By Kylie Jane Wakefield
A good work environment is one where employees respect one another and get along. For a workplace to be most productive, employees have to be on the same page and work together as a team, so why not find ways to foster team building?
Building solid relationships between colleagues is just as important as maintaining a professional workplace. Employees need to trust one another and know they have each other’s backs. Susan M. Heathfield points out that in a team environment, “you are unified with other organization members to accomplish the overall objectives. The bigger picture drives your actions; your function exists to serve the bigger picture.”
Want to foster those relationships at your small business? Here are three simple ways to do so.
Play an Icebreaker Game
If you’re hiring your first employees, or want to encourage communication between your team, perform an icebreaker exercise. Rishi Chowdhury recommends Two Truths and a Lie, where coworkers write down two truths and a lie about themselves. They try to convince their colleagues that the lie is true. After everyone has had their turn, workers gather in a circle, repeat each of their statements, and a vote takes place on which is the lie. There is also the Classification Game, where co-workers divide into groups of four and introduce themselves. They collectively determine what they all have in common and label themselves. For example, there might be a movie lovers or first-time parents group. This game, he says, “encourages coworkers to get to know each other better and enables them to collectively consider the nature of all individuals within the team.”
Participate in a Volunteer Project
Volunteer opportunities provide employees with a chance to interact outside the workplace in an uplifting way. Divine Caroline’s Melanie Lasoff Levs says that “volunteering with your coworkers can boost office morale and make you all feel better about working together.” The leader of the volunteering group needs to be selective about the organization and choose one that is worth peoples’ time. He or she has to know about the coworkers’ skills and pick accordingly. Volunteering shouldn’t take up too much time and there should be ways to incorporate colleagues’ family members as well. Along with learning how to work together in a different environment, volunteering helps bring positive energy to the workplace.
Start a Company Sports Team
Putting together a company sports teams has numerous advantages. Like volunteering, it “can build cohesion by encouraging coworkers to see each other in a different context than the office,” says Cliff Wiese. “It also allows people from different departments, who may have spent little or no time interacting, to become friends. If the team turns out to be successful, it can be a marketing tool. Most importantly: If done properly, it builds unity among the players, which can lead to a stronger unit in the office.” He writes that the team leader should go around the office and ask which sports everyone would like to play. Then, a call should be placed to the town’s recreation department to see when leagues are playing and how much it costs to participate. To cover the company in case of injuries, employees should sign liability forms. Company sports teams can motivate employees to be competitive, work together, and interact in a fun setting.
Do It Yourself
To figure out the best games and exercises for your office, Inc.com’s Brenda Porter-Rockwell suggests checking out www.teambuilding123.com. There are many games available online, as well.
Take a survey of the office, and pick exercises based upon common interests and goals. Always find a way to emphasize peoples’ strengths and foster creativity. Exercises are meant to build people up on an individual and collective basis. Fostering a team environment, in the end, will only help a business reach its goals.
Once your team building activities have fostered trust between colleagues, consider working on your social media plan! Download, “How to Convert Fans and Followers into Customers” for tips.
This post Fostering a Team Environment: 3 Team Building Activities for Your Small Business was first published on the Big Ideas Blog.