To ask what’s the best team building exercise you’ve ever done?

[Goingonagondola]

I’ve been —told— asked by my employer to run a team building day for my colleagues. I’m not really a team building kind of person - I’m more of a ‘leave me alone to do my work’ kind of person. The internet is giving me tedious sounding ball games and get-to-know-yous and I think my stressed colleagues may actually kill and eat me if I try some of the enthusiastic things I’ve read about.

Help please! What team building games have you done that you genuinely enjoyed? I just want them to have fun and go away feeling it wasn’t as bad as they thought it would be...

Zero budget by the way. Just people, a big room or outdoors (weather dependant) and whatever resources I can drum up.

Owhhhh fuck that. I hate this kind of stuff. I will take part if alcohol is available.

I'd just go out for a meal. There's no such thing as a fun team building games in my experience. The whole ridiculous concept of "team building" is unbearable enough.

Strike through fail. See? I can’t do anything!

Oh bugger your replies are confirming my fears. Not allowed to go anywhere or drink.

The best team building is a meal out, with drinks for those who want it. Team building exercises are notoriously hated and tedious. Most people who I work with would agree.

I was going to say go out to the pub! @PolkaDotted beat me to it.

Zero budget rules out most things I could think of or have had the pleasure of experiencing.

Worst one ever involved an American warm up man and a pair of drumsticks

I'm certain that the reason these things are so awful is so people bond over the awfulness. Like how xmas crackers aren't meant to be funny.

Team building shudder A perfectly hideous way to spend a day.
A scavenger hunt? Take you out and about. Prize for the team who finds everything the quickest?

Can you have a quiz? That'd be bearable for most I think. Games are decidedly not.

A scavenger hunt is a good idea actually. That'd be tolerable too.

Can you refuse to do it?
Could you suggest everyone chips in and you go for a meal instead?

Egg drop: "Split everyone off into groups of three to five people and give each group an uncooked egg. Put all the office supplies in a pile. They have 15 to 30 minutes to use the supplies to build a contraption around the egg that will keep the egg from breaking when dropped. Some suggestions for supplies are: tape, pencils, straws, plastic utensils, packing material, newspapers, rubber bands. Once time is up, drop each egg contraption from the second or third floor of your building and see which eggs survive the Eggpocalypse."

A friend borrowed our massive box of Lego, her team all sat around making things and chatting, having tea and cake.

Depends what you want to achieve, what aspects of the team need improving? It’s pointless having a team-building day without specific outcomes being identified. It’s just lip service without.

Hmm, all the best ones had a decent budget. Go karting, casino night, clay pigeon shooting. They were all pretty good. Have you not even been given budget for s meal or even some pizzas?

The pub quiz suggestion above sounds like your best bet. You will need prizes (even just crap trophies for people to admire on their desks), and food. I'd work out how much it will cost and go back and ask for £x or it's not possible.

None. None at all.

I've done loads and think they are up there in my top ten list of things I hate.

Ice breaker game to start
Everyone stands up. Each person has to sit down when host announced something they have done eg sit down if you use an iphone5. Sit down if you have a motorbike licence.

Keep going until one person remains

I like the scavenger hunt idea too

The very best I did was where the group was divived into two teams. There was a list of tasks to be done, with points for each task. The team had to decide what tasks to be done and who would do them. They were hugely varied, so things like draw a self portrait, write a 500 word short story, walk under a road, ascend to 100 feet, drop an egg 20 feet without it breaking, make a bridge out of straws, complete an obstacle course, ascend down an abseiling wall....something for everyone, then the team with the most points won a prize.

Everyone in the group really enjoyed it because there was something in there that everyone could do - even just organising it.

How big is the room? Is it big enough for a game of rounders? Everyone can play that.

Second the quiz suggestion - my work colleagues love this. Provide some snacks, include a novelty round, and get the teams mixed up so they meet people they don't normally work with.

I've been to many cringingly awful 'team building' events. I think the only actually good ones are where you accomplish something together that is actually meaningful. At one company thing last year they spent a day volunteering at a local hospice doing painting and gardening work which apparently went well

We did an escape room. It was fantastic. Also outdoor monopoly (like a scavenger hunt but with a monopoly board, it was so clever).

I book annual leave for every single on of these godforsaken timewasting days. Hate them.

Buy in pizzas!

Rounders is a great idea, or a quiz