Stepping away from the ‘daily grind’ is important from time to time. Team outing activities are vital in keeping your team motivated, encouraging collaboration, communication and creativity. From outdoor adventures to indoor workshops, and even virtual challenges (we didn’t forget about you, remote workers), there's something for every team.
Team outings go far beyond just having a good time – they play a crucial role in boosting morale and productivity within the workplace. By engaging in enjoyable activities, team members recharge their energy, reduce stress, and develop stronger bonds with each other, enhancing communication and collaboration. When team members get to interact in a relaxed and fun environment, barriers come down and relationships are strengthened, translating to a more open and effective exchange of ideas in the workplace.
If your team is planning an off-site, or if your office isn’t far from nature, outdoor activities provide the perfect opportunity for team members to connect with nature, push their limits, and strengthen their bonds.
Scavenger hunts are an interactive and engaging activity that test your team's problem-solving skills and encourage effective communication and collaboration. Split your team into smaller groups and provide them with a series of clues and riddles that will lead them to hidden treasures. As they navigate through the challenges, they’lll have to work together, think creatively, and strategize to uncover the ultimate prize.
If you choose to plan the scavenger hunt yourself, you can personalize it to your organization by incorporating themes and activities related to your company or team. If you don’t have the time to do the planning, there are often local companies who can help you organize.
If your team members are more thrill-seeking, adventure sports are the perfect choice. Whether it's rock climbing, zip-lining, or white-water rafting, adventure activities are fun and double as a team challenge. You can make some tweaks to the basic activity to serve as a team bonding exercise, like incorporating trust exercises or asking team members to work together to deal with obstacles using one another’s diverse skill sets and perspectives.
If your team prefers relaxation over thrill, spending time in nature is a great way to decompress and promote organic connection across your team. Plus, it’s often free or low-cost. There are a lot of options to choose from – explore scenic hiking trails or even enjoy a day at the beach or park with a nice picnic spread. These outings provide a calm and relaxing atmosphere for team members to unwind and connect with nature.
When the weather doesn't cooperate or you prefer to stay indoors, there are still plenty of team building opportunities.
Interactive workshops and seminars are always a popular choice. Bring in experts to conduct sessions on topics such as leadership development, communication skills, or creativity enhancement. These interactive sessions not only impart valuable knowledge but also create a sense of unity and shared learning among team members.
If you want to make it more interactive, or if you’re on a budget, you could have team members present to one another on a topic they are an expert in, ranging from personal to work-related.
However you choose to do them, these workshops are also a way to invest in your team’s learning and development and show that you care about their career development. An added bonus is that you’ll all walk away with collective learnings that will boost productivity across your team.
Fun games and competitions are another great indoor team outing idea, and a good way to promote healthy competition and teamwork among colleagues. Organize friendly competitions like board game tournaments, escape room challenges, or trivia nights. Good board game choices that are team-bonding friendly include games like Risk, Clue, or Codenames. For trivia nights, you can create your own trivia or you can check out local trivia nights hosted by bars or restaurants in your area.
If you’re a fully remote team, you likely already know that building culture when you’re remote is difficult; but not impossible. Virtual-friendly team outings are great ways to help foster stronger culture.
From virtual escape rooms to online scavenger hunts, you can aim to replicate some of the in-person activities your team might enjoy from the comfort of your homes.
Popular virtual escape room experiences for teams include The Escape Game Remote Adventures which you can participate in through Zoom or a Virtual Escape Room by Let’s Roam. You can use Wild Goose to plan your virtual scavenger hunt.
Virtual tours and experiences also provide a unique opportunity for team members to explore new places together, even from the comfort of their homes. Imagine stepping into a virtual museum, surrounded by stunning works of art, as an expert guide takes you on a captivating tour. Your team can engage in lively discussions about the historical context, artistic techniques, and hidden meanings behind each piece. These shared experiences create a sense of togetherness and inspire conversations beyond work-related topics.
Some of the best museums in the world, like The Louvre in Paris or The Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in Washington DC provide virtual tour options. You can also find virtual tours offered by locals in different cities on Airbnb experiences.
An advantage of working from home is, of course, access to your kitchen. How about taking a virtual cooking class together? With a professional chef guiding you through the steps, you'll learn to whip up delicious dishes from different cuisines of your choosing whilst bonding over your lack of culinary skills. And at the end of the class, you can all sit down to enjoy the fruits of your labor, virtually raising a toast to your teamwork. .
A twist on the cooking class can also be a baking or mixology class;you and your team get to decide on what exactly you want to make together.
Airbnb experiences offers incredible cooking, baking and drink-making classes offered by locals around the world who will teach you how to make their cuisine authentically.
We’ve given you 8 ideas for team outings – now it's time to start planning! Remember, the key is to choose activities that cater to your team's interests and preferences. It’s also important to personalize every activity so that you can get what you want out of it, whether it’s just some fun team bonding time or you want your team to learn something. By putting effort into organizing fun and creative team outings, you'll not only strengthen your team's bonds but also create a positive and enjoyable work environment.
Interested in creating an authentic team culture and building even stronger bonds between your team? Sign up for Candor today for free.
Candor makes it easy to connect and have fun with your teammates, even while you’re remote. Use Candor to do feedback, shoutouts, check-ins, and more, all in one place.
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