As HR professionals and people leaders, it's easy to overlook team building activities due to the misconception that they require lengthy blocks on the calendar, extensive planning, or a hefty budget. However, investing in connection-building and camaraderie doesn't always have to consume hours of valuable work time. In fact, by incorporating quick team building activities into the beginning of meetings, you can seamlessly integrate them into your team's routine without disrupting productivity.
Promote teamwork with these speedy team building ideas, broken up into 5, 10, and 15-minute options.
Have a little extra time? 👉 Check out the experiences in our 30 Minutes and Less collection.
5-minute team building activities:
1. One-word check-in 🙋
A one-word check-in is a great team building exercise to start team meetings. Go around the room and have everyone present give a one-word summary of how they're feeling in the present moment. For instance, "Energized," "Focused," "Curious," "Challenged," or any other relevant word.
As each team member shares their word, encourage team members to practice active listening and pay attention to others' words without interrupting or commenting.
2. Draw your mood ✏️
"Draw Your Mood" encourages your team's creative thinking as they visually represent their current mood or emotions through drawing. Simply use whatever pens and materials are lying around. For virtual teams, you could use digital drawing apps or tools.
Give everyone a time limit of 1-3 minutes, depending on the group size so there's time for sharing. Encourage your team to use colors, shapes, symbols, or any artistic elements to represent how they're feeling. After the drawing time is up, each person can briefly explain their drawing, describing what the elements represent and why they chose to portray their mood in that way.
3. Group counting 💯
This mind-melding game is perfect for starting your day with focus and teamwork. Everyone closes their eyes and a random person says “one” and then another person says “two” and so on up to twenty. If two people speak at once, you start over — are you up for the challenge?
4. Gratitude Sharing ❤️
This one's simple. Go around the group and have each team member share something they're grateful for. This can be related to work or personal life. This practice promotes a mindful moment to share a sense of appreciation, positivity, and connection among the team.
5. Group Stretch 🧘♀️
Instead of diving into the content of your meeting, take five minutes for some gentle movement. Encourage rotating volunteers to practice their leadership skills by leading the team in a quick yoga or stretching session at their desks. Focus on simple stretches and breathing exercises to help alleviate stress and improve focus.
Have some extra time? 👉 Learn stretches to beat stress in a Deskercise Class!
10-minute team building activities:
6. Round robin icebreakers 🧊
Enjoy friendly conversation and get your brain muscles moving with conversational icebreaker questions. Icebreakers often involve sharing personal stories or experiences, which enhances your team dynamic and helps employees get to know each other on a deeper level. We made a list of our favorite icebreaker questions to get you started.
Have some extra time? 👉 Invite your team to break the ice at Confetti's Water Cooler!
7. This or That ⚖️
Form team bonds through similar likes and interests. Introduce the game by explaining that participants will have to answer a series of rapid-fire this-or-that questions.
For example:
- Coffee or tea? ☕🫖
- Beach vacation or mountain getaway? 🏖️⛰️
- Pizza or burgers? 🍕🍔
- Morning person or night owl? ☀️🌛
- Reading a book or watching a movie? 📚🎥
- Summer or winter? ☀️❄️
- Cats or dogs? 😻🐶
- Sweet or savory? 🍫🧂
One person can lead the game by presenting the pairs to one person at a time, or the other team members as a whole. (If you're playing in a physical space with the entire team, you can encourage the team to move to different sides of the room to represent their answers. )
8. Desert Island 🏝
Set the scene by explaining to the participants that they are stranded on a desert island with limited resources. They can choose a certain number of items or categories to have with them for survival or enjoyment.
Define the rules of the game. For instance, participants may be limited to a specific number of items they can choose (e.g., five items) or categories they can select from (e.g., books, movies, food, tools, etc.). Allow each participant to take turns announcing their choices and explain why they chose those particular things.
9. The Name Game 👋
Everyone picks a unique gesture that embodies their name to start. This gesture could be anything from mimicking the first letter of their name to creating a movement that reflects their personality. For instance, someone named "Sarah" might draw an "S" shape in the air with their finger, while another individual named "Alex" might mimic holding an imaginary book due to their love for reading.
Once your team members pair their names with a gesture, the game starts with a brave team leader starting the game. They perform their name gesture, followed by someone else's gesture, and on and on you go.
10. Mindmeld 💬
Mindmeld is a collaborative game where two or more players count to three, and then say the first word that comes to their head. Trying to think of the commonality connecting the two words, players will count to three and say a new word. Players continue this process until they end up saying the same word, at which point they celebrate with a triumphant jubilee.
15-minute team building activities:
11. Three-headed expert 🙂🙂🙂
Three experts, four players. One is asking deep questions to a thought leader in their field, the only thing is — that expert has three heads! Three players can only speak one word at a time, but still have to make sense and speak in complete sentences. This is a goofy way to improve communication skills and work as a team!
12. Virtual Coffee Break ☕️
Everyone needs a team break now and then, so plan time for employees to recharge with a coffee or treat of their choice together! Low-stakes activities like a virtual coffee break are great moments to put on the company calendar for your employees who want to catch up on that latest show everyone's talking about, share their weekend plans, check in about their weeks, or whatever connection they're looking for!
13. Group meditation 🧘
Deep breath in, deep breath out. You’d be surprised how much fresh oxygen brings peace to the mind and calm to the body, as well as how group meditation can boost team morale and employee well-being. There are tons of free guided meditations available on Youtube.
Have some extra time? 👉 Take a Meditation Class with a live instructor!
14. Two Truths and a Lie ✌️
Two Truths and a Lie is a classic icebreaker game where everyone shares three statements about themselves: two truths and one lie. The other participants then try to discuss and guess which statement is the lie. Once everyone has made their guesses, the player reveals which statement was the lie. It's a fun and engaging way to get to know each other better while encouraging critical thinking and observation skills.
Have some extra time? 👉 Play Two Truths and a Lie led by one of Confetti's lively game hosts!
15. Share the love 💌
Have team members take turns expressing appreciation for someone else in the group. Give everyone listening a chance to chime in with their own anecdotes as well. This easy and spontaneous activity fosters a positive workplace community and boosts feelings of belonging.
Have some extra time? 👉 Book a round of Workplace Gratitude to make it a longer celebration!
Book a quick team building activity with Confetti 🎉
As you can see from the ideas above, you don't need a full hour to improve team morale and foster a supportive team culture. Even five quick minutes of connection boosts team morale and makes your team members feel valued.
Enhance team dynamics with short team building activities with Confetti! Visit our 30 Mins or Less collection or contact [email protected] to get started.
Frequently Asked Questions ⁉️
What is a quick team building activity?
Quick team building activities require no special preparation, making them perfect for a short break during a meeting. One effective example is "Two Truths and a Lie." In this game, each team member shares two true facts and one false fact about themselves, and others guess which one is the lie. This activity helps team members learn interesting things about each other in a fun and engaging way.
What are good team bonding questions?
Good team bonding questions help team members connect on a personal level. Asking about the most interesting place someone has visited can lead to sharing memorable travel experiences. Questions like "If you could have dinner with any three people, dead or alive, who would they be?" encourage imaginative thinking and reveal personal values. Discussing favorite movies, hobbies, or the best books read recently can uncover common interests and spark deeper conversations.
How often should we incorporate team building activities into our schedule?
The frequency of team building activities depends on your team's needs and workload. However, incorporating them regularly, such as once a month or quarter, can significantly benefit team dynamics. Regular team building sessions help maintain high morale, improve communication, and strengthen relationships. For busy teams, even short activities during weekly meetings can provide a quick boost to team cohesion and productivity.
