mock-ups are processes in which solutions to problems are found via mock-ups.

It’s a virtual solving problem activity as you can use images from the internet that can be easily shared with the team members.

This exercise aims to have players try out a bunch of different scenarios until the perfect match for the problem is found.

6. Be a Character

Have you ever dreamed of being a character from a movie or a book? Then this is the perfect exercise for you.

By playing this group game, participants impersonate a character and approach problems through that person’s mindset.

Helps with : creativity , thinking outside the box.

7. Idea Trial

The Idea Trial is another fun virtual problem-solving activity that encourages participants to find solutions for a particular problem.

Players need to present their ideas to the “court.”

They can go through the entire process, such as opening and closing statements, and call witnesses to support their ideas.

Helps with : risk management, communication skills.

8. Crossword Puzzles

Everybody has heard of crossword puzzles, but not everyone has thought of transforming them into a virtual problem-solving activity.

All you have to do is use an online crossword puzzle to create a custom puzzle for your team.

To make it more exciting and engaging for your team, you should consider your company’s niche and your teammates’ interests.

Helps with : critical thinking.

9. Online Escape Rooms

Like in-person escape rooms, their online counterpart requires participants to escape rooms and work together to solve puzzles virtually.

Digital escape rooms provide two alternatives for players: either a Zoom room led by a host or from a specialised website.

These are significant virtual problem-solving activities that are both fun and challenging.

Helps with : cooperation, communication.

10. Murder Mysteries

Murder mysteries are story-based problem-solving activities that require participants to take on the roles of suspects and detectives.

The aim of the game is to identify the killer by searching for clues and occasionally solving small puzzles.

These group exercises are complex because they require players to be observant and search for hidden clues using logic.

Luckily for you, there are many options for playing murder mystery games online .

Helps with : observation, logical thinking.

11. Virtual Hackathons

Hackathons are events where a group of people pitch a product or service in a given period.

Even though it originated in the programming world, hackathons can be easily applied to any industry.

Virtual hackathons refer to the online version of these events, where participants work together via online meeting software to design solutions.

These are great virtual team problem-solving activities because they don’t require much organisational work.

You just have to announce the event’s theme, explain the problem when the hackathon begins, and set a timeline.

Helps with : efficiency, cooperation.

12. Treasure Hunts

Like escape rooms or murder mysteries, treasure hunts are group games that require players to find hidden objects by following a trail of clues.

Treasure hunts are fun problem-solving activities that teach participants how to collaborate and communicate with each other.

They can have specific themes or be a more general hunt.

Helps with : communication, cooperation.

13. Moral Challenge

While most group problem-solving activities focus more on finding alternative problem resolutions, moral challenges lean more towards ethics.

These group techniques are just as important as the others as not all problems are factual; some are ethical.

Moral challenge exercises are better played in a group because each participant can represent a different opinion or moral belief.

The moral issue becomes harder to resolve and implicitly forces team members to find common ground.

Moral challenges are equally important in decision-making processes as rational thinking.

Some of the most well-known moral challenges online are the Moral Machine or the Dilemma .

Helps with : communication skills.

14. Improv Games

Improv games have their roots in acting and comedy and are group activities designed around participants’ acting without a script, or improvising.

These problem-solving activities force players to keep the story going in an entertaining and logical way.

This kind of group exercise helps build collaborative skills while boosting team members’ confidence.

Helps with : collaboration, imagination.

15. Poem/Story Challenge

If most of the problem-solving activities mentioned are based on logical thinking, the poem/story challenge revolves around writing skills.

While not all businesses rely on this, it’s still an excellent exercise for groups, as it stimulates the imagination and improves public speaking.

All you have to do is ask participants to create a story or a poem using a limited word bank.

After they have crafted their stories, they read them aloud in front of the group.

Helps with : creativity, public speaking.

16. What Would You Do?

“What Would You Do?” is a hypothetical problem-solving activity that challenges your team to brainstorm ideas and react to different scenarios.

To play this game with your team members, prepare some problem-solving stories in advance, then read them one by one.

Participants have to say what they would do in these circumstances.

Helps with : lateral thinking, imagination.

17. Lost at Sea

Lost at Sea, also known as Stranded at Sea, is a team-building activity that encourages interaction and teamwork.

Give participants a scenario where they’re stranded on an island with just a handful of objects.

To increase their chances of survival, they need to rate the objects based on their utility.

Players should work individually first and then together to decide which objects are most important.

If multiple groups play this game, the moderator can ask each group to compare their individual and collective rankings.

They should also consider why any scores differ.

At the end of the game, players reflect and feedback on their choices.

Helps with : decision making, collaboration, critical thinking.

18. The Hunt

Its purpose is to challenge players to collaborate under pressure as they compete for glory.

This is a virtual problem-solving activity suitable for a business of any size.

It works best played in small teams of four or five, so players have the opportunity to interact with one another.

Helps with : team decision making, lateral thinking, creativity.

19. Coworker Feud

This game is a new take on the classic game show Family Feud, and it consists of multiple rapid rounds.

The players are asked to provide fast answers to a fun assortment of questions the host presents.

The aim is to guess the five most popular answers to win points for the round.

The team with the most points is declared the winner of the game.

Helps with : fast-thinking, communication.

20. Virtual Code Break

Virtual Code Break is a virtual team-building activity specially designed for remote players.

Its purpose is to challenge players to think outside the box, improve problem-solving skills, and leverage their own and each other’s skills.

This game uses an intelligent video conferencing solution so that teams of all sizes can play from anywhere globally.

Players compete against each other by answering trivia questions and solving riddles and puzzles.

Helps with : better thinking, collaboration.

21. War of the Wizards

War of the Wizards is a 90-minutes virtual team-building activity that promises to be both fun and creative.

To play this game, participants roleplay as powerful wizards to conquer evil forces through the power of storytelling.

They have to play mini-games and competitions, develop their characters, and make decisions together to win.

Helps with : teamwork, imagination.

22. Ultimate Game Show

In this 90-minute virtual event, players bond together as a team while playing different quizzes to win the final prize.

This competition works for hybrid teams, as well as for fully remote teams.

Helps with : collaboration, fast-thinking.

Plenty of organisations face daily challenges that affect team productivity and get in the way of attaining business goals.

While it’s impossible to avoid those situations, there are many ways to train team members to work collaboratively to resolve problems effectively.

Problem-solving activities act as educational tools that bring all participants closer as a team and help them develop problem-solving skills. By nurturing solution-generating capabilities, your team learns to communicate better, act fast in risky situations, and find creative solutions.

The virtual problem-solving activities listed in this article are excellent practices for real-life conflict resolution that can benefit everyone within an organisation.

Stefan is a Co-Founder and a President of Brosix. His many years experience as a programmer, give him an unique perspective to lead the team and build Brosix in a way to best serve the customers.

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Principal Writer

18 virtual team building activities and games

This isn’t academic theory or some stuff we just made up. This is how real remote teams have fun and stay connected.

5-second summary

• Building bonds between teammates is extra-important when you’re in remote or hybrid mode, as a growing body of research confirms.
• Whether an activity is just for fun or helps move your work forward, taking time to help your virtual team to get to know each other is an investment that pays dividends in team cohesion and performance.
• We collected a list of activities used by real teams at Atlassian that can help virtual teams get to know each other as people and colleagues.

The bad news: team building is a lot more challenging when all or some of your people are working remotely. Try as you might, you just can’t do trust falls over Zoom. (Also, no one likes trust falls anyway.)

The good news: we have a trove of the best virtual team building activities to share with you. These are the same super-creative, road-tested, remote-team-approved activities that we use here at Atlassian.

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What is virtual-team building?

Virtual team building means creating human-to-human connections between your remote team members. Forging these bonds not only promotes team harmony, it can also help streamline communication and increase productivity.

Distributed eam bonding is a topic that matters deeply to us. We have a  Team Playbook  of exercises and workshops to help teams work better together (not to mention a guide to hybrid meetings for when it’s time to get down to business). It’s important to take time out to build connections while having fun, too. And, as a company of several thousand people distributed across five continents, we’ve had plenty of chances to act as test subjects for both flavors of virtual team-building activities.

Keep your virtual team connected with these proven rituals

How do you do team building virtually.

The best way to connect remote teams is to help them feel seen and heard, literally, and in ways that directly address the challenges of a dispersed workforce.

In mid-2020, we ran a survey on remote work , which uncovered the real-world complications we’re all facing with distributed work: feeling that our work is “invisible,” navigating new barriers to organic collaboration, and having less access to our managers. When we ran a similar survey in 2021 , we found that, although some of the initial challenges we faced have eased up a bit, teams are still struggling with belonging and cohesion.

The common thread here is that working from home can be lonely. Spending less time in an office environment means fewer built-in opportunities to form social bonds and build trust with colleagues. That can lead to disengagement, which, in turn, can lead to poor performance on the job.

That’s no small deal. In fact, 94 percent of  workers we surveyed  said that mutual respect and connection were critical to their team’s success, and 19 percent said it’s the most important factor in their sense of well-being at work. Understanding each other on a personal level means we can communicate more effectively and have an easier time distributing roles and responsibilities across the team.

So how can teams overcome these hurdles?

Tools of the trade

We use Trello boards as sort-of a virtual whiteboard, Slack as our chat tool, and Zoom for video conferencing. You’ll need at least one of these tools (or their equivalent) for each of the activities shared here.

Fun remote team building activities for any occasion

Choose what’s right for your team based on these categories:

Real-time vs. asynchronous – Do you need to do this simultaneously, or can each person participate at whatever time works best for them?

Practical vs. just for fun – Is the activity intentionally unproductive (which is not necessarily a bad thing), or does it serve the dual purpose of building social bonds and improving the way you work in a more tangible way?

18 ideas for virtual team games and activities

1. don’t overlook the classic: icebreaker questions 🧊.

Type: real-time, just for fun, on the regular

Time: 5 minutes

Tools required: video conferencing

Before you roll your eyes and go “Duh … like I hadn’t already thought of that,” understand that some of our distributed teams (my own included) do an icebreaker at the start of our team meetings every week. Even though we’ve been working together for a couple of years and feel pretty connected already, there are always more interesting tidbits to learn about each other. Some recent favorites include:

• Who was the last artist you searched for on your music streaming service of choice?
• What are your parents’ best qualities?
• Put these morning routine items in order: breakfast, coffee/tea, open up your laptop.
• What was something that always frightened you as a child?

Small talk at work has big benefits

2. have an online lunch date 🍱.

Time: 60 minutes

This one comes from the engineering team that built the Trello app for Android. Once a month, the team links up via video conferencing over lunchtime. Team members can even expense up to $25 so they can join from their favorite cafe, order delivery, or cook up a little something special at home (because, real talk: heating up leftovers gets old).

Only have 15-30 minutes to spare? No worries. Virtual coffee chats and virtual happy hours are fun variations on this activity.

3. Socialize over group chat 💬

Type: asynchronous, just for fun, on the regular

Time: varies

Tools required: Slack, Teams, or other group chat app

Group chat is an ideal way for distributed teams to stay in touch, but who says you have to keep it strictly business? Pre-pandemic, Atlassian set up a channel in Slack called #social-remote where we remote workers (which is now pretty much all of us), talk about what we had for lunch, compare notes on standing desks, share articles related to remote work, and generally discuss anything but the projects we’re working on.

There are even off-shoot channels for cities or states where clusters of “Remote-lassians” live. Let’s just say that more than a few hot-dish recipes have been swapped in the #minnesota channel.

4. Have a messy-desk photo contest 📸

When you work in an office, you feel compelled to keep your desk at least minimally clean: no used tissues, three-day old cereal bowls, or constellations of coffee rings.

But when you work from home, there’s no such social contract to uphold. So one of our rituals in the #social-remote Slack channel is “messy desk Thursdays” in which we out ourselves for the abysmal state of our workstations while the ROTFL 🤣and 🤦🏽‍♀️ facepalm emojis fly fast and thick.

It’s also a chance for your preternaturally tidy teammates to do some humble bragging about their austere, magazine-worthy office spaces.

5. How do you make online meetings fun? Presents 🎁

Type: real-time, just for fun, one-hit wonder

Tools required: video conferencing, Trello board

Whether your team prefers white elephant style or something more thoughtful, you can pull off a gift exchange even if you’re not at an offsite. Start by copying this handy Trello board template and inviting your teammates to join. It has full instructions in the “Rules” column, but here’s the gist. Each team member buys a gift that can be shipped easily. Instead of announcing what the gift is, you’ll add a card to the board with a picture and title that provides a hint.

During the game, you’ll take turns clicking on cards to reveal what the gift is. Once you turn over a card, you’ve claimed that gift. You’ll also get chances to steal a gift someone else has already claimed. After the game is over, mail the gift you contributed to the person who ended up with it.

6. Teach people how to work with you with “My User Manual” 📋

Type: asynchronous, fun but practical, one-hit wonder

Tools required: Keynote or PowerPoint

When you’re just forming as a team, or when a new member joins, it’s worth taking the time to share your personal workstyle. Do you prefer chat or email? What time of day do you do your best heads-down deep work? Are you cool with impromptu video calls? Check out this example from the CEO at CultureAmp:

Inspired? So were we. That’s why we created the My User Manual play, where you’ll find instructions on how to run this exercise in your team. Set up a meeting to review everyone’s “user manuals” in real-time, or share the decks so people can review them asynchronously. Either way, collect the decks in a central repository where future team members can access them.

7. Expand your professional skill sets together with “Learning Circles” 📚

Type: real-time, fun but practical, on the regular

Time: 30-60 minutes

Tools required: video conferencing, study materials as needed

It’s easy to get so caught up in executing on your work that you forget to expand your horizons, especially when working from home with no office banter happening around you. Plus, remote work can be isolating if you don’t make a point to connect with your teammates on a personal level.

Our Learning Circle play can address both issues. Choose a topic related to your work that you want to learn more about – anything from SQL to leadership styles to trends in recruiting practices – and find colleagues who share that interest. Each month, gather over video conference to discuss a book or article, or have someone in the group give a short presentation. The best part about learning circles is that you can extend them beyond your immediate team and connect with people across the entire organization.

8. Take your team’s pulse with “Health Monitor” 🩺

Tools required: video conferencing, Confluence, or Google Docs

Health Monitor is a variation on the classic agile retrospective. It prompts you to examine how you’re working together, instead of what you’re working on.

Through extensive research, we identified eight attributes that healthy, high-performing teams tend to have in common, then developed the Health Monitor as a framework for assessing how your team is doing in each area. Do you have the right balance of skills on the team? Are you making decisions effectively? Do you understand the dependencies around your work? Here’s a one-minute overview, staring yours truly.

Although this activity was not designed specifically for remote teams, it’s amazingly beneficial. When your team doesn’t sit shoulder-to-shoulder, it feels easier to sweep issues under the rug rather than address them head-on.

But little problems have a way of growing larger while you’re not looking, and eventually, you’ve got a crisis on your hands. Health Monitor prevents this by prompting teams to self-assess on a regular basis and keep their weaknesses from becoming full-blown liabilities.

9. You can’t have Nerf wars, but you still have .gif battles 💥

Time: 15-30 min

If you’ve ever been jealous of the Nerf dart wars waged by your co-located colleagues and friends, you’ll love .gif battles. Copy this Trello board template and invite your teammates to join it. (Click on the “How it works” card to see full instructions for the game.)

The game consists of four rounds, each with its own theme. You’ll use Giphy.com or Google Images to find a .gif that fits with the theme for that round and attach that gif to a card. Once everyone has their .gifs in, you’ll vote on the round’s best submission. At the end, the person who wins the most rounds will be crowned the Ultimate .Gif Battle Champion of All Time™. Just think of the glory! Don’t be afraid to add a tiebreaker round if needed.

10. Uncover your superpowers 🦸🏽

Type: real-time, fun but practical, one-hit wonder

Time: 30 min individual prep, 60 min as a team

If you think “water cooler moments” unlock creativity, you’re focusing on the wrong thing

If you’re ready to go beyond surface-level connections with your team, this is the activity for you. Each person will prepare for the session by taking an online strength finder assessment such as Clifton Strengths . During the group session, everyone hops on a video call and takes turns sharing their results.

When my team did this, each person shared top three strengths, lowest-ranked strength, and something in our results that surprised us. Then we’d discuss as a group how that person’s top strengths contribute to the team already, and how we could make even better use of them.

