That’s why virtual team building activities and virtual ice breakers have become so popular in the past year, and we don’t see that changing any time soon. Plus, in order for a meeting to be productive, there has to be an open and clear line of communication between participants. And part of fostering that remote team communication is developing a personal rapport with the other meeting attendees. Virtual icebreakers are a helpful way to connect and engage your meeting attendees at the start of each call. They can be short games or questions that encourage meeting participants to speak up and be comfortable engaging with the other team members in the meeting. To help prepare your attendees, you should include virtual icebreakers in the meeting agenda so that they can see and think about their answers ahead of time.
What’s an even better way to break the ice than any ol’ icebreaker activity? The company culture leaders at Assembly (a free employee recognition software) keep things simple by having everyone describe their current mood in one word. It’s an incredible way to break the monotony of the workday, exercise team building skills, and stimulate the brain in fun and unexpected ways. The icebreakers for virtual meetings competitive element of the game adds excitement, fueling healthy competition among colleagues. On top of that, snack time provides an opportunity for team members to connect on a personal level, strengthening team bonds and improving overall communication. The casual conversations during these breaks can even spark innovative ideas and collaborative solutions to work challenges.
Run delightful meetings with Fellow
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.
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. 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. This playful method creates a powerful shared picture of the feelings in the group.
fun & engaging virtual icebreakers
You probably live half your life on Zoom, Google Meets, Skype, or Microsoft Teams. Story-telling is a great way to develop creativity and bond with team members. If you divide everyone into small groups, you can have teams tally their points together. Alternatively, if you don’t want to single out an employee, you can use a celebrity or other known figure’s biography.
- There will be a lot to talk about, maybe even some arguments about which candy or which movie is the best.
- Whether you’re running a meeting, hosting a training, webinar, or speaking at an event, polls are your best friend.
- To play this game, participants will remain silent as they act out a word or sentence.
