team building games for critical thinking

10 Team-Building Games That Promote Critical Thinking

What Are The Best Team-Building Games For Promoting Critical Thinking?

by TeachThought Staff

One of education’s primary goals is to groom the next generation of little humans to succeed in the ‘real world.’

Yes, there are mounds of curricula they must master in a wide breadth of subjects, but education does not begin and end with a textbook or test.

Other skills must be honed, too, not the least of which is how to get along with their peers and work well with others. This is not something that can be cultivated through rote memorization or with strategically placed posters.

Students must be engaged and cooperation must be practiced, and often. The following team-building games can promote cooperation and communication, help establish a positive classroom environment and — most importantly — provide a fun, much-needed reprieve from routine.

See also Team-Building Games For The First Day Of School

10 Team-Building Games That Promote Collaborative Critical Thinking

You can purchase a classroom-ready version of team-building games that promote critical thinking here .

1. If You Build it…

This team-building game is flexible. First, divide students into teams and give them equal amounts of a certain material, like pipe cleaners, blocks, or even dried spaghetti and marshmallows.

Then, give them something to construct. The challenge can be variable (think: Which team can build the tallest, structurally-sound castle? Which team can build a castle the fastest?). You can recycle this activity throughout the year by adapting the challenge or materials to specific content areas.

Skills: Communication; problem-solving

2.  Save the Egg

This activity can get messy and may be suitable for older children who can follow safety guidelines when working with raw eggs. Teams must work together to find a way to ‘save’ the egg (Humpty Dumpty for elementary school students?) — in this case, an egg dropped from a specific height. That could involve finding the perfect soft landing, or creating a device that guides the egg safely to the ground.

Let their creativity work here.

Skills: Problem-solving, creative collaboration

Zoom is a classic classroom cooperative game that never seems to go out of style. Simply form students into a circle and give each a unique picture of an object, animal, or whatever else suits your fancy. You begin a story that incorporates whatever happens to be on your assigned photo. The next student continues the story, incorporating their photo, and so on.

Skills: Communication; creative collaboration

4. Minefield

Another classic team-building game. Arrange some sort of obstacle course and divide students into teams. Students take turns navigating the ‘minefield’ while blindfolded, with only their teammates to guide them. You can also require students to only use certain words or clues to make it challenging or content-area specific.

Skills: Communication; trust

See also 10 Team-Building Games For A Friendlier Classroom

5. The Worst-Case Scenario

Fabricate a scenario in which students would need to work together and solve problems to succeed, like being stranded on a deserted island or getting lost at sea. Ask them to work together to concoct a solution that ensures everyone arrives safely. You might ask them to come up with a list of 10 must-have items that would help them most, or a creative passage to safety. Encourage them to vote — everyone must agree to the final solution.

Skills: Communication, problem-solving

6. A Shrinking Vessel

This game requires a good deal of strategy in addition to teamwork. Its rules are deceptively simple: The entire group must find a way to occupy a space that shrinks over time until they are packed creatively like sardines. You can form the boundary with a rope, a tarp or blanket being folded over, or small traffic cones. (Skills: Problem-solving; teamwork)

7. Go for Gold

This game is similar to the ‘If you build it’ game: Teams have a common objective but instead of each one having the same materials, they have access to a whole cache of materials. For instance, the goal might be to create a contraption with pipes, rubber tubing, and pieces of cardboard that can carry a marble from point A to point B in a certain number of steps, using only gravity.

Creative collaboration; communication; problem-solving

8. It’s a Mystery

Many children (and grown-ups) enjoy a good mystery, so why not design one that must be solved cooperatively? Give each student a numbered clue. In order to solve the mystery — say, the case of the missing mascot — children must work together to solve the clues in order. The ‘case’ might require them to move from one area of the room to the next, uncovering more clues.

Skills: Problem-solving, communication

9.  4-Way Tug-of-War 

That playground classic is still a hit — not to mention inexpensive and simple to execute. For a unique variation, set up a multi-directional game by tying ropes in such a way that three or four teams tug at once. Some teams might choose to work together to eliminate the other groups before going head-to-head.

Skills: Teamwork; sportsmanship

10. Keep it Real

This open-ended concept is simple and serves as an excellent segue into problem-based learning. Challenge students to identify and cooperatively solve a real problem in their schools or communities. You may set the parameters, including a time limit, materials, and physical boundaries.