This is an intensely personal activity. You’re going to feel a bit vulnerable and exposed, so it works best if there’s already a sense of psychological safety amongst teammates. But because you’re discussing each other’s strengths, the conversation tends to be very positive and affirming. Chances are, everyone will walk away with a deeper sense of belonging and an understanding of the unique value they bring to the team.

11. “How you doin’?” 👋🏽

Time: 5 min

(This one is so much better if you say the words “How you doin’?” in a low, Jersey mobster voice – think Sal from “The Sopranos.” But I digress… ) The team that looks after the Atlassian Community website and our user groups added this five-minute ritual to the beginning of their weekly team meetings.

The board they use to track agenda items includes a space for each person to add a card representing how they’re feeling that week. Maybe they’re struggling with something in their personal life and are a bit low-energy. Maybe they finally ran that 10k over the weekend and are PUMPED for the week ahead. It’s an easy way for teammates to let each other know when they might need some extra support or patience, or when they’ve got good vibes to spare.

12. Make sweet music together 🎶

Tools required: Spotify or Google Play, Slack or other group chat app

Raise your hand if you and your remote teammates talk about music. (Thought so. Pretty much everyone does.) The content team at Trello is no different… but they’ve gone next-level with it. Using Spotify, they create collaborative playlists that anyone on the team can listen to and help curate.

Try creating an upbeat, “get $#!t done” playlist, a soothing “de-stress” playlist, or any other theme that suits your team.

13. DIY boba tea 🧋

Type:  real-time, just for fun, one-hit wonder

Time:  2 hrs

Tools required:  video conferencing, kitchen

Y’know how boba tea (sometimes called bubble tea) costs like $6 at a retail shop? It sounds overpriced until you realized how labor-intensive it is! About 50 members of our marketing team learned this first-hand when we did a virtual boba-making session. Each participant received a kit containing all the ingredients (we used this one ). Then, an expert guided the whole group through the process – it really does take two hours to make a batch! But that provided plenty of time for icebreakers and general chit-chat while ingredients cooked and/or cooled.

14. The fellowship of the traveling plush toy 📦

Type:  asynchronous, just for fun, on the regular

Time:  varies

Tools required:  Slack or other group chat app

A cross between the gnome prank in Amélie and the Flat Stanley craze, this ongoing activity yields months of fun. Choose a plush toy or doll that will be easy to pack up and mail – we had a custom plush made in the shape of our logo, and named it “Ace” – and set up a rotation so it travels between team members. When it’s your turn, use your chat channels to share photos of the plush hanging out with you, then pack it back up and mail it to the next person after a week or so.

15. Birds of a feather read books together 🤓

Type:  real-time, just for fun, on the regular

Time:  30-60 min for discussion; reading time varies

Tools required: video conferencing, Slack or other group chat app

Calling all bookworms! If you’re like me, then you know that the only thing better than reading a good book is discussing it with friends. Or, in this case, colleagues who also enjoy books (which, really, is pretty close to friends anyway).

Our brand content team runs a casual book club where the only parameter is that the books we choose must have nothing to do with our jobs. We use a Slack app called Polly to vote on book selections and when to meet over Zoom (and drinks) to talk about it.

16. Monday JAMM sessions 📆

Time:  5 min

Tools required: Slack or other group chat app

“So, how was your weekend?” The Atlassian brand and events teams took this time-honored Monday morning question into the virtual world by sharing stories and photos from their weekend over chat – but with a twist. To help put themselves in the best mental space possible for the week ahead, they focus on sharing the most positive and rejuvenating aspects of their weekend that will help them power through the week. Each entry starts with JAMM, which means “just another manageable Monday.” For example, “JAMM because I got to an amazing hike on Saturday!” Think of it as part gratitude practice , part pep-talk. It’s been such a hit that it’s spread to other teams, too!

17. Enneagrams for everybody 🥸

Type:  real-time, fun but practical, one-hit wonder

Time:  2+ hours

How well do you really know each of your teammates? Take time out for a deep dive into your personalities by using the Enneagram system . You’ll walk away with a better understanding of what makes everyone tick, and you’ll probably get some juicy insights into your own personality as well. (I sure did!)

Unlike finding your Myers-Briggs type or your zodiac sign, Enneagram asks you to self-identify your personality type based on the descriptions for each one. From there, you can explore how to best get along and communicate with other types. It’s a self-awareness + team harmony win-win.

18. A lightning round of mini-games 🕹

Time:  1-2 hours

Game apps for tools like Zoom and WebEx can be a ton of fun. (Hot tip for Zoom users: try the Kahoot! trivia app .) It’s a great way to add extra flavor to your virtual team lunches or kill a few minutes while you’re waiting for people to trickle in at the start of a meeting.

Now go forth and bond!

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63 Fun Team Building Activities for Virtual Groups

• Engagement & Interactivity
• Published: October 28, 2023

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For remote teams, out of sight should not mean out of mind. 

While distributed workforces have the flexibility of working from anywhere, the lack of in-person interactions can easily lead to feelings of disconnection and isolation. 

Nurturing strong relationships and alignment is even more crucial when teammates are dispersed across locations.  

That’s where intentional team building comes in.

Just like muscles, teams need regular exercise too! Thoughtful team building activities for remote groups are the “reps” that develop cooperative “muscles” and skills. 

Virtual games and experiences build the relational bonds, communication comfort and collaborative momentum distributed teams need to perform at their peak.

With in-office water cooler chats and impromptu collaboration no longer part of remote work realities, making time for meaningful team connection takes commitment. 

But virtual teams willing to invest in relationship-focused activities will reap rewards in engagement, innovation and productivity.

This guide will highlight the most fun, effective team building activities tailored for the remote environment. 

We’ll cover interactive games and experiences that build trust, spark creativity, enhance problem-solving, and most importantly, bring teams closer together across the miles. 

Say goodbye to silos and isolation. Hello to highly-connected, high-performing virtual teams!

Why Team Building Matters for Virtual Teams

Team building is crucial for all teams, but it’s especially important for groups that work remotely. 

Without trust, communication falters and teamwork suffers. 

Developing trust digitally can be challenging for remote groups.

Targeted exercises focused on building trust create meaningful shared experiences and connections. 

Here are 9 top virtual team building activities to strengthen trust.

1. Superlatives Awards

Create silly awards or superlatives for team members such as “Most Likely to Win a Gold Medal” or “Best Virtual Background.” 

Employees let their guard down and learn it’s okay not to take ourselves too seriously. 

Laughter builds trust!

2. Blind Drawing

Pair up teammates and have one person describe a simple image while the other draws it without being able to see the original picture. 

Teammates build communication and trust.

3. Virtual Coffee Trios

Assign groups of three to virtual coffee meetings to chat and find common ground. 

Hearing different perspectives builds understanding. Sharing stories fosters trust between employees.

4. Online Mindfulness Retreats

Schedule regular virtual meditation or mindfulness sessions as a team. 

Shared inner reflection strengthens bonds and trusting relationships.

5. Remote Movie Nights

Create connection through shared experiences by streaming a movie together virtually using Teleparty or Netflix Party. 

Add a video chat feature for employees to react together in real time.

6. Remote Personality Tests

Personality tests like  Myers-Briggs  or  Enneagram  offer insight into work styles and motivations.

Teams build understanding and trust across personality types.

7. Biography Sharing

Have team members create and share short biographies about their lives to provide insight beyond work.

Getting to know people on a personal level goes a long way in developing trusting relationships.

8. Remote Potlucks

Replicate the communal feeling of potlucks online by sharing recipes and delivering food delivery gift cards. 

Employees can cook the same dish in their remote kitchens then hop on a video call to eat together.

9. Collaborative Art Projects

Express creativity and emotions through collaborative art. 

A team mosaic of individual drawings pieced together or a digital graffiti wall where remote workers take turns creates a shared innovative experience. 

Form unique connections between remote teams through artistic expression.

Integrating virtual activities that tap into emotions, promote openness and strengthen connections makes it possible to cultivate trust, even remotely. 

Fun Team Building Games to Engage Remote Teams

Games add light-hearted competition, laughter and a sense of community to team building. 

Playing together online creates positive shared experiences and memories that bring remote groups closer together.

Here are 8 lively team games perfect for virtual teams:

1. Scavenger Hunt Bingo

Create bingo cards filled with tasks like “Find something purple” or “Show a childhood stuffed animal.” 

Break into virtual teams and have groups race to find items that complete rows on their card and yell “Bingo!” 

Bingo encourages communication and creativity.

2. The Price is Right

Put a virtual spin on the classic TV game show by having employees guess prices for various items pulled from online retail sites.

Award points for the closest bid without going over! 

To up the stakes, offer a fun prize for the winner like a gift card or extra time off.

3. Show & Tell Scavenger Hunt

Assign employees to hunt their homes for quirky items, like a coffee mug they never use or an old concert t-shirt. 

Regroup online to “show and tell” their finds and hear the backstories. 

Regroup online to “show and tell” their finds and hear the backstories. Sparks casual connections.

4. Would You Rather?

Have teammates go around a video call answering silly “would you rather” questions like, “Would you rather always say everything on your mind or never speak again?”

It’s a fun way to start engaging conversations.

5. Guess the Meme

Share different meme images. Employees work in teams to guess the meme titles quickly. 

See who earns the top score in this fast-paced and fun online game!

6. In My Bag

Each employee pulls five random items from their bag or desk and displays them on camera. 

Colleagues have two minutes to guess what’s in their coworker’s unique mix of items. 

Learn about the people behind the screens.

7. Song Lyrics Game

Divide your team into groups and have them take turns acting out or drawing song lyrics while others guess the tune. 

Make it harder by only using obscure songs or number one hits from a certain year.

8. Remote Codenames

In this spy-themed word game , teams compete to identify their words first according to one-word clues from their “spymaster.” 

Play over video conferencing using the online version of Codenames.

Laughter is the best medicine for remote worker woes. 

Infusing playfulness through online games makes team building more rewarding and helps instill a positive team culture.

9. Mystery Sound Contest

Gather odd objects from around your homes, set up calls on mute and take turns making mysterious sounds.

See who can guess the object first or come closest to replicating the weird sound.

Who knew workplace collaboration could sound so bizarre!

Problem Solving Focused Team Building Activities

Sharpening critical thinking, creativity and problem-solving competencies as a team has multiple benefits. 

Build communication and collaboration skills while nurturing innovation.

Team building activities centered around creative problem-solving are especially valuable for remote employees who tackle challenges independently.

Here are 6 great problem-based team building activities:

1. Survival Scenarios

Present teams with fictional survival scenarios like being stranded on a deserted island and have them collaboratively brainstorm solutions. 

Build strategic planning abilities.

2. Design Challenges

Give teams an inventive design challenge like creating a new team mascot or reimagining the company logo. 

Have groups brainstorm in virtual breakout rooms before presenting creative concepts for a vote.

3. Hackathons

Host online hackathon events where employees rapidly prototype solutions for company challenges like improving virtual onboarding or easing pandemic work burdens. 

Working against the clock catalyzes resourcefulness.

4. GeoGuessr Competitions

The online game GeoGuessr lets teams view Google Street View images and guess which location they depict based on visual clues. 

It’s an engaging test of collective logic and problem-solving across teams.

5. Cross-Department Team Ups

Form teams mixing up employees from different departments and challenge these cross-functional groups to solve real-world business problems relevant to each area of expertise.

6. Unexpected Challenges

Present employees with an unexpected challenge like building the tallest tower using simple materials they have on hand or creating a team commercial with no notice. 

They’ll need to use logic, imagination and group coordination to succeed.

Challenging teams builds unity, collaboration skills and the confidence needed to tackle future obstacles. 

Infusing problem-solving elements into team activities also keeps skills sharp and sets up remote teams for ongoing innovation success.

Team Building Games Using Video Conferencing

While in-person interactions are ideal, video calls still allow for meaningful connections during team building through thoughtful games and activities for the virtual environment.

Leverage built-in features on platforms like Zoom, Google Meet and Microsoft Teams to facilitate engaging online experiences.

Here are 3 impactful team building games perfectly suited for video conferencing:

1. 20 Questions

One person thinks of a celebrity or place and teams take turns asking yes/no questions to guess who or what it is. 

Watching expressions and reactions on video provides helpful clues!

2. Story Time

Go around your video meeting with each person adding the next line of an evolving story.

Take turns sharing something you spy around you and see who can guess the object first.

Get creative in facilitating games that leverage video to help remote teams connect face-to-face. 

The technology bridges the physical gap between distant teammates.

Unique Virtual Team Building Activities and Games

While there are tried-and-true staples that work, mixing up virtual team building with creative activities keeps it exciting.

Here are 7 unique ideas to build camaraderie across remote teams:

1. Cocktail-making Class

Have a mixologist teach your team to make the same signature cocktail over a fun video call class. 

Bottoms up!

2. Paint Night

Hire an art instructor to lead a virtual acrylic painting lesson for your team to flex their creative chops together.

3. Remote Karaoke

Belt out classics together with Zoom’s musical sound effects or an online karaoke room from Magical.

4. Pet Show & Tell

Have everyone show off their cute pets on video and share fun facts about their furry friends.

5. Digital Board Game Night

Coordinate playing games like Settlers of Catan online together. Much more social than solo play!

6. Lip Sync Battle

Vote on lip syncing winners as employees perform hit songs and epic dance moves from their remote locations.

7. Cocktail Trivia Night

Register for online trivia through Tinth or Quiz Wiz to battle other teams and show off knowledge.

Infusing unique, outside-the-box activities keeps virtual team building fresh, fun and engaging for remote teams. Besides building camaraderie, it boosts morale and motivation too!

Infusing unique, outside-the-box activities keeps virtual team building fresh, fun and engaging for remote teams. 

Besides building camaraderie, it boosts morale and motivation too!

Effective Tips for Facilitating Virtual Team Building

Facilitating engaging online team building takes thoughtful planning and preparation tailored to the virtual environment.

Here are tips for running successful virtual activities:

Set clear objectives. Determine desired outcomes, like enhancing trust or creativity, so you pick activities aligned to goals. Share objectives so employees understand the purpose.

Think variety. Rotate different types of activities to keep things interesting and involve different strengths.

Leverage tech tools. Use online whiteboards, games, polls and breakout rooms to facilitate immersive experiences.

Offer learning opportunities. Choose team building that imparts new knowledge or skills along with teamwork lessons.

Make participation voluntary. Encourage involvement while allowing employees to opt-out if uncomfortable.

Keep groups small. Break into smaller teams to gives everyone a chance to actively participate.

Have quick icebreakers handy. Be ready with 5 minute icebreaker games to kick things off and warm up the team.

Consider fun themes or props. Tie activities to holidays, pop culture or let employees show off fun costume pieces or items.

Incorporate healthy competition. Friendly contests motivate engagement – just avoid overly competitive activities.

Plan digital backups. Have alternate online versions of games ready in case of video call glitches.

Review logistics in advance. Ensure employees have all required links, materials or digital access ahead of time.

Offer incentives. Give rewards like gift cards to boost involvement and recognize winners.

Close with a quick debrief. Discuss key takeaways or lessons learned from activities while they’re fresh.

Proactively troubleshooting tech issues and laying out clear expectations for employees will ensure online team building runs smoothly from start to finish.

Benefits of Virtual Team Building Exercises

Consistency is key – the more regularly teams engage in intentional team building, the greater the benefits. 

So what are the top advantages of prioritizing team building virtually?

• Stronger Connections. Shared experiences and conversations forge profound interpersonal bonds and friendships, even remotely.
• Improved Communication . Practicing communication builds trust, clarity and comfort collaborating online.
• Increased Engagement. Fun activities break up routines and improve the morale and motivation of remote workers.
• Enhanced Creativity. Collaborative problem-solving and games spark new ideas that translate to daily work.
• Deeper Trust. Vulnerability-based exercises develop the mutual trust vital for high-performing teams.
• Better Conflict Resolution. Resolving challenges together builds understanding and strengthens relationships long-term.
• Improved Collaboration. Teamwork activities enhance collaboration skills essential for productivity.
• Problem-Solving Agility. Working through games and scenarios together builds critical thinking and strategy.
• More Cohesion. Aligning around shared goals and experiences creates tighter team cohesion.
• Leadership Development. Taking turns leading fosters leadership skills across the team.
• Increased Inclusion. Playful interactions break down walls between colleagues of different backgrounds.
• Added Structure. Virtual activities counter isolation and give a welcome shape to remote workers’ days.
• Reduced Burnout. Fun team experiences provide a necessary mental break from constant solo work.

