Not to mention that team-encouraging activities are also a neat way of breaking the ice with both new and old colleagues, allowing them to get to know each other a lot better. As a result, you get a nice boost to your team’s overall morale and motivation, and also improve the communication between individual members.
So, without further ado, here are some five awesome ways to encourage team spirit in the workplace.
Everybody loves getting out of the office every once in a while; even the grumpy ones. Field trips are a neat way of encouraging team spirit and getting away from the same-old, monotonous tasks back at the office. Depending on your company culture and employee interests, you can visit an art gallery or some archaeological sites, for instance. Either way, a field trip presents a neat opportunity for your co-workers to get to know each other a lot better and form a bond out of the whole experience, allowing them to coordinate more efficiently once they get back to the office.
Organizing outdoor sporting activities is not only fun but healthy as well! Now, seeing how health also plays a huge factor in workplace productivity, these sporting events are nothing short of a “wombo combo.” At any rate, team games are even better when you have multiple departments competing against one another, trying to defend their division’s honour.
To reinforce their sense of camaraderie, hand out prizes for the winning team — or just the MVP — in the form of charming corporate awards, vouchers, or something unique such as custom made name badges. That way your employees will have something to show for their team spirit back at the office.
Competitions are not the only way to forge bonds between colleagues; there’s an easier, more relaxed way of doing that — social outings. This can be anything from a simple night out on a Friday evening or a company lunch at your favourite pizzeria; it doesn’t have to be complicated. Usually, the simpler (and more spontaneous) the organization, the more relaxed people will be. The point is to have a good time together and share stories and interests between your co-workers; get to know them better.
If a team has been performing exceptionally well, you can even take them to a fancy restaurant to acknowledge all the extra work they’ve put in recently.
Ironically, escape rooms are an awesome way of escaping the mundane daily grind back at the office. Not only that but it will also bring the best out of your team as they join forces to accomplish a common goal — escape. This will do wonders for your coordination skills on both the team and individual levels, and put your team’s problem-solving skills to the test.
In the end, your colleagues will have a day to remember that they’ll talk about for days — perhaps even weeks — to come, and they’ll also learn the most valuable lesson of all — teamwork pays off.
Again, depending on your company culture, you can take your squad out to do something that matters. In essence, giving back to the community is rewarding in so many ways. For one, it helps foster a bond between employees that share the same values and goals.
Now, this can be anything from charity events to volunteering at the local animal shelter. Overall, to make it more meaningful (and interesting) for everyone, let them make the choice and vote on the organization and type of volunteering they wish to participate in. In a strange way, this brainstorming and decision-making process will also play a small part in bringing your team closer together.
All in all, you know your team better than anyone — do what you think they’d enjoy the most. Never force your employees into doing something they simply detest as it will only produce the opposite effect of what you want.