Skills: Problem-solving; communication

While education technology is a basic and crucial component of the 21st-century classroom, educators must still ensure that students are engaging with each other in meaningful ways. Team-building exercises are a great way to do this, and because of this, they will never go out of style.

Aimee Hosler is a writer and mother of two living in Virginia. She specializes in a number of topics, but is particularly passionate about education and workplace news and trends. She holds a B.S. in Journalism from California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo and is a contributor to several websites including OnlineSchools.com; 10 Team-Building Games For Kids, Teenagers, or Adults

TeachThought is an organization dedicated to innovation in education through the growth of outstanding teachers.

10 Critical Thinking Team Building Activities for Work

Are you looking for some critical thinking team building activities ?

Employees who can think critically and solve complex problems are valuable assets to any company. With this skill, they can objectively analyze data and make informed decisions.

This will ease your job as a leader, right?

In this article, let’s see 10 critical thinking activities for your employees.

What are the Main Benefits of Critical Thinking in the Workplace?

Critical thinking helps employees to assess situations accurately and make sound decisions. When it is incorporated into the workplace, it can help teams become more collaborative and productive. Moreover, they can think strategically under pressure.

Here are 10 activities that will help your teams develop their critical thinking skills:

#1. Debate It Out

This activity requires teams to debate a controversial topic and come to a consensus.

Time: You decide

Materials: None

Participants: 3-10 people per group

Instructions

• Break the participants into small groups and assign each group a controversial topic to debate.

• Give them some time to research their topics and discuss possible arguments.

• During the debate, encourage all group members to participate and cooperate while developing their arguments.

• Finally, each group should come up with a consensus.

Discuss how the groups reach a consensus. Ask them how they overcame disagreements to come to an agreement.

#2. The Challenge Quest

This activity requires employees to answer questions and solve puzzles to reach a common goal.

Materials: Questions, puzzles, and clues about the given subject.

Participants: 3-10 people in a team

• Break the participants into teams and give each one a set of questions, puzzles, and clues related to a given topic. For example, the topic could be sustainability in the workplace.

• Give the teams time to discuss and answer each question or puzzle.

• Once they’ve answered all the questions, they must come up with a plan to reach a common goal.

During the debrief, see how each team worked together and what strategies they used to solve the puzzles. Encourage them to think strategically and in an orderly manner.

#3. Fishbowl

This team building activity requires employees to come up with solutions to a given problem.

Materials: Questions, topics, and discussion prompts

Participants: 5-15 people per group

• Choose a person to be in the center of the circle that everyone else can see. Everyone else stands around them in a circle.

• Ask the group a question or provide a discussion prompt, and allow the person in the center to begin discussing their thoughts.

• Everyone else takes turns providing input and suggestions, helping the individual in the center reach a solution or conclusion.

Discuss how the group worked together to come up with ideas and solutions. Talk about what strategies were used, how people communicated, and any key points that came up during the discussion.

#4. Elimination Match

This exercise requires employees to use their strategic planning skills. Here groups must complete tasks quickly in order to win the game.

Time: 15-30 minutes

Materials: Cards with various tasks, such as creating a budget or developing a marketing plan

Participants: 5-10 people divided into teams of 2-3

• Ask teams to pick one card from the deck and assign each team the task indicated.

• Give them some time to complete their tasks.

• After the time is up, ask each team to present their results.

• Award points to the teams based on how well they completed the task, and choose the winner!

Discuss how each group planned and worked together to complete the task. Also, talk about the importance of thinking critically and strategically under pressure.

#5. Quick Brainstorming

In this activity, employees must quickly brainstorm ideas in order to come up with solutions.

Time: 5 minutes

Materials: Problem and discussion prompts

Participants: 4-10 people per team

• Initially, present a problem to the group. Next, give them 2-3 minutes to brainstorm as many solutions as possible.

• Have each team present their ideas.

• Ask the teams to discuss each solution and vote on the best one.

Have employees reflect on the ideas that were generated during the activity. Discuss how open and honest communication can help groups come up with creative solutions in a short amount of time.

#6. Creative Writing

This team building exercise encourages employees to think creatively while crafting a story.

Materials: Story prompts and writing utensils

Participants: 4-10 people in a group

• Give each group a short story or scenario to work with.

• Have the groups discuss potential plot points, character traits, and other creative aspects of the story.

• Each group should write the completed story collaboratively.

Evaluate the effectiveness of teamwork and recognize any biases or patterns noticed while writing the stories. Talk about how important it is to communicate openly and consider different perspectives while solving problems.