Investing in frequent virtual team building yields significant dividends through more connected, creative and higher-performing remote teams. 

The collective growth far outweighs the minor time commitment needed.

Important Takeaways

The extensive guide presented 63 thoughtful ideas to foster stronger connections, improved communication, enhanced creativity, deeper trust, sharper problem-solving, and greater alignment among virtual teams across these areas:

• Icebreakers – Quick connections help new and existing teams warm up to each other. Creative activities break the ice.
• Communication – The more teams practice clear communication, the better they’ll collaborate in work. Games build skills.
• Collaboration – Shared problem-solving and creativity forges team cohesion and interdependence.
• Trust – Vulnerability-based activities develop deep mutual trust required for peak team performance.
• Problem-solving – Games build critical thinking and strategy skills that translate to business results.
• Fun & Games – Playful competition and humor boosts morale, motivation, and camaraderie in remote teams.
• Unique activities – Out-of-the-box virtual experiences excite and galvanize team spirit.

While every organization’s needs differ, some key takeaways rise to the top:

Relationships Are the Foundation

All exceptional teams share deep interpersonal bonds and trust among members. 

Virtual teams are no exception – in many ways, intentional relationship-building is even more critical when working across distances. 

Activities focused on vulnerable sharing, finding commonalities and even just socializing for fun lay the groundwork for high performance.

Consistency Matters

Team building can’t be a one-time event if leaders want lasting returns. 

Integrating short but regular team connection activities into existing meetings pays dividends through stronger camaraderie. 

Even quick icebreakers or games to warm up teams build familiarity. 

Savvy leaders make relationship-strengthening a non-negotiable component of routine interactions.

Variety Boosts Engagement

While covering core competencies, smart leaders continually introduce novel activities into virtual team building. 

Creative games, outside-the-box challenges and unique bonding experiences counter boredom. 

This variety sustains interest, energy and participation in team events over time.

Custom-Fit Beats One-Size-Fits-All

No two teams share the exact same dynamics or needs.

Rather than force-fitting a generic option, custom-tailoring activities around a team’s unique objectives, strengths and challenges boosts relevance and engagement.

Teams feel valued when experiences directly apply to real work.

Technology Enables Connections

Virtual need not equate impersonal. 

Thoughtful incorporation of collaborative technology tools facilitates meaningful shared experiences across distributed groups. 

Whether co-creating art on digital whiteboards, playing multiplayer online games or engaging friendly competition through virtual breakout spaces, common digital ground brings consistency.

Intentional Bonding Builds the Foundation

In today’s remote paradigm, organizations unwilling to nurture interpersonal ties across distances risk disengagement or fragmentation.

However, leaders investing thoughtfully in virtual team building ultimately gain back exponentially in camaraderie, innovation, productivity and performance.

Integrating even quick virtual team building activities into weekly team huddles or meetings pays noticeable dividends.

Reserved employees may need encouragement to open up. Consider incentives for participation.

Invest in virtual team development just as you would for an in-person team. 

Disparate teams will perform at their highest level through trusted relationships.

Remote work is here to stay. 

Embracing online tools for intentional team building creates cohesive, thriving teams across distances. 

With stronger connections, communication, and problem-solving skills, your distributed team will be unstoppable.

Distributed workforces demand connection. 

Intentional team building is the catalyst that transforms fragmented groups into unified powerhouse teams. 

Yet designing immersive virtual activities requires expertise.

Why gamble with your team’s health and performance? 

Our award-winning virtual event experts have energized leading global brands by unlocking the power of strategic team bonding tailored for remote teams. 

Let us help catalyze your distributed group’s potential.

The collective growth will be invaluable. 

Schedule a free strategy session now and start investing in your remote workforce as you would an office team. 

Take the first step by chatting with our team of remote work experts. 

In just minutes, we can ignite meaningful plans to strengthen your distributed team.

Organizing a full-scale virtual or hybrid conference is overwhelming easy with the right team . Leave the stress to us, so you can focus on what you do best.

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7 Best Virtual Critical Thinking Team-Building Activities for Adults

Is your team feeling a little dull? 

Are you looking for some fun, motivating, and engaging virtual team-building activities to help get things moving again? 

If yes, you’ve come to the right place! This article will share 7 of my favorite virtual critical thinking team-building activities for adults. 

So get ready to have fun and boost your team’s productivity simultaneously! 

Explore more! 

1. Build a story through Emoticons

In today’s virtual world, finding ways to connect with colleagues and build team morale is more important than ever. And what better way to do that than through the universal language of emoticons? 

Here’s how it works: each team member creates a story using only emoticons. The stories can be as long or short as you like, but they must be completely understandable to anyone who reads them. The other members of the team have to guess the story. 

The team which guesses the most wins! 

Instead of stories, you can also put in film names, short words, or a famous quote from your boss. It could also be a popular riddle. The idea is to make it complicated for the opposite party to think and reply.  Make it meaningful. Few clues can be provided after the first 5 minutes. Explore this link if you are looking for corporate team-building organizers in Sydney .

2. Shark Tank

A Shark Tank-inspired activity. 

To get started, each team member must choose a product or service they’d like to pitch. Then, they’ll have a few minutes to prepare their pitch before presenting it to the rest of the teams. 

As the pitches are being made, other team members will play the role of “sharks.” The sharks will be tasked with asking tough questions and negotiating for a better deal, while the entrepreneurs must stand their ground and make a convincing case for their product. 

At the end of the activity, everyone will have had a chance to practice their pitching skills. This activity is excellent for promoting critical thinking, teamwork, and creativity. 

Head to the link for more virtual team-building activities . 

3. Virtual Escape Rooms at Entermission Sydney

A fun and unique way to build team morale, virtual escape rooms are the perfect solution. Unlike traditional adventure based team-building activities , virtual escape rooms can be enjoyed by everyone in the office – no matter where they’re located. 

At Entermission Sydney , we have 3 escape game themes to play online. You may choose one or play all of them. 

Our team-building activity builds team morale, promotes problem-solving skills and creative thinking. These skills are more critical than ever in today’s increasingly virtual workplace. Teams will learn to communicate better and work collaboratively towards a common goal. 

So what are you waiting for? Contact us today for more information! 

Here is why Escape Rooms make the best team-building event ! 

Music brings people together. Music helps people bond as they have a common topic to speak on. Plus, if the taste is similar, there’s no going back! 

Here is how it goes – There can be a team, or it can be played as an individual game as well. The first 10 seconds of the song are played, and players must guess what song it is. 

The exact name of the song is essential. You can also keep the podium open to whoever can message the first in the group, and they’ll get the chance to say the name. If they fail, the opportunity goes on to the next one. 

If the first 10 seconds fall short, you can gradually increase the seconds from 10 to 20 and 30. 

This promotes collaboration and communication among team members. You get to know each other’s music taste, promoting listening and memory skills. 

If you want to make the game more challenging, you can have team members guess the artist instead of the song title. 

5. Situational Critical Thinking

This is a toughie but a great one for a virtual team-building session. 

The host starts with lateral thinking questions that are situational. Teams have to understand the situation and solve the problem with a creative approach. 

Players will have a minute before they come up with a solution. The entire group can discuss the individual’s approach at the end of their answer. 

Or, to make the game a bit different, everyone can weigh their opinion as their answer. This way, everyone gets to share their problem-solving skills, and the leaders understand their way of thinking. 

Ultimately, you can pick the best answers and tell your team why it is the best. This way, both ends understand each other’s perspective, helping you tackle them in the workplace more efficiently. 

Examples are taken from Reader’s Digest – 

“A woman enters a room and presses a button. Within seconds, she instantly loses 20 pounds. How did she lose the weight?”, 

“A man pushes his car until he reaches a hotel. When he arrives, he realizes he’s bankrupt. What happened?”, 

“After a night of partying with her friends, a woman arrives home and finds that she cannot enter the house. She’s sure that she’s at the right home, but she cannot get inside. What happened that makes entering her home impossible?” 

These can be a few to get you started. Players should be prepared to answer them in the most creative and intelligent way! 

6. Trivia Night

An excellent activity for groups who are already familiar with each other. Divide your group into teams of two or three and have them compete against each other in a trivia night-style game. 

You can make the questions about anything you like – current events, pop culture, history, etc. – and the team with the correct answers at the end wins. 

Trivia topics can be related to your workspace or culture, or industry. This game can also be played individually, but a group ensures more bonding. 

Trivia Nights help in bonding and increasing interaction among your team members.

7. Logic Puzzles or Crosswords

Logic puzzles are a great way to get your team thinking critically about a problem. 

Divide your team equally into teams, and give each a puzzle to solve. To make it more challenging, you can provide teams with different logic puzzles to solve or make the logic puzzles more complex by adding more constraints. 

The first team to solve wins! 

You can also try crosswords. By giving them different crossword puzzles or the same for each team, you help them bond over the game to find answers by working together. 

This helps promote teamwork and understand each other’s strengths and weaknesses. This also forces them to communicate and interact with each other. 

And finally, remember the prizes! A little incentive can go a long way in making a team-building activity a success. 

So, there you go! My 7 best virtual critical thinking team-building activities for adults. 

I hope you’ll try out a few (or all!) of them and let us know how they go in the comments below. 

And if you need help getting your team on board with online team-building, don’t hesitate to reach out to us. We love helping teams work better together! 

What are your favorite virtual team-building activities ? 

Explore the link if you are still looking out for virtual team-building activities . 

Cheers! 

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10 Critical Thinking Team Building Activities

However, this is harder than it sounds - critical and creative thinking are two sought-after skills that are not easy to find during the recruitment process.

Instead of finding great team players with powerful and relevant skills, we'll turn our current team into a valuable asset with these 10 critical thinking team building activities.

Instead of seeking great team players with powerful and relevant skills, we'll transform our current team into a valuable asset with these 10 critical thinking team building activities.

Why Are Critical Thinking Team Building Games Important?

Critical thinking, communication, and problem-solving skills are among the most important core skills that employees in all industries seek.

In this case, having the ability to overcome new situations through critical analysis is a must, and the following statistics help us prove this point:

• A survey by the American Management Association revealed that 72% of employees believe that critical thinking skills are key to their organization's success , yet only half of those surveyed reported these skills in their employees.
• A research paper by The Foundation for Young Australians ( FYA ) reveals that the proportion of jobs demanding critical thinking has increased by 158%, showcasing the importance of soft skills that encourage reasonable, rational, and logical decisions in various tasks.
• According to Harvard Business Review ( HBR ), the majority of new graduates looking for a position lack critical thinking capabilities , which puts a focus on encouraging the development of this skill to create high-performance teams in different industries. 

Introducing critical thinking, problem-solving , and classical team building activities into the workplace motivates employee engagement and contributes to improved productivity.

Let's explore 10 team-building games that encourage critical thinking and are suitable for both remote and in-person teams.

1. Escape Room

It's time to boost team morale by participating in an Escape Room challenge where participants collaboratively solve puzzles and decode clues to "escape" within a set time.

Teamland's Virtual Escape Room activity will encourage team members to collaborate as a united team in order to overcome the challenges ahead.

Virtual escape games enhance the communication and critical-thinking skills of remote team members, "forcing" them to make innovative decisions to achieve a common goal.

• Activity Duration : From 30 minutes to 1 hour.
• Best For : Small and medium-sized hybrid teams.

2. Virtual Murder Mystery

Virtual Murder Mystery is a classic team-building game by Teamland that will test the critical thinking skills of your teams to the limit.

In this immersive experience, participants work together to unravel a fictional crime through clues, witness accounts, and detective work.

All team members will join a virtual party and will need to collaborate with each other to discover the identity of the murderer before time runs out.

This activity not only hones critical thinking skills but also enhances interpersonal connections as team members become characters in a shared narrative, fostering a dynamic and engaging atmosphere for problem-solving and strategy development.

• Activity Duration : 30 minutes to 2 hours.

3. Company Debates

Company Debates is a simple team building activity that consists of holding a debate about different topics among all team members in the office.

Choose a topic, divide team members into smaller teams, and make them articulate their ideas to defend their points of view.

This activity sharpens critical thinking as team members weigh various perspectives, consider evidence, and articulate their positions persuasively.

4. Public Speaking Training

Public Speaking Training is an expert-led workshop by Teamland that teaches team members the importance of having public speaking skills.

Speaking in front of an audience enhances communication and transparency , fostering a more dynamic work environment where all team members learn how to prevent communication problems.

Learning how to properly communicate your ideas is a great way to improve critical thinking and foster the whole team's leadership skills. 

• Activity Duration : From 1 to 2 hours.
• Best For : All team types and sizes.

5. The Worst-Case Scenario

The Worst-Case Scenario is yet another standard team building game where everyone can participate.

Divide team members into groups, ask them to put themselves in the worst-case scenario (which can be a plane crash or stranded on a desert island), and make them come up with 10 must-have items (survival items, ideally) to overcome the situation.

Through an out-of-the-box thought process, team members will need to elaborate on why their items of choice will help them during difficult times.

It's important to make all team participants collaborate in the activity, as this will enhance the critical thinking skills of the entire group. 

• Best For : Small and medium-sizes in-office and remote teams.

6. Survivors

If you are familiar with the classic TV show " Survivors ," you'll love this team-building activity by Teamland.

In Survivor, team members will need to work with each other to overcome different challenges, which include both mental and physical activities.

This team-building game for adults will make "tribes" compete against each other in a friendly way, but they will all want to win the great prize, so thinking critically will be imperative. 

• Activity Duration : From 1 to 3 hours.
• Best For : In-office teams of all sizes.

7. Office Olympics

The Office Olympics are here, and it's time to win a gold medal!

Office Olympics involve a series of mini-games designed to foster teamwork, enhance company pride, and create a fun and creative space for your team.

Some games will be simple, and some others will be a real challenge - critically analyzing the situation and having strong communication is crucial to end up victorious.

Whether you're celebrating milestones, improving cooperation, or welcoming new team members, this activity is ideal for fostering critical thinking and instilling a sense of victory in your team.

• Best For : All in-person group types and sizes.

8. Bridge Build

If your team members had all the materials to build a small bridge, would they know how to do it?

If not, don't worry - Teamland's experts will show them everything they need to know about bridge building in our Bridge Build Experience .

In Bridge Build, contestants will need to build a bridge from scratch . Teams will compete against each other to build the more impressive and durable bridge and win the great prize.

However, keep in mind that the bridge needs to be strong and stable enough to allow a large remote-controlled vehicle to safely cross it - critical thinking will be crucial to achieve this! 

• Activity Duration : From 2 to 4 hours.
• Best For : All in-office group sizes.

9. Capture the Flag

" Capture the Flag " by Teamland may seem straightforward, but in reality, it's a game that pushes your team's problem-solving and critical skills to the max.

The concept is simple: there are two flags and two bases. Teams need to capture the enemy flag while also protecting theirs.

This game requires an immense amount of collaboration, but once everyone gets the hang of it, it'll turn into an unforgettable activity that will teach valuable lessons to everyone.

This activity, which sounds simple at first, unfolds into a challenging and strategic experience, requiring your team to work together, think on their feet, and come up with clever solutions to emerge victorious.

• Best For : Medium and big-sized in-office teams.

10. Teamopoly

Teamland has created Teamopoly , the ultimate outdoor adventure, which is a game that combines the best of Monopoly, Scavenger Hunts, and other outdoor activities.

Teamopoly is a city-wide scavenger hunt where team members will discover the most iconic places of their city while also acquiring properties as they would on Monopoly.

Although it might sound a bit complicated at first, the truth is that this original experience will not only keep your team members entertained for hours, but it'll also improve the whole team's critical, analytical, and communication skills. 

• Best For : All in-office team sizes.

