Consider how many people will be in your meeting to make teams on sites like Arkadium and The Washington Post. Split everyone into teams by department or role to help them sharpen their conversational skills while having fun. Parents, guardians, and teachers always encourage kids to dream about what they want to be when they grow up.
Our expert facilitators will help you to design a customized event that meets the unique needs of your team and helps you achieve your goals. Encourage your team members to set their virtual backgrounds to a place that holds special meaning for them. It could be a favorite vacation spot, a dream destination, or even a snapshot of their favorite movie. This not only adds a dash of color and fun to the meeting but also gives everyone a chance to share a bit about their personal interests and experiences.
Additionally, higher turnover can cost businesses up to $1,200 per employee—just from a lack of engagement in the workplace! You can help prevent and mitigate this risk by encouraging your employees to get to know one another, participate in meetings, and be confident about sharing new ideas with their team. A simple way to do this is by integrating virtual icebreakers into the start of your meetings when your team is already gathered to collaborate. Nothing breaks the ice quite like a friendly and good-spirited competition with Hooray Teams Virtual Trivia.
After sharing icebreakers for virtual meetings some examples, each person writes a haiku that reflects their mood, their life on the outside, or even the meeting’s theme. Trying new forms of expression adds a creative touch and thoughtful tone to an ice-breaking session. When words just don’t cut it, the GIF game is a great way to smash some ice apart. It’s guaranteed to bring laughter to your virtual session as everyone expresses their favorite short-form videos. Create an icebreaking session using a “themed outfit day” for some lighthearted fun.
Facilitating Interpersonal Connections
All you need to do beforehand is think of a category, like “films” “song names” or “famous phrases,” and visually represent them using only emojis. A throwback to photos from childhood is a great way to start fun conversations. People love using memories and photos from yesteryear to find things in common and learn more about one another. This is a game where members have to write about their dream destinations, the reasons why they chose that destination, and how they want to travel there. We played the game last week on a Friday catch-up and found it fun. The meeting organizer shared with the team some travel books and holiday brochures.
- It’s much more fun and you’ll spark creativity among your colleagues.
- Add a bit of humor and curiosity, giving teammates a sneak peek into each other’s remote workday and browsing habits.
- 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.
- Adults often juggle work, relationships, and responsibilities but still appreciate a good question that gets them thinking or laughing.
- Dish out craft materials your teams can get hands on with, like popsicle sticks, tape and blue tac.
Thought-Provokingly Deep Icebreaker Questions
Yet, the importance of fostering a sense of unity and camaraderie among team members remains paramount. One of the most effective ways to bridge the virtual divide and encourage team building is through engaging ice breakers. Here are seven innovative ice breakers specifically designed to promote team building in virtual meetings. ‘Guess Who’ makes for straightforward and fun virtual icebreaker games for team-building events. In this game, members have to identify a person based on specific questions. For larger groups, you’ll need to create multiple breakout rooms and carry the game forward.
If you’re kicking off a virtual meeting with a new team, chances are you’re not all located in the same city or region (or even country). Have participants describe the city or town where they live, and name something they find iconic about that place. The key element to better teamwork, whether in person or remote, is connection. The more connected your teammates, coworkers, or employees feel, the more effective and productive the group becomes.
Virtual team building games
So if your employees are working from home, icebreakers are a great way to bring everyone together and engage them all at once. An online icebreaker activity plays a vital role in capturing the virtual attendee’s attention and holding it for longer. Whether you are running virtual team meetings, virtual conferences, or online workshops, virtual icebreakers are a wonderful way to make online gatherings engaging and entertaining. Personality tests are entertaining virtual icebreakers to engage your participants during a start or break or as fillers in a meeting. All you have to do is send personality tests to the members and ask them to take the tests. Try to choose more lighthearted personality tests rather than anything more serious to get your colleagues in a good mood throughout the meeting.
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Music has a way of universally bringing people together, so it’s a great way of boosting energy in an icebreaking session. Add a genuine personal touch to virtual meetings by letting employees introduce a family member for 5 minutes. Staff members who don’t live with family might have a housemate or a pet to hand the spotlight to. You will enjoy nostalgia, stories, laughter, and surprise on every level. Ice breakers for virtual meetings are essential for keeping your sessions lively and engaging. They help break down barriers, foster connections, and ensure everyone is actively participating.
Team-building icebreaker questions
This method is particularly effective for meetings with hundreds of attendees, as it provides a quick and engaging way for everyone to participate without taking up too much time. Many virtual ice breaker games are designed to promote teamwork and collaboration. These activities can help team members practice working together in a fun and low-stakes environment, which can translate to better cooperation on actual work projects. Every group is unique, so what works for one team might not work for another. That’s why we’ve put together 30 virtual meeting ice breakers, to help you pick the right one for your remote team. Bring on the nostalgia by picking one of these exciting virtual icebreakers for your remote team members.
- Scattergories is a word game where players brainstorm words that fit specific categories, all beginning with a given letter, within a time limit.
- Hot takes get everyone talking because they’re mildly controversial and fun.
- Tie your workplace’s mission into your next icebreaker activity by creating an acronym about it.
- You can customize this game to suit the participants’ preferences and familiarity with different music genres.
- Let’s be real—everyone has strong opinions about movies, books, and music.
When people feel heard and understood, they’re way more likely to engage. This not only makes the session more productive but also creates a positive experience for everyone involved. Plus, active listening helps you pick up on subtle cues about how attendees are feeling, making it easier to address any concerns. These online activities can do wonders for building relationships, warming up the group, and fostering a sense of camaraderie among team members who may not see each other face-to-face.
Virtual Game ideas
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. 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. 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.
Virtual bingo cards are easy to create and the game can be played either as a side activity or as a planned part of the meeting agenda. Think back to your childhood, when you bonded with others by spending time playing video games or engaging in group activities. You can also help everyone get to know each other by using family-based icebreakers to start conversations with your remote team members. The Four Quadrants is a tried and true team building activity to break the ice with a group or team. Draw your mood is a simple icebreaker activity that encourages the group to share their feelings in a safe, creative manner. For best results, pair these questions with Chat Waterfall, call on people to speak or break people into smaller groups to talk among themselves.