Team building activities are a great way to get coworkers to step outside their normal workday and engage with coworkers creatively.
If done correctly, the right team-building activities will help boost work productivity and employee engagement. In fact, according to research on employee engagement by Gallup Polls, those individuals that have developed friendships at the office are twice as likely to be more engaged with their work.
Below are six team building activities that will help boost work productivity and engagement among employees
1. Figure out team strengths and weaknesses
Engaging in an activity that will help assess employees strengths and weaknesses will provide better understanding of how they affect their interactions with others. By understanding the strengths and weaknesses of coworkers’, employees will:
- Develop a greater respect for the talents of their team members
- Better understand what each persons’ personal drivers are
- Know which team members to rely on for certain strengths
2. Reward team achievement of goals
When it comes to goals in the workplace, personal incentives are relied on to reward individual achievement of goals. In an effort to boost work productivity, incentives should be tied to team goals. This will help teams to work and celebrate together as a group when goals are achieved.
3. Allow team members to learn from one another
Allowing team members the opportunity to share their knowledge is a great team building activity. Whether it’s sharing a job skill or highlighting a team member’s interests, learning opportunities are abound. Here are just some positives that come from allowing team members to share something about themselves:
- Allows employees to highlight their strengths
- Each team member will feel more valued
- Recognizing one another outside of work
- Employees feel more comfortable being themselves
4. Work in team sports
Getting employees moving is a great team building activity. Whether you organize a one-time event or you decide to make movement a regular thing, there are plenty of options. Team workout classes, charity runs, spartan races are all great ideas. Here are some other ideas you can put together on your own:
- Beach volleyball
- Intramural soccer, basketball, softball or any other sport
- Put together a tournament for Ping pong or kickball
- Axe throwing, laser tag or Paintball
- Yoga
- Social dancing. Think country line dancing!
- Do a field day like you did in school. Obstacle courses, relays etc.
5. Learn together
A super effective team building activity is engaging in professional development as a team activity. This is one of the crucial stages of team bonding which shouldn’t be ignored at any cost.
Take work out of the picture and learn something new together. Team members bond and learn about one another. Here are some ideas for ways to learn as a group:
- Attend a training event
- Join your local chamber of commerce
- Take a pottery class
- Sign up for group tennis lessons
6. Do a TED talk group viewing
Ted Talks provide great videos that are both inspiring and thought provoking. As a group, choose some topics that are of interest to your team and schedule a time to view the videos together. Before the event, come up with a few questions to stir up some discussions among team members. Be sure to have everyone provide input and before you know it, there will be an invigorating conversation taking place. Here are just some of the topics you can find TED Talks on:
- Building stronger connections with others
- Making career changes
- Unleashing your natural creativity
- How to have honest conversations at work
- Improving relationships with money
7. Serve the community
Finding an activity that involves giving back is a great way to not only build perspective but helps build comradery among the group. Here are a few ideas on ways to volunteer as a team:
- Check out Habitat for Humanity and build a house
- Spend time at a local animal shelter
- Help serve at a food pantry
- Organize a beach clean-up or pick up litter around the neighborhood