Summary: Best In-Person and Virtual Team-Building Activities to Encourage Critical Thinking

Implementing any of these critical thinking building activities can help you create a powerful workplace and improve the potential of all team members. This is a quick summary of the best 10 team building activities to encourage critical thinking:

• Escape Room: Collaboratively solve puzzles to "escape" and boost team morale.
• Virtual Murder Mystery: Unravel a fictional crime through clues and detective work in a virtual setting.
• Company Debates: Encourage thoughtful discussions and argumentation on business topics.
• Public Speaking Training: Learn the importance of public speaking skills for improved communication and leadership.
• The Worst-Case Scenario: Think critically about survival items in a worst-case scenario.
• Survivors: Experience team challenges inspired by the TV show "Survivor."
• Office Olympics: Engage in mini-games to foster teamwork and company pride.
• Bridge Build: Compete to build an impressive and durable bridge.
• Capture the Flag: Strategically capture the enemy flag while protecting your own. ‍
• Teamopoly: Enjoy a city-wide scavenger hunt with Monopoly elements.

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5 Team Building Games For Adults That Teach Critical Thinking Skills

Team building games are not only fun; they break the monotony of daily routines and help us to develop valuable skills. Some games help us to acquire critical thinking skills, which make us productive and increase our output in the workplace. Corporate training through critical thinking games is beneficial for both small and established organizations because it fosters trust and problem-solving skills among the employees. Brain training activities are quite common; however, critical thinking games are much better if you want to teach skills faster.

So keep reading on and learn if you want to learn a 5 new games for boosting critical thinking in your team.

Why Team Building Activities are Important

The leading organizations know the importance of corporate training. A business can either succeed or fail, depending on the ability of its employees. Regular training inculcates relevant skills and knowledge to the workers who in turn use it to boost production.

Team building activities improve work relations, therefore creating a conducive working environment. Working together to solve different problems shows the employees that they need each other to reach their organization’s goals. This knowledge is applied in the office as each one understands how to work with different individuals and talents.

Team building activities also allow employees to socialize, network, and get to know each other. Making friends in the workplace is the first step to increasing productivity. Employees can work together to solve problems. This is the moment when critical thinking games step in: a common goal to achieve in a playful format brings out each team members’ stregths.

When employees work together in team building games, they celebrate and have fun together, which inspires them to work harder and win more. Cheering and supporting each other in these activities promotes team bonding and motivates them to rise to the next level. Working together also promotes creativity and innovation. This is why critical thinking activities for employees need to be planned ahead and implemented withing your company.

Create games, self-guided and audio tours, team building events and educational content that captures peoples' attention.

Teaching critical thinking through team building games for adults

The good thing about corporate training and team building games is that they equip you with knowledge in and out of office. The following team building games will teach you critical thinking skills while having fun:

1. If You Build It

This critical thinking game for adults is not only simple, but it’s also flexible – this means that anybody can participate. The game starts when the teams are divided into small groups, given equal amounts of different materials, such as building blocks, pipes, or even marshmallows. The teams are assigned a task that involves construction. This can either be to build the tallest structure, for instance, a castle. The groups should work together until they come up with the required structure. This game inculcates problem-solving and communication skills.

Zoom is an exciting game that can be used both in the classroom and to foster cooperation in the workplace. The team sits or stands in a circle, and each is given a unique picture of an animal, object, or other items. To make it more exciting, the instructor starts a unique story then the next member continues the story following the picture provided. This team building game inculcates creative collaboration skills for adults and children alike. You can get more critical thinking and other games for Zoom here.

3. Shrinking Vessel

Critical thinking can be difficult to master with brain training; however, with fun team building games such as shrinking vessel, it becomes effortless. The activity starts with dividing members into small teams. Each group has to work together to fit into a shrinking space until; there is no room in between. The boundary can be made of cones or a rope. This game equips you with teamwork and problem-solving skills .

4. It’s a Mystery

Many people love a good mystery, and this can be exciting when people work in groups. In this critical thinking game for adults, each team member is given a numbered clue. In order to solve this mystery, for instance, if you are told to find the missing eggs, teams must work together following the clues in order. Solving this case might require the groups to move around to uncover more clues to solve the mystery. This game is important because it teaches you problem-solving and communication.

5. The Worst-Case Scenario

The objective of this activity is to foster teamwork. In this case, every team has to collaborate to come up with a list of must-have items in extreme circumstances. The members are divided into smaller groups; then the instructor explains an example of the worst scenario. For instance, one group could have a scenario where they are stuck in a burning house or a hijacked plane. Each group has to decide on 5 or 10 must-have items to get them to safety. The decision to choose the items must be unanimous. Among critical thinking games this activity draws out everyone’s personalities, expert knowledge and helps to prioritize.

Some managers don’t give them the attention they deserve, choosing to concentrate only on work itself, however, team building activities are important because they break the monotony and equip employees with relevant skills. Especially in the form of critical thinking games for adults, which are created with the purpose of training participants into making better decisions. These activities are beneficial to both the workers and the organization, and this boosts the output and productivity.

Waiting game for virtual meetings is a bonus in our list of games for critical thinking. This game needs input from people with different skills and knowledge base. Common goal to clean the gameboard and reveal hidden picture gets everyone talking. Logical puzzles promote discussion and breaks silence!

We hope you enjoyed this list of critical thinking team building activities and manage to implement some of them in your organization!

Authors Bio Hazel is an entrepreneur at heart and has built a regionally recognized and successful multi-million dollar businesses – Biz Group , starting the company in 1993 with just $700. The group now employs 62 professionals and provides services in the fields of design and delivery of corporate training, teambuilding, meeting facilitation and organizational health through culture and engagement.

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23 Problem-solving games for busy work teams

Problem solving is a skill that can serve almost anyone, in any role, in any industry. The ability to think critically, and resolve issues is a welcome talent that is helpful for every organization. How can you encourage such thinking in your team? In this article, we are talking about our favorite problem-solving games, activities, and exercises for work. Use these activities to sharpen the reasoning and decision-making skills of your department or your entire company. Without further ado, let’s dive into the best problem solving games for getting the most of your next work event. 

In-person problem solving games

If you have the opportunity to get your team together in person, that’s a gift! Perhaps you are planning a company retreat or a department-wide in-person meeting. Whatever the circumstances, in today’s more digital workspace, it’s not always easy to have everyone in the same room. When you actually do, make the most of it! These activities are set up for in-person groups. They are part team-building activity, part icebreaker, and all fun! All of these activities are guaranteed to get people thinking, communicating, and having fun. If you have a particularly big group, you may want to browse our article on large group games too. 

1. Treasure hunt

Similar to a scavenger hunt, a treasure hunt is a lot of fun but with a bit more intention. Rather than collecting a random list of items, participants use clues to find more prompts and hints, until the group solves a mystery (or finds a treasure). You can also create a treasure map if you want to play into the “pirate” fantasy a little more. The important thing is that only clues point toward the next stop - areas of the map should not be spelled out, but involve some problem solving and critical thinking to figure out what the clue means. 

2. 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. 

3. 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. 

4. Build a shelter

How would you survive if you were stranded in an isolated place with a blizzard coming? Use this activity to find out! As an added complication, you can pretend that everyone is blinded by frostbite (by using blindfolds). The team leader must give the group instructions for building a shelter that can withstand the arctic winds. To play, you need a large space and some supplies. Then, select a leader (who can see) and blindfold everyone else. You’ll also need a large fan. The leader guides everyone in putting together their shelter (remember, while blindfolded). When everyone feels confident that their shelter is up to the test, turn on the fan and see if the structure can withstand the wind! This game is sure to lead to a lot of laughs and you’ll be surprised at some of the clever ideas that people come up with. This is also a powerful exercise for effective leadership - it’s not easy to reach a goal with a group that is blindfolded! Check out our article on team activities especially for leadership as well.

5. Improv games

You may think of improv games as more of an icebreaker activity, but the truth is there is a lot of brain power that goes into well-done improv. Look for ways to add both logic and entertainment to your next improv effort. Consider scenarios like banned words, where people cannot use a certain list of words, or “miracle cure”, where one person shares a problem they’re having and the other person must come up with the solution on the spot. Both are fun and easy ideas that don’t require anything but willing participants! If you need some other quick and easy team building activities , make sure to follow our blog. 

6. Spaghetti tower

In this classic team building game, users try to build a tower using uncooked pasta noodles and marshmallows. The instructions are simple: use the tools at your disposal to design and build the tallest tower in order to win the challenge. You can judge on height alone, or weigh other factors like innovation, number of towers, or stability. For more simple team building activities , make sure to follow our blog. 

7. What would you do?

Another classic icebreaker, this game involves coming up with some scenarios that require brain power to address. Here are some prompts you can use with your group: 

• What would you do if you were at the zoo and all the animals escaped? 
• What would you do if you were the first person to find out about an upcoming zombie apocalypse? 
• What would you do if you were in line for a really important item, and a person cut in front of you, getting the last item? 
• What would you do if you were invited for dinner at the home of someone you really needed to impress, and the food was terrible? 
• What would you do if an imposter that looks and acts just like you infiltrated your organization? How can you convince everyone that you’re the “real” you?

8. “MacGyver” challenge

MacGyver is an older television program where the hero escaped sticky situations by improvising tools made of unlikely materials. You can recreate this set-up in your event space or office. To play, challenge participants to use 3-5 items to reach a desired end result. For example, something like “a way to pick the door lock” or “escape vehicle” are fun options. You can either set out some various equipment, or have people collect their own based on what they can find around the office. Note: if you are doing this in a conference room or other rented space, it makes sense to have a table set up with random odds and ends for people to pick from. 

9. Egg drop challenge

This one will take you back to high school physics class! Break a larger group into smaller teams and challenge them to come up with a container that will protect an egg even when it’s dropped from up high. You can either let people know far enough in advance that they can discuss, design, and collect materials; or you can have supplies ready and have everyone build their creation on the spot. If you go that route, you’ll want to provide a variety of boxes, packing supplies, rubber bands, fabric, etc. Then set up a ladder and have each team drop their container and see if their egg remained intact. 

10. Shrinking circle

Adaptability and flexibility are huge in the business world. One way to focus on both of those items is by playing this simple and silly game. Start out by using a rope to create a large circle that everyone can fit in. Then, every few minutes, make the circle a bit smaller. Depending on how large the circle is in the first place, you can take away an inch or a foot each round. The challenge is for everyone present to stay inside the circle. This will require some serious innovation once the circle gets small, and lots of laughs almost always ensue. Note: People are likely to end up touching each other in this exercise. It’s difficult not to once the space gets small, like a game of Twister. You know your colleagues best - if that level of closeness would make anyone uncomfortable, it’s probably best to try a different exercise. 

Out-of-the-office problem-solving activities

Everyone once in a while, it can be really valuable to get out of your usual work environment and into a new mental space. If your team is planning a multi-day retreat, don’t be afraid to include an organized activity that will help everyone to think more critically. Most towns have at least one option for getting your group together and learning some new ways to problem solve. Do some research on what you have available locally, or work with an organization like Surf Office who can plan your next retreat - including the fun elements that your employees will be talking about for months to come! If you know that you can’t get out of the office right now, stick to this list of indoor team building activities . 

11. Escape room

The goal of an escape room is to follow a series of clues and take on some challenges in order to unlock the space that everyone is locked in. There are usually 5 - 10 puzzles that teams will work together to figure out. Typically finishing one leads to another clue, so that participants can move onto the next phase. Only when they’ve successfully completed all of the tasks can they find the key and escape. While you can definitely set up an escape room on your own, we think it’s worth finding a local version in your town (or wherever your retreat is taking place). These are professionally set up and usually in really cool spaces like an underground bunker or a historic building. An escape room is a good excuse to get out of the office and spend time with coworkers in a new environment. 

12. Murder mystery

These story-based games have people take on a role in a pretend scenario. They may take on a role like detective, dinner guest, or even killer in their dinner. Most of the time the games involve reading lines from a script, searching for clues, or even solving some simple challenges to move onto the next phase. Participants have to pay attention to conversations and context clues in order to get an understanding of who the killer might be. Observation and logic are key to catching the killer. Some murder mysteries involve getting dressed up and having a nice dinner, so if you’re looking for an idea for a big night out capping off your next retreat, this is perfect. 

13. Ax throwing

What do axes have to do with problem solving? You might be surprised. This is definitely an activity you’ll want to go to a professional venue for. Ax throwing outfits have everything you need, plus the right safety precautions. They have everything set up with the proper distances, buffers between throwing stations, safe ax materials, etc. Plus, many of them offer food and drinks! Ax throwing can help with problem solving because most people don’t excel at it their first time. It takes some practice and careful consideration to figure out where to stand, the best stance, the force of the throw, etc. As you take turns, you’ll make adjustments and also consider new methods based on observing your teammates. The more you watch and the more you try, the better you’ll get. In fact, instead of having people compete against each other, we suggest having the team compete against themselves, aiming for a higher total score in their second or third consecutive game. This activity allows you to observe others and then optimize - essentially learning from each other. 

14. Paper boat race

If you are able to visit a location by water, you can try this really fun activity. In this fun and creative exercise, participants build a small boat with paper (and other supplies) and then race them in a small body of water like a pond or stream. The boats are usually made by folding paper into a boat shape, but you can also try offering cardboard, balloons, popsicle sticks, or other crafty materials. You’ll also want to supply materials for decorating so that everyone can really have their creation stand out. Obviously the person who reaches the finish line first is the winner, but you can offer a few other prizes just for fun, like most beautiful boat or best effort. Make sure to check out our article on other creativity and innovation games , too. 

Problem-solving puzzles

When it’s just not possible to get everyone together, you can still encourage your team to put on their thinking caps and hone their skills. There are tons of critical thinking games, puzzles , and even apps that people can use to practice problem solving. You can encourage your team members to play these games in their spare time, or even set up a competition where people log minutes playing such games or using the apps. If you’re feeling really generous, give everyone a small stiped to be used on a problem solving app of their choice. This special touch makes a nice addition to a holiday gift, too!

Sudoku has become one of the most popular problem solving games for adults. There are dozens of free app options, as well as paperback books that you can pick up. The goal of this game is to fill each box on a 9×9 grid so that every row, column, and letter contains each number from one to nine. It sounds tricky - and it is - but players tend to find it addicting and the game has grown a huge following in recent years. Encourage people to play on their own by downloading an app or purchasing a puzzle book, or as a team by having the puzzles available in your office or at your next event. 

16. Crossword puzzles

These classic word games have players fill out words based on clues. Words interconnect, and people must think critically about the context clues of what they’ve filled out so far. These puzzles are super versatile and one of the best things about them is that you can make them yourself so they are themed. You can use an online crossword puzzle maker to create a custom puzzle with clues about your business or other relevant subjects. For your next event, it might be fun to have a custom crossword puzzle about your company history or trivia! 

17. Tic-tac-toe tournament

It sounds a little silly, but tic-tac-toe requires more brain power than one might think. Set up an ongoing tic-tac-toe board in your office and encourage people to use it on their breaks or when they have a few minutes to kill. You can set up a scoreboard and keep track of the leader; it’s a lot of fun to see the rankings change and to challenge the top performers. If you need an even simpler version of the same concept, simply set up the Connect Four game board in your break room and let people have at it! 

Problem-solving for virtual teams 

If your team is a bit scattered, it doesn’t mean that you can’t practice solving challenges together. In our digital world, there are plenty of options for online activities that teams can work on either independently or as a group. In the section above, we shared some ideas for independent work. These ideas are designed to bring your team together, no matter where they are. Set a time and have everyone hop onto your preferred communication tool, and then work together tackling these challenges. 

18. Virtual hackathon

A hackathon normally refers to an event where participants have a set amount of time to design and pitch a new product or solution. It’s normally used in the tech space for pitching things like new apps, but you can apply the concept in lots of other ways too. In this online version, teams work with each other using virtual meeting software and pitch ideas to a panel of judges. This type of event requires some advance notice for the participants, as they’ll want to collect a team and come up with some designs. If you want to raise the stakes, offer a prize for first place.

19. Online escape room

Just like an in-person escape room, in an online version people must solve a variety of puzzles in order to make it “out”. Digital escape rooms normally come in one of two ways: in a Zoom “room” led by a host, or in a choose-your-own-adventure style via Google Forms or other websites. To play virtually, staff will enter the meeting and follow the prompts they get, and it might involve screen sharing some Google tools to work on puzzles together. Because of the platforms and tools that may be involved, this activity is better for teams who are a bit more tech-savvy and comfortable with online meetings, apps, etc. 

