Rock Paper Team – 7 Favorite Team Building Icebreakers

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Team Building Icebreakers

Welcome to our first “What Can I Do At Work” Blog. Rock Paper Team is a team building company dedicated to your success. We build our events around your goals and desired results. At Rock Paper Team, we believe that team building is more than a game. It is based on the relationship between you and your teammates, building the strength and stamina that will lead you and your company to success.

You are at work, getting over the winter blues and you want to spice up the group – get energy flowing. Try these icebreakers to help boost morale

  1. Zip Zap Zoom – This is an Improv exercise to help teams support and listen to each other better. It’s like “Hot Potato” but with words and actions. Get your team in a circle (no more than 15 people to a circle). First person starts with their hands clasped together and, to anyone in the circle, says and passes Zip. The person catches the Zip by clasping hands and chooses another person to pass and say Zap. The third person catches the Zap by clasping their hands and passes the Zoom to the fourth person. The fourth person catches the Zoom like the others and says and passes Zip – starting the whole cycle again. See how quickly your team can do this exercise. Be prepared to laugh.
  1. Who Am I – This exercise is like 20 Questions. You need to create a list of famous people and cut each name into it’s own strip. Have someone tape the names on the back of each person – Don’t tell them who they are! Make sure the person taping the names gets one too. Start by going to a different person for each of the questions you ask – don’t go to the same person (unless you are a small group). Even if you figure out who you are, others need your help. This exercise helps in creative thinking and deducing, plus listening skills.
  1. Name Game – Before a meeting, or if you are having a team celebration at a bar/restaurant, break people into teams of 5 – 7 people. Give them a printed sheet of paper where you have created a table of 4 columns. The first column is the name of your company or a motto with each letter in it’s own row.   The second, third and fourth columns are titled with topics. With each corresponding letter on each row, the team has to come up with a name for each topic. The topics could be celebrities, drinks, movies, sports, etc. Have fun getting to know your teammates pop culture references.
  1. Musical Chairs – In a good-sized space, make an outer and inner circle of chairs that face each other. Turn on some music and let the outer circle go one direction and the inner circle go another direction. Stop the music and each person sits in a seat. Give them a question – start easy, then get more difficult – that they have each have to answer within a minute. You can give more time if you ask a more involved question towards the end. After their minute, start the music and people get up, continuing in the direction they were walking until the music stops. Then it starts all over again.
  1. People Bingo – Make up 30 blocks in a table on a Word document. Fill in each box with something that each teammate could answer at least one box. Examples – I speak 3 languages. I’m the youngest in my family. I have traveled to 5 countries. I like Italian Food. My favorite color is Blue. I have performed on stage. When the game starts, tell the participants to find people who match the description in the box. A different person should fill out each box unless you don’t have 30 people.
  1. Informal Icebreaker – Don’t email or IM your co-worker on the same floor as you. Get up and see them in person – take 5 minutes to see how each other are doing.
  1. Eat lunch or go on a break with a co-worker you don’t interact with during the day.

Go to www.rockpaperteam.com for more ideas about team building.

Thank you for your time!  We look forward to working with you!

Working the Catwalk as a Team – and I’m not talking about a Runway!

Working the Catwalk as a Team

During my pre-teen to young adult years I was involved with Upper Darby Summer Stage – a local community theater program that has cultivated many talented performers and leaders. Lessons learned during those formative years are still used today.

I recently caught up with a friend from Summer Stage who is an international journalist living in the Middle East reporting in war torn areas. She shared that as an American, she is one of the few journalists allowed in more hostile areas because she has developed a reputation for being quick on her feet and thinking outside the box. She attributes her skills to lessons learned at Summer Stage.

When performing in a production, you have to work as a team with your fellow cast. The great lessons learned in Summer Stage didn’t always happen in front of the lights. Sometimes, the greatest lessons were behind the lights.

In my early Summer Stage years, I remember going up into the ceiling area – called the Catwalk – to set the lights for the current production ready to launch. With the lighting director, 4 of us would be spread out along the whole Catwalk which surrounded the 3 sides of the stage below. As a kid, this was SO EXCITING! I am being given responsibility, on a walkie-talkie, working with 4 other people to set the lights with the right gel/color filters and angles, to light the stage and actors, for the best effects.

Going into the catwalk, high above the ground, is the first memory of working with people I hardly knew, to accomplish a task that benefitted others before myself. I stepped out of my comfort zone, had to think outside the box and learned – That I can do ANYTHING – especially MORE with the support of a team.

Working with people can bring out many thoughts and feelings. Accomplishing goals together and getting to know one another builds foundations of support, strength and consistency. That consistency means retention of people who want to stay and work together because of the trust and respect built and maintained.

Rock Paper Team is a way to step out of your comfort zone, work with your team and get to know each other outside of your work roles. Building work relationships with people you spend a majority of your time lessens anxiety and increases productivity. Think of Rock Paper Team for your 2015 team building, training or conference for a fun, interactive experience that you won’t forget. Think outside the Box with RPT and take that bold step onto the Catwalk – TOGETHER!

Contact Dan at dan@rockpaperteam.com for more information.

Rock Paper Team is taking Team Building to a whole new level.

Team Building to New Level

In this age of technology, it is easy to feel less connected. Rock Paper Team is about connecting people in the 21st Century – Face to Face. We can create competitive and non-competitive experiences. Plus we can facilitate workshops on a variety of topics using interactive activities to keep you engaged.

Rock Paper Team – What does it mean? 
– For corporate and educational groups it means getting back to your roots (Rock), getting on the same page as your brand (Paper) and getting clients and partners on board to succeed (Team)

We communicate through IM, FB, Tweets, etc – and sometimes the person we are sending these messages to is only two doors away. Rock Paper Team gives you experiences together to break the ice, build relationships and retain good people so your team can thrive.

– For weddings – Families and friends sometimes meet each other for the first time at a wedding for a loved one. Instead of feeling awkward, let Rock Paper Team create experiences that get everyone to know each other during the festive weekend. The Ring (Rock) brought the couple together. The Marriage License and Certificate (Paper) is the legal bond. Family and Friends (Team) coming to celebrate a couple’s BIG Day – make it priceless by creating an environment of familiarity and fun.

Destination Weddings or Wedding Weekends are very popular now because people move for work and are not in the same states they grew up with their families. Finding time to bring the families and friends together can create stress. Rock Paper Team will provide adventures which bring your loved ones together, mingling and laughing. Then at the reception, everyone is up dancing as one party, not on different sides of the dance floor.

Whatever your need or want to bring people together, think of Rock Paper Team. With over 15 years of experience, we are here to connect you with others for a Fun, Fantastic experience.

Contact Dan at dan@rockpaperteam.com for more information.