20. Survival plans

Prioritizing is an important mental exercise. You can work on this with a game about survival. Have everyone imagine they are stranded on a desert island, and they must decide the correct order to perform life-saving steps in. Have this list handy, and ask everyone to pair off or get in small groups and number the list according to the best likelihood of survival: 

• Set up shelter
• Look around the island
• Signal for help
• Create weapons for self-defense
• Build a raft for water
• Start a fire
• Select a group leader
• Find other survivors
• Anything else you think of! 

The catch is that everyone must agree on the order of events!  That will typically involve discussion and coming to some sort of consensus. Once everyone is done with the exercise, have them present to the larger group and explain their reasoning. This exercise is good for team-building, communication, and problem resolution. Plus, you will be better prepared if you ever get stuck on a deserted island! 

21. Online role-playing games (like Dungeons and Dragons)

Seeing how people react in real-world situations is a really interesting way to get to know them better. Find an online game that has real-world actions and consequences, like Dungeons and Dragons. Or, you can make things even simpler by hopping on a Zoom together and reading a Choose Your Own Adventure book aloud, with the reader getting group consensus before making a decision. The important part is the discussion that will occur before choosing the next action. This is helpful for bonding and also helps you to see how your colleagues tick. These activities can be difficult to organize for big groups, so if you have a substantial team, try some of these team building activities for large groups instead. 

22. Google Docs story

Similar to an ongoing story icebreaker, this game is easy to do online as people have time. You start by creating a Google Doc that everyone on the team has access to. Then, have people go into the Doc and add to the story that’s developing. If you want, you can pick a prompt to kick things off - or you can just let the first person get creative and go for it! The more specific or bizarre the scenario, the more creative and clever people will have to get to add their portion. 

23. Model UN

Chances are you might be familiar with this concept from high school. Fortunately, adults can have a lot of fun with it too. You can play this virtually as long as everyone is a strong communicator. Each participant should take on the role of an international diplomat, and work together to form alliances and solve crises. Come up with a potential scenario that the UN must work through. Consider things like a global food shortage, natural disaster, or cyber-security threats. If your group is particularly large, you can have multiple people assigned to a country and they will have separate roles. If politics is a sensitive topic on your team, you might want to tweak this exercise to be focused on a business and treat participants like board members - or even a musical group! 

Set the tone of your next company retreat

These problem solving games and activities are great virtually any time - there is something for everyone, whether you’re remote or in person, on a large team or a small one. One of the best ways to implement a problem solving exercise is at the beginning of a team retreat. If you have organized a large meeting or team building event, consider getting things started with such an activity. Many of these problem solving games will get everyone thinking and make people more comfortable, plus a lot of them also serve as a form of icebreaker.

The next time you plan a work retreat , consider including a few of these on the agenda to set the tone for a fun, energizing event. Need help ensuring that your retreat is, in fact, fun and energizing?

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25 engaging ice breakers for virtual meetings (that won’t bore your team!)

Virtual ice breakers can be an effective method of kicking off a project, onboarding a new team member or enlivening your team meetings. Choose the right method and you can get your meeting off to an energizing start that encourages participation and builds connections . Get it wrong and risk being met with groaning team members or indifference.

In this post, we'll share some proven virtual icebreaker games used by real facilitators and help you find the right method for your virtual team. Whether you need a short activity to kick off a conference call or to help onboard new team members without making things awkward, we have you covered!

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When teams start their meetings and workshops effectively, the outcomes and overall enjoyment of a session follows suite. An effective virtual icebreaker not only helps a team warm-up and arrive in the session, but it also helps build alignment and set the tone for the team meeting ahead. But how can you choose the right one for your remote team? What do you need to look for when choosing a virtual icebreaker ?

Read on to discover what makes an effective icebreaker for virtual teams and how to run them effectively. We’ll also share instructions and tips for 25 ready-to-use activities you can employ in your next video call or online meeting!

What is a virtual icebreaker? 

Virtual icebreakers are activities or games that are designed to help break down barriers and kick-off virtual meetings or events in a productive, welcoming manner. They are great for building relationships, warming up groups and establishing connections among remote teams.

The purpose of a virtual icebreaker can vary depending on the session you’re running, but generally, the goal is to create a comfortable and engaging atmosphere which prepares your virtual team for the work of the session ahead.

Virtual icebreakers can range from simple, short activities that invite participants to check-in with the group or share their progress, to more complex games that require teamwork and collaboration.

Sometimes, the purpose of a virtual icebreaker can be as simple as getting people talking or to learn one another’s names before dropping into breakout rooms. Whatever the format, the goal is always to help your team be present in the meeting and begin making connections.

Why virtual icebreakers are important

All sessions benefit from an effective opening. When kicking off a virtual meeting, we have additional work to do in order to position the session for success. When working remotely, our attention is often split between windows, laundry and what meeting is coming after this. Connection is harder in a virtual environment where it’s more challenging to fully engage with others or easily read body language.

This is where virtual icebreakers come in. By using interactive activities to kick off meetings or team events, you can help your remote team fully arrive in the space and bridge gaps between your teammates . If you’re struggling with overall engagement and participation from your remote team during meetings, maybe you’re missing the right icebreaker!

Virtual games can also serve to encourage behaviours or introduce concepts that will be useful for later in the meeting. Creative team building activities can get your group primed for out of the box thinking. Ice breaker questions can help improve connections ahead of a collaborative workshop.

Virtual team ice breakers can also be effective ways to catch up and save time later in the meeting. A quick check-in round can help surface issues, wins and potential discussion points. They can also help set expectations and ensure alignment before the group moves forward.

In all cases, these activities encourage communication and contributions from your entire virtual team. For this reason alone, their inclusion at the start of a meeting can be transformative.

Ready to design an online session around your chosen icebreaker?  SessionLab makes it easy to  build an agenda in minutes . Start by dragging and dropping blocks, add timings and share your completed agenda with your participants for an engaging session.

What makes a good virtual icebreaker?

Not all virtual icebreakers are created equal. Some are great for helping established teams kick-off a video conference, others are best employed when helping remote team members get to know each other.

In addition to knowing your audience and purpose, there are a few things you want to look out for when selecting online icebreakers . Helpfully, all of our virtual icebreakers have been developed with these in mind!

Here are a few key qualities that make for a good virtual icebreaker:

• Simplicity : The best virtual icebreakers are simple to explain, easy to run and participate in. Generally, you want to spend only a short time breaking the ice with your group, and so simplicity is vital. This can be dependant on your audience and session, but a general rule of thumb I try to follow is that you shouldn’t take more than thirty seconds to explain your icebreaker and it should be simple enough that everyone in the group can grasp it easily. The net result is an ice breaker that is both engaging and time-effective too!
• Inclusivity : A good virtual icebreaker should be inclusive for all team members, regardless of their backgrounds or experiences. It should not rely on cultural references or inside jokes that may exclude some team members. Think too of your audience’s needs and differences. Not all participants will feel comfortable or able to participate in a dance party. Choose an icebreaker that is right for your group and design for inclusivity – add alternatives and choose activities suitable for all attendees.
• Relevance: Every activity in your agenda should be relevant to the group you are working with. An icebreaker that is designed to help learn people’s names can be great for newbies, but for teams that have worked together for a long time, it can feel like a waste of time. It can also help to think about the shared interests and experiences of your virtual team and choose an activity that will resonate. Lastly, try and choose an icebreaker that fits with the session you are running. If you’re running a problem solving session, pick a creative icebreaker. If you’re running a weekly stand-up, a quick energy check-in might be more appropriate. In any case, pairing the icebreaker with the theme of your session to keep it relevant will help it land with your audience.
• Interactivity: Try and choose an activity that encourages team members to participate and collaborate, rather than simply listening or watching. Remember that your virtual meeting is not the only time your team will be looking at a screen that day. Keeping things fresh and creating an opportunity for a novel interactive experience can help your group be present. Getting people talking and interacting early can also pave the way for deeper collaboration later on.

Tips for running virtual icebreakers

To ensure that your virtual icebreakers are effective and enjoyable, keep the following tips in mind:

• Be mindful of time : Virtual icebreakers should be brief and to-the-point, especially if you have a large team or a busy agenda. Use SessionLab’s Time Tracker or an online stopwatch to effectively timebox your icebreaker and keep on track. Ideally, you don’t want to cut someone off mid response, but it’s also important to remember that this is just the first part of a larger workshop or meeting.
• Ask participants to go on camera : Where possible, invite your team to go on camera while participating in any virtual games. The instant feedback of a smile or a laugh can really elevate the sense of connection and improve team bonding. In some cases, this step is optional, though note that some games require cameras, and so you should select your ice breaker accordingly.
• Go first and model an ideal response : Some virtual icebreaker games are easier to grasp when demonstrated. As a leader, it’s often helpful to go first and show your team how to break the virtual ice. Being vulnerable and demonstrating the kind of responses you’d like to see can also help remote teams build team rapport and be a little braver in their responses.
• Give positive feedback : Thanking participants for getting involved and noting contributions can help create a positive feedback loop and encourage further interactions. This almost should go without saying, but its worth noting how important this can be for setting the right tone for the meeting and making it feel good for everyone to contribute.
• Encourage participation : Make sure that everyone has a chance to contribute and that no one feels left out or excluded. In some groups, this might mean calling on people to jump in or simply leaving space and being comfortable with a little silence instead of prematurely bringing an activity to a close.
• But make it okay for people not to participate too! As with any activity, non-participation is okay if it’s agreed upon by the group. Forcing people to contribute if they’re not comfortable can be detrimental to team rapport so definitely consider this point depending on your group and design activities to be as comfortable as possible by default.
• Ask the group to select the next participant : in sequential activities, where people take it in turns to answer a question or take part in a game, try to encourage each person to call on someone else to go next. This not only keeps things moving but it also encourages people to talk to other team members, rather than simply to you as a facilitator.
• Use breakout groups : when groups get over a certain size, certain icebreakers end up taking too long and can stop being fun or dynamic. Consider using breakout groups and running your virtual icebreaker in parallel with groups of over 10-15 people, or when the icebreaker calls for more in-depth responses and discussion.
• Use music : just as a film score is a vital accompaniment to the images onscreen, music can elevate your choice of virtual game. Play relaxing music at the start of a session to set a calming tone, or put on something with a beat to build energy during an active game!

Short virtual icebreakers

Short virtual icebreakers are activities that are designed to take only a few minutes, but still provide an opportunity for groups to connect and engage with each other at the start of a meeting. Here are a few examples:

Remote: Change 3 things

Getting people to pay attention during a virtual team building session can be challenging. This icebreaker is designed to perk up remote teams, ask them to pay attention and also have some fun too!

Start by getting the whole team on camera and ask everyone to observe other team members closely. Next, ask everyone to turn off their camera and change three things in 30 seconds. They might change something about their appearance, perhaps with a hat or costume change, or move something in the background! When everyone is done, get them back on camera and ask other team members to spot the differences and guess what has changed.

Remote: Change 3 things   #energiser   #energizer   #warm up   #remote-friendly   Light, energising exercise that helps the group to observe the other people on the call.

Take a Picture of Your Shoes

What we wear and how we move through the world can say a lot about us as individuals. This activity is a quick and simple way to get meeting attendees quickly warmed up by simply asking them to take a picture of their shoes and share it with the group. Set a time limit and encourage creativity – wacky shoes or fun photographs are absolutely encouraged.

If you have time, ask for a few people to share a story behind their shoes or even get people in breakouts to discuss in small groups. You can even modify this activity to have your group vote on the best pair of shoes or story! We love the fact this icebreaker is incredibly simple but always invites fun and creativity into the meeting.

Take a Picture of Your Shoes   #energiser   #teambuilding   #icebreaker   #remote-friendly   Get to know the other members of your team and share something interesting about yourself in this quick energiser activity.

Rollercoaster Check-in

Checking in is one of the best ways you can quickly break the ice and start your session off on the right foot. When working in online meetings, it can be helpful to include interactive, visual elements to any activity.

For this virtual icebreaker, invite your team to an online whiteboard and draw a line resembling the ups and downs of a rollercoaster. Next invite each member of your group to place a picture or a post-it on the rollercoaster to represent where they are and how they’re feeling. Simply asking people to be aware of how they’re feeling is a great addition to any morning routine!

You might then ask people to share why they put themselves where they did, or simply use this as an opportunity to gauge overall energy in the room. I find it particularly effective to return to the rollercoaster at the end of a session and to ask people how their position might have changed.

Rollercoaster Check-In   #team   #opening   #hyperisland   #remote-friendly   This playful method creates a powerful shared picture of the feelings in the group. Checking-in is a simple way for a team to start a meeting, workshop, or activity. By using the metaphor of a rollercoaster this alternative version supports participants to think differently about how they are feeling. People place themselves at different points on the rollercoaster, explaining their dominant feeling right now.

Rock, Paper, Scissors Tournament

Running a familiar game in a virtual setting is one of my favourite ways to start a meeting. Not only do you get to play with expectations, but it can prove to be a great conversation starter too!

In this online version of Rock, Paper, Scissors, randomly select a pair to face off in your video call and play a round. The winner stays in the game while the loser turns off their camera and becomes a cheerleader for another player. Keep playing until you have only one player remaining!

This fun virtual icebreaker is best played in gallery mode on Zoom so all participants can see each other and while it can sometimes descend into chaos, it is guaranteed to get people involved and generate laughter too.

Rock, Paper, Scissors (Tournament)   #energiser   #warm up   #remote-friendly   This is a fun and loud energiser based on the well-known “Rock, Paper, Scissor” game – with a twist: the losing players become the fan of the winners as the winner advances to the next round. This goes on until a final showdown with two large cheering crowds! It can be played with adults of all levels as well as kids and it always works! 

Chat Waterfall

In remote meetings with large amounts of participants or you are very short on time, asking people to speak up and share on camera can be tricky. Chat Waterfall is an effective way of getting contributions from large groups and avoiding cross-talk.

First, invite people to open up the chat in your video conferencing app. Next, ask an icebreaker question, but instruct people not to send their answer until you say so. Give a few moments and then have everyone press enter at the same time. The result is a wonderful cascade of answers you can then choose to highlight as a facilitator. Add a follow-up if you can or sum up the results as a segue for your next activity.

Chat Waterfall is an incredibly flexible icebreaker activity: whether you want to use it to start an in-depth discussion or just get people virtually communicating quickly.

Chat Waterfall   #zoom   #group mind   #virtual   #remote-friendly   Using the chat in zoom, participants share ideas / challenges and then additions / solutions.

One Word Method

This is one of my favourite activities for virtual team building. It’s quick, effective and can be modified for almost any scenario. The game works by having one person start a sentence with by saying a single word. The next person then jumps in to add the next word to the sentence and play continues with each person in the room contributing a single word until the sentence is complete.

Sentences can end up random, funny or nonsensical, but for an added challenge, set a theme for the group to follow and see if the group can collectively create a sentence that makes sense!

I particularly like setting a theme that matches the purpose of the workshop and using this to segue in a discussion, but it can also be fun to just see what strange places virtual teams go with this!

One Word Method   #product development   #idea generation   #creativity   #icebreaker   #online   #warm up   Creating a sentence relating to a specific topic or problem with each person contributing one word at a time.

Virtual icebreaker questions

Sometimes, all you need for a good icebreaker is an effective conversation starter that lets people get to know each other and start communicating. Whether it’s about what’s on their bucket list, whether they’re a dog person or cat person, or simply what fictional character they most identify with, these kinds of questions are tried and tested.

For best results, pair these questions with Chat Waterfall, call on people to speak or break people into smaller groups to talk among themselves. Dropping a question into a group without structure or clear rules of engagement can be met with an awkward silence. I prefer to use these kinds of ice breaker questions in breakout rooms or in smaller groups and to tailor the specific questions to fit the team I’m working with.

Conversation Questions   #connection   #icebreaker   #trust   #meeting facilitation   #opening  

Virtual ice breakers for new team members

Virtual icebreakers can be particularly helpful for new team members who may feel isolated or disconnected in a virtual setting. Here are a few virtual icebreaker ideas that are ideal for welcoming new team members into the fold and to supplement your onboarding efforts.

The Desert Island

Creative games that allow your team to demonstrate their problem solving skills while collaborating can be an engaging way to kickoff a session. This icebreaker poses that age-old question of what we would do if stuck on a desert island while asking your team to think about what they would need to survive.

Start by sharing a list of items, some obvious and some less so. Ask each participant to choose 1-3 items they would take with them in order to survive on a desert island. In smaller groups, ask each person to select items, though with teams of over 10 people, it can be great to separate into breakouts and deliberate which items to bring as a team. The Desert Island is great for offering a framework for conversation with no single correct answer and which allows creative, individual responses.

The Desert Island   #relationships   #icebreaker   #teamwork   #remote-friendly   Many of us have played a game similar to this before – if you were stranded on a desert island, what essential items would you choose to survive? Participants are given a list of items to choose from and must work together to decide which items will help them stay alive. A great, remote-friendly exercise for a team to work together and share opinions.

Break the Ice with The Four Quadrants Activity

Icebreaker activities that go a little deeper and encourage individuality are great for helping teams get to know each other. In this fun game, each team member is given space for drawing the answers to four questions you’ll ask. You can run this using a virtual whiteboard or by asking participants to draw on paper and share their completed image with the whole team.

Start by sharing four questions with the team: for example, What do I bring to the group? What do I need from the group? What is your hobby? What is your vision for this group? Give each person 5-10 minutes to draw their answers and then bring the group back together to share what they’ve drawn. This activity encourages connection and is a great way to introduce something tangible and visual into a remote working environment.

Break the Ice with The Four Quadrants Activity   #team   #icebreaker   #get-to-know   #teambuilding   The Four Quadrants is a tried and true team building activity to break the ice with a group or team. It is EASY to prep for and set up. It can be MODIFIED to work with any group and/or topic (just change the questions). It is FUN, COLORFUL and works every time!

Who are you? The pirate ship exercise

Every member of a team is also an individual, and in this game, participants are invited to imagine themselves as the member of a pirate crew! Start by sharing the image of the crew of a pirate ship and ask each person to choose who they most identify with. Then ask everyone to share, either in the chat, verbally on in breakout groups.

This exercise can be as quick or as deep as you need and I love that it is easy for everyone to participate while also encouraging some critical thinking. Why do I feel more like the lookout than the Captain? Such games can prime team members work in the rest of the session and give rise to more ideas too!

Who are you? The pirate ship exercise (dinámica del barco pirata)   #team alignment   #team   #remote-friendly   #teamwork   #warm up   #icebreaker   This an easy but powerful exercise to open a meeting or session and get participants to reflect on their attitudes or feelings about a topic, in the organization, team, or in the project.

9 Dimensions Team Building Activity

For teams looking for a more in-depth icebreaker, this activity is a great way to share strengths, weaknesses and preferred ways of working with the group. It’s especially effective at the start of a team building session where you want to build relationships, though it works equally well when inviting people to get to know each other.

Start by posting the 9 dimensions (Adventure, Career / Profession, Community Service, Creative Outlets, My Environment, Family & Friends, Health & Fitness, Personal Growth, Spirituality) in your virtual whiteboard or Google Doc for the team to copy. Next, ask everyone to add a coloured dot to each dimension based on whether they’re crushing it or have room to improve.

Finally, invite everyone to share one dimension for each coloured dot if they’re comfortable and have a short debrief on what everyone learned. By sharing and being vulnerable in this way, teams can learn a bit more about their colleagues and start to strengthen their relationships as a result.

9 Dimensions Team Building Activity   #icebreaker   #teambuilding   #team   #remote-friendly   9 Dimensions is a powerful activity designed to build relationships and trust among team members. There are 2 variations of this icebreaker. The first version is for teams who want to get to know each other better. The second version is for teams who want to explore how they are working together as a team.

Snapshot of my Life

Photographs can do a lot of heavy lifting for remote teams, effectively bridging communication barriers and building connections. In this game, invite your team to break the virtual ice by sharing a photograph from their life with the group. For new team members, this method can be a memorable way of getting to know their virtual colleagues!

You can modify this exercise by encouraging anonymous posting and having the group guess who each photo belongs to, or ask the group to share around a particular theme. With groups where trust is high, ask each team member to share one of the most recent photographs on their phone and tell a story about it.

A snapshot of my life   #remote-friendly   #energiser   #teambuilding   This exercise is great for building empathy amongst team members, and giving each participant a deeper understanding of their colleagues’ backgrounds (particularly great for international or remote teams). It’ll also set a casual atmosphere for the workshop ahead.

Guess the Desk

A companion method to the above, Guess the Desk asks that participants take a photograph of their workspace and anonymously post it to the group. Next, have the group guess which desk belongs to whom and then invite the desk owner to talk a little bit about their workspace.

This activity can be great during an onboarding call or first meeting, as it naturally flows into conversations about how to work effectively and tech set-up, which can help position new members of the team for success. It can also serve to truly humanize everyone in the virtual team and kickstart team bonding you can follow up with later in the session. Who doesn’t like seeing the cute knickknacks, mementos or cool tools their colleagues are using!

Guess the desk   #remote-friendly   #energiser   #teambuilding   An energiser game for remote teams where participants share images of their work set-up and attempt to guess opponents’ desks while bluffing their own!

Virtual icebreakers to get people moving 

Virtual meetings often involve sitting in front of a computer screen for extended periods of time, which can be physically and mentally draining. Virtual icebreakers that involve movement can help to energize team members and improve their focus, productivity and general mental wellbeing. Even a quick stretch can do wonders for engagement!

Here are a few examples of virtual icebreakers to get people moving:

Stand up if

Combining movement and questions can be an effective way to warm-up both the body and the mind. In this virtual icebreaker activity, start by making a statement to the group such as, Have you ever climbed a mountain? If this statement is true, you must stand from your chair. Nominate the next person to make a statement and continue until everyone has had a chance to make a statement.

After a few statements, I like to invite the group to include a stretch or other optional movement when speaking, which other team members must then try to follow. Be sure to invite groups to be creative with their statements and perhaps take over towards the end to use statements which then apply to the session at hand.

Stand up if   #icebreaker   #sharing   #opening   #energiser   #online   #remote-friendly   short, fun, energizing team activity

One of the quickest icebreakers I’ve ever run, Shake down is as simple and effective as they come and it has the bonus of encouraging physical activity among your virtual team! Begin by asking the group to stand if they’re able and then shake each of their limbs eight times in turn. After shaking both arms and legs, then repeat the cycle for four shakes, two shakes, then a final shake with a ninja kick or big cheer.

This game is proof that icebreakers do not need to be complicated in order to be fun, and I love that it can often shake a group awake and get them involved off the bat. It’s especially good for meetings in the after-lunch slump!

Shake Down   #hyperisland   #energiser   #remote-friendly   In this short and very physical energizer, the group shakes out their bodies one limb at a time. Starting with eight shakes of the right arm, then eight shakes of the left, eight shakes of the right leg, then eight shakes of the left. It continues with a round of four shakes of each limb, then two, then one, ending in a big cheer. A good energizer when time is limited and the main aim is to get people moving.

Follow the Follower

Encouraging movement and a little silliness can be one of the best ways to kick off a session where you need everyone to be present and willing to engage. Follow the Follower is a game that can be played virtually just as well as it can by people in the same location.

Start by designating one person as the leader and ask them to lead the group in a movement – yoga poses, terrible dance moves, whatever they like! After 10-15 seconds, the leader designates someone to take over, who chooses a new movement that everyone has to follow. Include music if you like but for best results, include a quick debrief at the end to give everyone a chance to reflect on what it was like to follow and indulge in a little bit of chaos!

Follow the Follower   #zoom   #virtual   #physical   #teambuilding   #connection   #energiser   #opening   #remote-friendly   #ericamarxcoaching   One person is designated as the leader.  Others copy exactly how the leader moves.  The leader calls on a new person to be the leader, and so on. Follow the follower variation is when the leading gets passed to the entire group and no single person is leading.

Modelling the characteristic simplicity and fun we want to see in our virtual icebreakers games, Touch Blue invites the group to find an object in their physical space matching a prompt and then bring it quickly back to the video call and show the camera. The last person to bring back an object gets to select the next one.

By using prompts like “touch something blue” or “touch something hot or noisy,” you can invite participants to be creative while sharing something from their lives. In some groups, you might ask groups to use their whole house and retrieve things from their kitchens or bathrooms. In any case, try to have space for folks to share stories about their favourite items and connect during the game!

Touch Blue   #energiser   #fun   #remote-friendly   Touch Blue is a classic energiser that is quick and easy fun for remote teams too! Challenge participants to find objects on their desk that match the attributes you select and have fun doing so!

Looking Around

This quick virtual game does double duty by encouraging participants to both do a little stretching while also learning a valuable lesson about the danger of previous associations.

Begin by asking your group to stand-up and let them know you’ll be giving them instructions for where to look. Lead them through a round of randomly saying directions while they follow your instructions. Next, make a change and let them know that down now means up and up means down while left and right remain the same. Lead another around and bask in the laughter and mistakes the group makes while warming up! If you’re feeling brave, add further wrinkles by inserting other instructions such as reverse, repeating the reverse of the previous action, or double, repeating the next action twice.

Looking Around   #thiagi   #concepts   #remote-friendly   #energiser   Here’s another jolt that explores one of our favorite themes: You have to unlearn something old in order to learn something new. A nice thing about this brief activity is that you don’t need any supplies or equipment.

Icebreakers for Zoom breakouts

Some virtual games are most effective when used in small, self contained groups where it might be easier to be vulnerable or simply quicker to share and discuss. Other times, breakouts might be necessary just because of the sheer size of your group!

While most of the games in this article can be used effectively in breakout groups, the virtual activities below are those that especially benefit from the format, whether you’re using Zoom or other video conferencing tools. Let’s take a look!

Unique Thing in Common

Finding we have things in common with our colleagues is a gift. In this virtual ice breaker for Zoom, get people into pairs and invite them to find the most interesting or unexpected thing they have in common. This can work effectively with people who know each other well or people meeting for the first time, but be sure to highlight the need for a unique or unexpected thing in common.

If you have time, encourage returning groups to share their facts, though let them know in advance of going into breakouts. Some of the facts that can come up may want to stay between those people in the breakout!

Unique Thing in Common   #virtual   #zoom   #connection   #trust   #active listening   #opening   #get-to-know   #teambuilding   #remote-friendly   #ericamarxcoaching   With a partner, find the 3 most unlikely / unusual / unique things you have in common with each other.  Each pair chooses one to share with the group. 

Virtual Scavenger Hunt

For groups who enjoy friendly competition or when wanting to encourage collaboration, a virtual scavenger hunt can be a great way to kickoff a session. Begin by preparing a list of things each team will need to gather online, such as a favorite movie from the year of each team member’s birth or a Google Maps image of everyone’s childhood home. (You’ll find a full list in the method below.)

Next, give your group a time limit (you may want a shorter timeframe and list when using this method as an icebreaker) and put everyone in breakouts. For bonus points, invite each group in your virtual scavenger hunt to give themselves a unique name and crown a winner based on how well each team has performed!

Virtual scavenger hunt   #energiser   #teambuilding   #remote-friendly   A fun team-building energiser that encourages groups to recreate the scavenger hunt experience in a fully remote environment! 

Discussions in virtual meetings are often more productive when moving into breakouts. For this virtual icebreaker game, start by collecting a heap of inspirational, relevant quotes in an online whiteboard or Google Doc. Next, put people in breakouts and invite them to choose a quote to discuss with the group. They might cover that the quote means to them, whether they think the same, or simply wonder what it has to do with the session ahead.

This icebreaker is great to use at the start of a session where the group may need to use critical thinking and get into some deep discussions. It provides a safe space to practice and get warmed up!

Quotes   #icebreaker   #energiser   #online   #warm up   #remote-friendly   For participants to get acquainted with each other in a meaningful way

Happiness Exercise

Looking for a virtual meeting activity that is guaranteed to raise some smiles? The Happiness Exercise is an incredibly simple invitation for people to share happy experiences in a breakout and discuss them in small teams. You might include a theme or framing question to help guide what people share, but in my experience, it’s best to trust the groups to share whatever comes to mind and let conversations flow naturally.

By using groups of just a few people, you can ensure each person gets space to share and the relationships that are built on this foundation can be meaningful indeed.

Happiness exercise   #teambuilding   #icebreaker   #warm up   #remote-friendly   This exercise is a simple application of the principles of Appreciative Inquiry.

Everyone is a Liar (Two truths and one lie)

This classic icebreaker works just as well online as in real life, though I’ve found it most effective in breakout rooms. The most interesting conversations that arise from this game are often about discussing the two truths that came up, rather than simply finding out if we’re right or wrong.

Start by asking the group to come up with two truths and a lie about themselves and then invite the other people in their breakout room to guess which is which by asking some lie detector questions. This activity is a tried and tested way to help create connections and can be a great icebreaker for virtual meetings too! Where possible, invite participants to share their truths and lies in an online whiteboard or shared document to make it easy to play and to debrief with later.

Everyone is a Liar (Two truths and one lie)   #warm up   #icebreaker   #remote-friendly   #online   Starting a meeting or after a break in a group where participants don’t know each other or don’t know much about each other

Three Wishes

Oh, what we might do if we all had our wishes come true! In this virtual game, you’ll use the idea of a genie that can grant three wishes as the basis for a small group discussion. In breakouts, invite your team to share the three wishes they’d make and why.

This is an incredibly simple game, but it can also create space for great conversations that help teams of any size or maturity get more familiar with one another and have some laughs too! For a more directed experience, invite groups to make a personal wish, a professional wish for the company and a wish for someone else on their team. These wishes can make for interesting discussions that can feed into the rest of your workshop.

Three wishes   #get-to-know   #icebreaker   #remote-friendly   The activity serves as a brief energiser during a workshop, and helps to get creativity flowing. At the end of this method, each team member will be a little more familiar with each other.

Breakout Room Tag

Tired of just chatting in your Zoom breakouts? This fun game is a virtual spin on a playground classic that encourages your team to jump between breakouts and attempt to not get caught! Start by choosing one person to be “it” and let them know they need to count to ten and say someone’s name in order to tag them and make them “it.” Put people into random breakouts and then let the chaos begin!

For even more fun, try the freeze tag version in the method below. Not only does this game create a sense of excitement but it can be a great way to teach people how to move between breakouts and get familiar with your video software!

Break-out Room Tag   #large group   #virtual   #zoom   #remote-friendly   #energizer   #high energy   #ericamarxcoaching   Everyone plays tag, using breakout rooms in Zoom

In Conclusion

A good virtual icebreaker can set up your virtual meeting for success. Set the right tone during kick-off and your team can be more prepared to participate. Break the virtual ice effectively and you’ll help people start talking and engaging without further prompts.

Looking for more effective icebreakers? This collection of icebreaker games is a great source of more ideas that will work in both remote and live settings.

Did you have a favourite virtual icebreaker that isn’t featured? Let us know in the comments below! We’d love to hear about what works for you and your team. Want to discuss facilitation approaches in more detail? Join our community to connect with other facilitators and talk all things facilitation!

James Smart is Head of Content at SessionLab. He’s also a creative facilitator who has run workshops and designed courses for establishments like the National Centre for Writing, UK. He especially enjoys working with young people and empowering others in their creative practice.

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Games Promoting Collaborative Critical Thinking: Top 10

Fun Team Building Games To Improve Team Collaboration

While working in a business organization, employees have to come together, collaborate their efforts, indulge in critical thinking and ensure meeting common goals. Like any other organization, a business or a company is basically an amalgamation of employees who come together from diverse backgrounds, with different capabilities and skillsets to pursue common organizational goals. It is not uncommon to find some issues and problems that deter them from collaborating with each other. If the work environment becomes too negative and vitiating, it has a direct impact on the productivity and work performance of the employees. Companies must take some proactive action lest this situation gets out of hand leaving a detrimental impact on the company’s productivity and bottom line. Organizing team building games from time to time can help employees come together and indulge in collaborative critical thinking. Here, we bring you the top 10 games can help in this endeavor.

Triggertronics

It is an exciting and interesting challenge where the team has to come together and solve simple tasks in complicated ways. The challenge is based on Rube Goldberg’s Concept. The teams are given materials required to meet this challenge. They have to make use of the sequential trigger effect. The team participants have to collaborate their efforts and indulge in intuitive thinking thereby creating a self-running mechanism.

Gigsaw Challenge

In this challenge, the team is entrusted with the task of making a gigantic jigsaw by putting together a lot of jigsaw puzzles in such a way that it comes out to be meaningful. Each individual team is given a canvas to work on and they have to collectively come together to create an artwork that may symbolically depict the vision of an organization or simply create an abstract theme. The masterpiece of each team is then combined into a giant picture. Each team has to collaborate and has to contribute to the larger picture, the teams gain and learn a lot in terms of perspective.

Beat Box Challenge

It is a musical group activity where team members come together and learn a new skill. The best part of this activity is that there are no instruments and no musicians. The team participants have to beatbox or make use of their mouth to create music and perform together with close collaboration. They come together to learn a few beatbox sounds and come up with a specific beatbox rhythm. This activity encourages them to come together and collaborate with each other to create amazing music.

Pyramid Building

As part of this challenge, the team comes together to build a giant-sized pyramid. To complete the activity, a lot of planning and flawless execution is required. The team is given materials, tools, and instructions to complete this activity. Random material is used to create a pyramid. After each team build its pyramid, these are decorated with an organization’s name or logo, using brand colors and messages. Finally, the pyramids of each team are brought together and a giant pyramid is built with collaborative efforts and critical thinking.

Remoto Car Challenge

This is a fun activity where the team not only collaborates but competes to emerge as a winner. They have to work together to build bridges forming a circuit where remote cars can be raced. The team participants have to don their thinking hats and build a robust bridge that can at least sustain the weight of two racing cars. This activity requires close collaboration and critical thinking that ensures stability and strength of the pillars. The high point of this activity is the car race where all team cars race to reach the checkered flag.

Drum Jam Session

It is a music-based activity. This drum jam session help team members to enjoy, have fun and reduce stress. The energetic beating of djembe, a percussion instrument results in a rush of energy that leaves everyone overwhelmed and excited. The ‘unseen’ barriers seem to break down and the team comes together to form a strong bond. The hypnotic drumbeats fill the environment with energy and excitement that is unmatched to anything else. Music is rightly considered as the best healer and the perfect way to bring people closer to each other.

This challenge is based on the famous MasterChef-style challenge where teams are created, each entrusted with the task of cooking a 5-course meal. Each team has to prepare one dish and this task has to be completed within the stipulated timeline. It is very critical to manage time efficiently and effectively else the team has to go hungry. A five-star chef encourages the team to give their best and which results in more pressure on the teams to do a good job.

Junkyard Sales

As the name suggests, in this activity, teams come together to create something functional out of waste or junk that is of no use. The teams are assigned with junk items like paint boxes, plastic bottles, and many other scrap items.  Once the material is received, the team spend some time thinking about how to put the junk stuff to its best use. They not only have to design but also build a functional product that is sturdy, presentable and can be put to better use. Collaborative efforts and some critical thinking can transform even junk stuff into something of utility.

Beat The Trash

This is another activity that is a perfect example of how collaborative efforts and critical thinking can help in transforming junk into music. Urban wastes of every day are used to build music instruments creating a junkyard masterpiece. With growing concern about environmental conservation, and the need to follow the principle of reducing, reuse, and recycle, daily waste items like bottles, water cans, pipes, etc., is used to create music. Once the instruments are created, the team perform together, and it is a sight to behold and music to ears.

Raft Building

This activity is based on rescue efforts taken by a team that is stuck at an island with very limited supplies. The only way to get out of this situation is by building a raft that takes them to the mainland. The raft must be built using limited materials and must be strong enough to carry 4-6 people of each team to a certain distance. The activity requires close collaboration and critical thinking to complete the activity. 

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5 critical thinking team building activities for adults [research-based]

This just in: Critical thinking is one of the top 10 job skills of the future.

While that's not entirely shocking, most leaders aren't sure how to develop critical thinking. If you're one of those people, we've compiled five activities that will sharpen your team's skills and bring them closer together.

Dive deeper:   Reverse-engineering Google - Team building for high-performance teams.

How employers see critically thinking employees 

Thanks to critical thinking, you can stand out during the recruitment process and excel throughout your career. But what makes a powerful workplace critical thinker?

In 2020, the Journal of Entrepreneurship and Sustainability Issues (JESI) published a phenomenography study dedicated to an average employer's expectations from their workers . 

It identified 3 most-valued "categories" of critical thinking at the workplace : 

• Decisions to act here and now. Quick decision-making makes problem-solving and crisis management easier. To master this type of critical thinking, you need to take responsibility for your actions and opinions. 
• Verified and assured decisions to act. Here, team players driven by the company's values stand out. Learn to manage conflicts, highlight each others' strengths, and work as a team for the good of the organization. 
• Innovative decisions for operational improvement. This aspect of critical thinking encourages you to work with others and socialize, finding solutions that will improve the existing processes in your company. 

As you can imagine, it's pretty difficult to come up with a training that would cover all three specifics at once. Instead, work on each of the critical thinking categories on their own.

Anna Kvasnevska

Team Building Expert & Writer

Large groups

Prep required

Share fun facts and bond with a team quiz

Have your participants choose from a list of questions they’d like their coworkers to answer about them, before watching as they guess the right answer.

share-fun-facts-and-bond-with-a-team-quiz

Run a guided recognition activity

run-a-guided-recognition-activity

Organize a virtual cooking class

Hire a professional chef to help your team cook a delicious lunch or dinner. May be difficult for co-workers with families. To find providers and get tips, read our blog about virtual cooking classes.

organize-a-virtual-cooking-class

Hire a stand-up comedian

hire-a-stand-up-comedian

No items found

Table of contents

Stop googling ideas. Get a long-term team building plan.

Critical thinking team building games to practice acting here and now.

According to the JESI research, this type of critical thinking directly relates to your internal inspiration and courage. You need to believe that what you decide is right and act accordingly . 

Classical team building activities like survival simulation and escape rooms are perfect for this practice. 

1. Take part in survival simulation activities

Survival simulation challenges your on-the-spot decision-making. This type of exercise puts you in situations where you need to think fast as if your life depends on it. 

2. Go to an escape room

Carefully scripted challenges of modern escape rooms work similarly to the survival simulations. It forces you to act here and now, knowing that your decisions will affect the rest of the team.

This kind of team building is perfect for remote teams , as you can do the most sophisticated escape rooms online ! 

Critical thinking team building activities for adults who want to make verified decisions

This type of employer-oriented critical thinking helps you understand professional activities better. Here, it's not just about finding the right solution. Instead, it's about discovering as many solutions as possible and justifying them . 

Try team building activities dedicated to research and group problem-solving, like the timely classics: SWOT analysis or group debates. 

3. Make a SWOT analysis together

SWOT analysis is a popular marketing framework for analyzing a project's Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. It encourages research, outside-of-the-box reasoning, and teamwork. So it also makes a fruitful critical-thinking team building experience! 

4. Hold a debate

Another great way to practice making verified decisions is by holding a debate-style team building event. This way, you'll get valuable experience backing up your statements with facts. Also, you will practice public speaking and argumentation - the other two highly-valued professional skills.

Build engaged teams with zero effort

Critical thinking team building activities to promote innovation.

You can use critical thinking to drive innovation and change. Innovators feel safe sharing their ideas and are ready to become leaders . For this, focus on team building activities that promote communication , creativity, and empathy . 

There are many team building activities for work that promote these behaviors. But today, we wanted to share the one that encourages innovation particularly well:

5. Create a vision board with your team

Think of a company you'd be proud to represent. Brainstorm the values it stands for. Present the opportunities it opens for the employees and the clients. Highlight the good things you already have. And think about what you could do as a team to turn it into reality. 

This powerful team building exercise works on many levels:

• It allows you to appreciate the benefits you may be taking for granted ;
• It demonstrates what goals and values you share with your team ;
• It creates a sense of direction for the positive impact you could have on the company;
• It promotes creativity, critical thinking, and trust among the participants. 

All these critical thinking team building activities work for remote teams as well as the on-site ones and are affordable ! All you need is a reliable virtual conference platform (like Veertly !) and some of the must-have software to make your online team building feel like a face-to-face one. 

Have fun and drive the change you want to see! 

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10 Critical Thinking Team Building Activities for Work

Are you looking for some critical thinking team building activities ?

Employees who can think critically and solve complex problems are valuable assets to any company. With this skill, they can objectively analyze data and make informed decisions.

This will ease your job as a leader, right?

In this article, let’s see 10 critical thinking activities for your employees.

What are the Main Benefits of Critical Thinking in the Workplace?

Critical thinking helps employees to assess situations accurately and make sound decisions. When it is incorporated into the workplace, it can help teams become more collaborative and productive. Moreover, they can think strategically under pressure.

Here are 10 activities that will help your teams develop their critical thinking skills:

#1. Debate It Out

This activity requires teams to debate a controversial topic and come to a consensus.

Time: You decide

Materials: None

Participants: 3-10 people per group

Instructions

• Break the participants into small groups and assign each group a controversial topic to debate.

• Give them some time to research their topics and discuss possible arguments.

• During the debate, encourage all group members to participate and cooperate while developing their arguments.

• Finally, each group should come up with a consensus.

Discuss how the groups reach a consensus. Ask them how they overcame disagreements to come to an agreement.

#2. The Challenge Quest

This activity requires employees to answer questions and solve puzzles to reach a common goal.

Materials: Questions, puzzles, and clues about the given subject.

Participants: 3-10 people in a team

• Break the participants into teams and give each one a set of questions, puzzles, and clues related to a given topic. For example, the topic could be sustainability in the workplace.

• Give the teams time to discuss and answer each question or puzzle.

• Once they’ve answered all the questions, they must come up with a plan to reach a common goal.

During the debrief, see how each team worked together and what strategies they used to solve the puzzles. Encourage them to think strategically and in an orderly manner.

#3. Fishbowl

This team building activity requires employees to come up with solutions to a given problem.

Materials: Questions, topics, and discussion prompts

Participants: 5-15 people per group

• Choose a person to be in the center of the circle that everyone else can see. Everyone else stands around them in a circle.

• Ask the group a question or provide a discussion prompt, and allow the person in the center to begin discussing their thoughts.

• Everyone else takes turns providing input and suggestions, helping the individual in the center reach a solution or conclusion.

Discuss how the group worked together to come up with ideas and solutions. Talk about what strategies were used, how people communicated, and any key points that came up during the discussion.

#4. Elimination Match

This exercise requires employees to use their strategic planning skills. Here groups must complete tasks quickly in order to win the game.

Time: 15-30 minutes

Materials: Cards with various tasks, such as creating a budget or developing a marketing plan

Participants: 5-10 people divided into teams of 2-3

• Ask teams to pick one card from the deck and assign each team the task indicated.

• Give them some time to complete their tasks.

• After the time is up, ask each team to present their results.

• Award points to the teams based on how well they completed the task, and choose the winner!

Discuss how each group planned and worked together to complete the task. Also, talk about the importance of thinking critically and strategically under pressure.

#5. Quick Brainstorming

In this activity, employees must quickly brainstorm ideas in order to come up with solutions.

Time: 5 minutes

Materials: Problem and discussion prompts

Participants: 4-10 people per team

• Initially, present a problem to the group. Next, give them 2-3 minutes to brainstorm as many solutions as possible.

• Have each team present their ideas.

• Ask the teams to discuss each solution and vote on the best one.

Have employees reflect on the ideas that were generated during the activity. Discuss how open and honest communication can help groups come up with creative solutions in a short amount of time.

#6. Creative Writing

This team building exercise encourages employees to think creatively while crafting a story.

Materials: Story prompts and writing utensils

Participants: 4-10 people in a group

• Give each group a short story or scenario to work with.

• Have the groups discuss potential plot points, character traits, and other creative aspects of the story.

• Each group should write the completed story collaboratively.

Evaluate the effectiveness of teamwork and recognize any biases or patterns noticed while writing the stories. Talk about how important it is to communicate openly and consider different perspectives while solving problems.

#7. The Exchange

This exercise requires teams to work together by exchanging and reallocating items.

Time: 10-20 minutes

Materials: Any items needed to complete the task such as cards, balls, puzzles, etc.

Participants: At least two teams of any size

• Give each team a different task to complete. For example, building the highest tower or creating the most complex puzzle.

• Provide a set of items to each team.

• Allow them to exchange items with the other teams until they have created their final product.

Evaluate the team members’ problem-solving abilities and recognize any biases that may have impacted their decisions. Also, assess what they learned about communication and collaboration during the exercise. ​​​ ​​

#8. Idea Generation Game

This team building activity encourages groups to think creatively by generating ideas for a particular challenge.

Time: 5-10 minutes

Materials: Any items needed to complete the task such as construction paper, tape, scissors, etc.

Participants: 3-10 members in a team

• Assign each team a set of items and ask them to come up with an innovative idea or invention using the materials provided.

• Encourage them to brainstorm and generate ideas with their team members.

• Allow each team to create prototypes or models of their idea if desired.

Evaluate the creative problem-solving skills displayed by team members. Also, identify any potential areas for improvement.​​ ​​

#9. The Case Study

This activity encourages employees to collaborate and think critically in order to solve a case study.

Materials: Case study, research materials, and discussion prompts

Participants: Any number of members per group

• Present the groups with a case study that requires critical thinking to solve.

• Provide them with research materials and discussion prompts to come up with solutions.

• Each group should present their findings and solutions to the other groups.

Assess how well the teams worked together, and evaluate their strategies for problem-solving. Also, discuss which solution was the most effective.​​​ ​​​ ​​

#10. Desert Survival

This exercise encourages employees to work together and think critically in order to survive in the desert.

Materials: A list of items, paper, and pen

Participants: Teams of 3-8 members

• Each team should assume that they are stuck in a desert. Their goal is to come up with solutions for survival.

• Now, provide a list of 10 items to each team. Some of the items can be food, shelter, water, etc.

• Instruct them to choose five items from the list that they value the most.

• After a few minutes, ask each team to present their solution.

• Award points to the teams based on how effectively they used the items to survive.

Discuss how the teams used their problem solving skills to come up with solutions and ask them what other strategies they could have used in this situation. Also, talk about the importance of being able to think critically and strategically under pressure.

Want Unique Team Building Exercises?

If you want some unique team building exercises for your employees, you can get my new e-book:

The Busy Leader’s Guide of Unique Team Building Activities: 30 Fully Customizable Exercises That You Can Conduct with Any Group of Employees, Anywhere

Or Want Some Unique Leadership Development Activities?

If you want some unique activities to equip your employees with leadership skills, qualities, and mindset, you can get my new e-book:

The Empowering Guide of Unique Leadership Development Activities: 100 Fully Customizable Exercises That You Can Conduct with Any Group of Employees, Anywhere

Final Words

Teams can enhance their critical thinking skills by taking part in the above-mentioned activities in a fun and collaborative environment. Since everyone has varying viewpoints, you must exercise patience and respect while exchanging ideas. Finally, conducting a debrief after each activity is essential to help everyone gain insight from the experience and incorporate it into future scenarios.

FAQ: Critical Thinking Team Building Activities

You might have these questions in mind.

What are critical thinking activities?

These are exercises that can help your teams to think outside the box and solve complex problems. They will help your employees work under pressure and make the right decisions.

What are some critical thinking 5-minute team building activities?

Some 5-minute activities that can help your employees think critically are Idea Generation Game, Quick Brainstorming, and The Challenge Quest.

How does improving critical thinking skills increase workplace performance?

Having good critical thinking skills helps employees think strategically and analyze data efficiently. They also become better problem solvers and are able to generate innovative solutions more quickly. All of this helps to improve overall workplace performance and productivity.

Like this article on “10 Critical Thinking Team Building Activities for Work”? Feel free to share your thoughts.

10 Team-Building Games That Promote Critical Thinking

Begin a story that incorporates whatever happens to be on your assigned photo. The next student continues the story, incorporating their photo, and so on.

What Are The Best Team-Building Games For Promoting Critical Thinking?

by TeachThought Staff

One of education’s primary goals is to groom the next generation of little humans to succeed in the ‘real world.’

Yes, there are mounds of curricula they must master in a wide breadth of subjects, but education does not begin and end with a textbook or test.

Other skills must be honed, too, not the least of which is how to get along with their peers and work well with others. This is not something that can be cultivated through rote memorization or with strategically placed posters.

Students must be engaged and cooperation must be practiced, and often. The following team-building games can promote cooperation and communication, help establish a positive classroom environment and — most importantly — provide a fun, much-needed reprieve from routine.

See also Team-Building Games For The First Day Of School

10 Team-Building Games That Promote Collaborative Critical Thinking

You can purchase a classroom-ready version of team-building games that promote critical thinking here .

1. If You Build it…

This team-building game is flexible. First, divide students into teams and give them equal amounts of a certain material, like pipe cleaners, blocks, or even dried spaghetti and marshmallows.

Then, give them something to construct. The challenge can be variable (think: Which team can build the tallest, structurally-sound castle? Which team can build a castle the fastest?). You can recycle this activity throughout the year by adapting the challenge or materials to specific content areas.

Skills: Communication; problem-solving

2.  Save the Egg

This activity can get messy and may be suitable for older children who can follow safety guidelines when working with raw eggs. Teams must work together to find a way to ‘save’ the egg (Humpty Dumpty for elementary school students?) — in this case, an egg dropped from a specific height. That could involve finding the perfect soft landing, or creating a device that guides the egg safely to the ground.

Let their creativity work here.

Skills: Problem-solving, creative collaboration

Zoom is a classic classroom cooperative game that never seems to go out of style. Simply form students into a circle and give each a unique picture of an object, animal, or whatever else suits your fancy. You begin a story that incorporates whatever happens to be on your assigned photo. The next student continues the story, incorporating their photo, and so on.

Skills: Communication; creative collaboration

4. Minefield

Another classic team-building game. Arrange some sort of obstacle course and divide students into teams. Students take turns navigating the ‘minefield’ while blindfolded, with only their teammates to guide them. You can also require students to only use certain words or clues to make it challenging or content-area specific.

Skills: Communication; trust

See also 10 Team-Building Games For A Friendlier Classroom

5. The Worst-Case Scenario

Fabricate a scenario in which students would need to work together and solve problems to succeed, like being stranded on a deserted island or getting lost at sea. Ask them to work together to concoct a solution that ensures everyone arrives safely. You might ask them to come up with a list of 10 must-have items that would help them most, or a creative passage to safety. Encourage them to vote — everyone must agree to the final solution.

Skills: Communication, problem-solving

6. A Shrinking Vessel

This game requires a good deal of strategy in addition to teamwork. Its rules are deceptively simple: The entire group must find a way to occupy a space that shrinks over time until they are packed creatively like sardines. You can form the boundary with a rope, a tarp or blanket being folded over, or small traffic cones. (Skills: Problem-solving; teamwork)

7. Go for Gold

This game is similar to the ‘If you build it’ game: Teams have a common objective but instead of each one having the same materials, they have access to a whole cache of materials. For instance, the goal might be to create a contraption with pipes, rubber tubing, and pieces of cardboard that can carry a marble from point A to point B in a certain number of steps, using only gravity.

Creative collaboration; communication; problem-solving

8. It’s a Mystery

Many children (and grown-ups) enjoy a good mystery, so why not design one that must be solved cooperatively? Give each student a numbered clue. In order to solve the mystery — say, the case of the missing mascot — children must work together to solve the clues in order. The ‘case’ might require them to move from one area of the room to the next, uncovering more clues.

Skills: Problem-solving, communication

9.  4-Way Tug-of-War 

That playground classic is still a hit — not to mention inexpensive and simple to execute. For a unique variation, set up a multi-directional game by tying ropes in such a way that three or four teams tug at once. Some teams might choose to work together to eliminate the other groups before going head-to-head.

Skills: Teamwork; sportsmanship

10. Keep it Real

This open-ended concept is simple and serves as an excellent segue into problem-based learning. Challenge students to identify and cooperatively solve a real problem in their schools or communities. You may set the parameters, including a time limit, materials, and physical boundaries.

Skills: Problem-solving; communication

While education technology is a basic and crucial component of the 21st-century classroom, educators must still ensure that students are engaging with each other in meaningful ways. Team-building exercises are a great way to do this, and because of this, they will never go out of style.

Aimee Hosler is a writer and mother of two living in Virginia. She specializes in a number of topics, but is particularly passionate about education and workplace news and trends. She holds a B.S. in Journalism from California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo and is a contributor to several websites including OnlineSchools.com; 10 Team-Building Games For Kids, Teenagers, or Adults

TeachThought is an organization dedicated to innovation in education through the growth of outstanding teachers.

• 1-800-565-8735
• [email protected]

38 Fun Fast Team Building Activities (Under 30 Mins)

Who says high-impact team building can’t be done quickly? In this article, we explore 38 incredibly fun, ultra-fast team building activities you can do in under half an hour.

In today’s fast-paced business world, time is a precious commodity. As business leaders, team leads, managers, and HR professionals, you understand the importance of team building but often find it challenging to allocate large chunks of time to these activities. And that’s where fast team building activities come into play.

In this article, you’ll discover 38 fun fast team building activities that can be completed in 30 minutes or less.

10 Ways to Use Fast Team Building Activities (And Why They’re So Beneficial)

29 icebreaker questions as fast team building activities, 10 icebreaker games as fast team building activities, 9 fast team building activities focused on boosting communication, 4 fast hosted team building activities, 8 fast team building activities focused on problem-solving, 6 trust-building fast team building activities.

Just like their more in-depth, longer-duration counterparts, fast team building activities offer a number of benefits, including:

• Efficiency: Fast team building activities are time-efficient, making them suitable for short breaks, meetings, or virtual sessions. They offer immediate results without extended time commitments.
• Flexibility: Whether you’re dealing with remote teams, tight agendas, or need to break the ice quickly, these activities provide flexibility to fit your specific needs.
• Engagement: Short and engaging activities capture participants’ attention and keep energy levels high, making them ideal for energizing your team.
• Learning: Despite their brevity, these activities are designed to impart essential lessons, such as communication, problem-solving, and trust-building.

But those aren’t the only benefits of fast team building activities—there’s also the fact that you can do them in a variety of different settings, such as:

• Between Meetings: Insert fast team building activities in the gaps between meetings or during breaks. This helps refresh everyone’s minds, increase engagement, and foster a more positive atmosphere during the workday.
• Over Lunch: Use lunchtime as an opportunity for team fast building. Choose activities that can be completed within 30 minutes or less to ensure you have time for both the activity and lunch. This approach promotes camaraderie and relaxation during meals.
• At the Start of Off-Sites: Kick off your next off-site meeting , workshop, kick-off meeting , or company retreat with a fast team building activity. Icebreakers and communication boosters can help participants get to know each other better, setting a positive tone for the event.
• Midway Through Long Sessions: When conducting full-day or multi-day training sessions, incorporate fast team building activities as energizers. These activities can re-energize participants and break up lengthy sessions, improving focus and retention.
• Before Important Discussions: Use fast team building activities to build trust and rapport among team members before diving into critical discussions or decision-making processes. Trust-building exercises can create a more open and collaborative atmosphere.
• To Boost Creativity: When working on creative projects or brainstorming sessions, quick problem-solving challenges can stimulate innovative thinking and encourage diverse perspectives within the team.
• To Integrate New Team Members: When welcoming new team members , incorporate icebreakers and trust-building activities during their onboarding process to help them feel included and establish connections with existing team members.
• During Team Building Days: Designate specific team-building days where quick activities are integrated into the schedule. This provides dedicated time for team development while ensuring minimal disruption to regular work.
• As Part of Regular Team Meetings: Incorporate fast team building activities into regular team meetings as a recurring agenda item. This ensures that team building becomes a consistent practice and reinforces teamwork over time.

Now that we’ve explored the applications for fast team building activities, let’s explore some options you can consider.

Icebreaker questions are prompts you include at the beginning of a meeting or other activity to help facilitate introductions.

They’re a great way to lighten the mood, get people engaged, and ensure people feel comfortable and ready to participate.

Your icebreaker questions for work can run the full spectrum, from fun to silly, serious, quirky, or otherwise.

Here are 29 you can consider.

• Can you give a tour of your office space? 
• Be honest, how often do you work from bed?
• What does your morning routine look like when working from home?
• How many cups of coffee, tea, or beverage of choice do you have each morning?
• Do you have any pets as in-house colleagues?
• Do you have houseplants in your office? 
• What’s your go-to remote work outfit?
• What’s your proudest professional achievement?
• Who in your life has inspired you most?
• If you weren’t in this career, what could you see yourself doing?
• What is one thing on the very top of your bucket list?
• If you’re not from this city, why did you end up here?
• What is your guilty pleasure?
• If you could change anything about the way you were raised, what would it be?
• What’s the craziest thing you have ever done?
• What book did you read that changed your life the most?
• If you could see one movie again for the first time, what would it be and why?
• You have your own late-night talk show. Who do you invite as your first guest?
• What would the title of your autobiography be?
• What was your favorite band ten years ago?
• If you could only listen to one song for the rest of your life, what would it be?
• If you could only watch one movie for the rest of your life, what would it be?
• What’s the weirdest thing in your fridge right now?
• If you were setting off to Mars and could take only one luxury item with you, what would it be?
• If you could become a supernatural creature at night, what would it be, and why?
• Which fictional character would you want by your side during a zombie apocalypse?
• If you were a cocktail, which one would you be?
• If your home was packed full of golf balls, how would you remove them?
• Would you rather talk like Yoda or breathe like Darth Vader?

Want even more ideas? Check out our full list of team building icebreaker questions for work which includes 400+ more options.

Questions aren’t your only option when it comes to icebreakers. There are also some great icebreaker games you can try out that serve the same purpose.

Here are a few of our favorites.

1. Two Truths and a Lie

Participants take turns sharing two true statements and one false statement about themselves. The group must guess the lie, promoting personal connections.

2. Human Bingo

Distribute bingo cards with interesting facts or qualities. Participants mingle to find someone who matches each criterion, encouraging networking and conversation.

3. Speed Networking

Set up short, structured networking sessions where team members discuss work-related topics, fostering communication and collaboration.

4. Office Scavenger Hunt

Create a list of office items or clues. Participants race to find and present the items, encouraging teamwork and quick thinking.

5. Emoji Reactions

Share a series of emojis and ask participants to respond with how they’re feeling. This icebreaker encourages emotional intelligence and empathy.

6. Name That Tune

Play short clips of songs and challenge participants to guess the song title or artist. This activity adds a musical twist to icebreaking.

7. Quick Pictionary

In pairs or small groups, participants take turns drawing and guessing words or phrases within a time limit, promoting creativity and teamwork.

8. Story Building

Each participant contributes one sentence to create a collaborative story. This icebreaker encourages creativity and cooperation.

9. Inspirational Quotes

Share inspiring quotes and ask participants to reflect on their meanings or share personal experiences related to them, fostering motivation and connection.

10. Office Trivia

Create a set of fun and light-hearted trivia questions about the office or industry. Participants compete individually or in teams to test their knowledge.

Effective communication is the cornerstone of successful teamwork. These fast team building activities are designed to enhance communication skills, boost active listening, and encourage creative expression within your team. Consider them quick communication workouts for your group.

1. One-Word Story

Team members take turns adding one word to a story. The challenge is to create a coherent narrative, enhancing communication and creativity.

2. Two-Minute Show and Tell

Participants have two minutes to share an object meaningful to them, promoting concise and impactful communication.

3. Team Jigsaw Puzzle

Provide a puzzle and divide the team into small groups. Each group works on a section of the puzzle, emphasizing coordination and communication.

4. Quick Brain Teasers

Share brain teasers or riddles for participants to solve in pairs or small groups, enhancing problem-solving and critical thinking.

5. Photo Storytelling

Participants select a photo and create a brief story related to it. This activity encourages imaginative communication and storytelling skills.

6. Group Story Writing

Collaboratively write a short story or poem as a team, with each participant contributing a sentence or line. This activity promotes teamwork and creativity.

7. Sentence Completion

Provide sentence prompts, and participants complete them with their thoughts or feelings. This activity encourages self-expression and active listening.

8. Communication Relay

Teams relay messages by whispering, drawing, or acting them out. This exercise highlights the importance of clear communication and active listening.

9. Impromptu Speeches

Give participants a random topic and a few minutes to prepare a short speech. This activity enhances spontaneous communication and public speaking skills.

If you want to tap into impactful, fast team building activities but don’t have the bandwidth to plan them on your own, Outback offers some incredible options you can do in as little as 30 minutes.

1. Friendly Feud

If you’ve ever wanted to take part in your own Family Feud-style competition, this is your chance! With Virtual Friendly Feud Social, you and your colleagues will break out into teams to compete through survey questions focused on culture and human nature.

And, as an added social element within the game, each round of questions will be followed by a guided social mixer where you’ll have the chance to take part in a group discussion and more deeply explore the survey questions from the previous round.

2. Trivia Time Machine

Step into the Outback Time Machine and take a trip through time, from pre-pandemic 21st century, through the decades, and all the way to the 60’s.

This exciting, fast-paced trivia game, packed with nostalgia and good vibes is guaranteed to produce big laughs, friendly competition, and maybe even some chair-dancing.

Your remote game show host will warm up your in-person participants with a couple of “table hopper rounds” and split you out into teams.

Within minutes, your meeting space will be transformed into a game show stage with your very own game show buzzers!

3. Beach Staycation

Invite your team to hop aboard Captain Furling’s chartered yacht and transport them from your office directly to a gorgeous beach destination in Cancun.

Beach Staycation is loaded with delightful vacation destination footage, ocean soundscapes, and best of all, highly engaging social activities and trivia-style challenges.

If your team needs a vacation, some shared laughs, and social fun, this highly engaging activity is just what they need!

4. Happy Hour Trivia

Hamish’s legendary happy hour trivia features two rounds of trivia questions, featuring four themed categories of your choice. With 20 category options to choose from, you’ll be sure to find the perfect themes for your team’s happy hour trivia.

With pub soundscapes, visual surprises, and warm-hearted humor, Hamish McDuff makes your guests feel like they just had a memorable happy hour with friends in a real pub, while at work! Sorry, HR!

This pub trivia game experience is guaranteed to produce plenty of laughs and lift team “spirits.” It might even include a few special surprises.

When your team faces complex tasks, quick problem-solving activities can be invaluable. These challenges test your team’s ability to think on their feet, make decisions under pressure, and work together to find solutions. They’re like mental obstacle courses for your team’s problem-solving muscles.

1. Marshmallow Tower

Teams compete to build the tallest tower using marshmallows and spaghetti. This challenge encourages creativity, teamwork, and problem-solving.

2. Blind Drawing

Pair participants, with one describing a picture while the other draws it without seeing. This exercise improves communication and listening skills.

3. Escape Room Puzzles

Share quick online escape room puzzles and challenge teams to solve them within a time limit, fostering collaboration and problem-solving.

4. Balloon Tower

Teams build the tallest balloon tower using limited supplies. This activity promotes resourcefulness and teamwork.

5. The Problem-Solving Race

Present teams with a problem or challenge and a limited timeframe to find solutions. This encourages quick thinking and decision-making.

6. Marshmallow Tower

7. blind drawing, 8. balloon tower.

Building trust is fundamental for a cohesive and effective team. Trust-building exercises create an environment where team members feel safe, supported, and confident in each other’s abilities. They’re the bonding glue that fosters reliance on teammates and strengthens interpersonal connections.

1. The Personal Shield

Team members create a “personal shield” by drawing or writing positive qualities about themselves. They then share their shields with the group, fostering trust and self-awareness.

2. Mirror, Mirror

In pairs, one person mimics the actions of the other, promoting trust and non-verbal communication.

3. The Trust Walk

Blindfold one team member and have them navigate a course guided only by verbal instructions from their teammates. This exercise builds trust and communication skills.

4. Team Appreciation Circle

Team members form a circle, and each person takes a turn in the center while the rest of the team shares specific appreciations or positive feedback. This exercise fosters trust and appreciation within the group.

5. Team-Building Knot

Participants stand in a circle and extend their hands to grab the hands of two different people across from them. The group must then work together to untangle the human knot without releasing hands, promoting cooperation and trust.

6. Collaborative Storytelling

In teams, participants collaboratively create a story, with each team member contributing a sentence or paragraph. The catch is that each person can only see the previous sentence. This exercise highlights the importance of trust and teamwork in storytelling and problem-solving.

These fast team building activities can be customized and adapted to fit your team’s specific needs and objectives. Whether you’re looking to break the ice, improve communication, enhance problem-solving skills, or build trust, these activities offer a versatile toolkit for fostering a stronger and more cohesive team.

Learn more about fast team building activities you can do in 30 minutes or less.

If you’ve got questions about fast team building activities for any occasion, reach out to an Employee Engagement Consultant. 

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