#7. The Exchange

This exercise requires teams to work together by exchanging and reallocating items.

Time: 10-20 minutes

Materials: Any items needed to complete the task such as cards, balls, puzzles, etc.

Participants: At least two teams of any size

• Give each team a different task to complete. For example, building the highest tower or creating the most complex puzzle.

• Provide a set of items to each team.

• Allow them to exchange items with the other teams until they have created their final product.

Evaluate the team members’ problem-solving abilities and recognize any biases that may have impacted their decisions. Also, assess what they learned about communication and collaboration during the exercise. ​​​ ​​

#8. Idea Generation Game

This team building activity encourages groups to think creatively by generating ideas for a particular challenge.

Time: 5-10 minutes

Materials: Any items needed to complete the task such as construction paper, tape, scissors, etc.

Participants: 3-10 members in a team

• Assign each team a set of items and ask them to come up with an innovative idea or invention using the materials provided.

• Encourage them to brainstorm and generate ideas with their team members.

• Allow each team to create prototypes or models of their idea if desired.

Evaluate the creative problem-solving skills displayed by team members. Also, identify any potential areas for improvement.​​ ​​

#9. The Case Study

This activity encourages employees to collaborate and think critically in order to solve a case study.

Materials: Case study, research materials, and discussion prompts

Participants: Any number of members per group

• Present the groups with a case study that requires critical thinking to solve.

• Provide them with research materials and discussion prompts to come up with solutions.

• Each group should present their findings and solutions to the other groups.

Assess how well the teams worked together, and evaluate their strategies for problem-solving. Also, discuss which solution was the most effective.​​​ ​​​ ​​

#10. Desert Survival

This exercise encourages employees to work together and think critically in order to survive in the desert.

Materials: A list of items, paper, and pen

Participants: Teams of 3-8 members

• Each team should assume that they are stuck in a desert. Their goal is to come up with solutions for survival.

• Now, provide a list of 10 items to each team. Some of the items can be food, shelter, water, etc.

• Instruct them to choose five items from the list that they value the most.

• After a few minutes, ask each team to present their solution.

• Award points to the teams based on how effectively they used the items to survive.

Discuss how the teams used their problem solving skills to come up with solutions and ask them what other strategies they could have used in this situation. Also, talk about the importance of being able to think critically and strategically under pressure.

Want Unique Team Building Exercises?

If you want some unique team building exercises for your employees, you can get my new e-book:

The Busy Leader’s Guide of Unique Team Building Activities: 30 Fully Customizable Exercises That You Can Conduct with Any Group of Employees, Anywhere

Or Want Some Unique Leadership Development Activities?

If you want some unique activities to equip your employees with leadership skills, qualities, and mindset, you can get my new e-book:

The Empowering Guide of Unique Leadership Development Activities: 100 Fully Customizable Exercises That You Can Conduct with Any Group of Employees, Anywhere

Final Words

Teams can enhance their critical thinking skills by taking part in the above-mentioned activities in a fun and collaborative environment. Since everyone has varying viewpoints, you must exercise patience and respect while exchanging ideas. Finally, conducting a debrief after each activity is essential to help everyone gain insight from the experience and incorporate it into future scenarios.

FAQ: Critical Thinking Team Building Activities

You might have these questions in mind.

What are critical thinking activities?

These are exercises that can help your teams to think outside the box and solve complex problems. They will help your employees work under pressure and make the right decisions.

What are some critical thinking 5-minute team building activities?

Some 5-minute activities that can help your employees think critically are Idea Generation Game, Quick Brainstorming, and The Challenge Quest.

How does improving critical thinking skills increase workplace performance?

Having good critical thinking skills helps employees think strategically and analyze data efficiently. They also become better problem solvers and are able to generate innovative solutions more quickly. All of this helps to improve overall workplace performance and productivity.

Like this article on “10 Critical Thinking Team Building Activities for Work”? Feel free to share your thoughts.

10 Critical Thinking Team Building Activities

However, this is harder than it sounds - critical and creative thinking are two sought-after skills that are not easy to find during the recruitment process.

Instead of finding great team players with powerful and relevant skills, we'll turn our current team into a valuable asset with these 10 critical thinking team building activities.

Instead of seeking great team players with powerful and relevant skills, we'll transform our current team into a valuable asset with these 10 critical thinking team building activities.

Why Are Critical Thinking Team Building Games Important?

Critical thinking, communication, and problem-solving skills are among the most important core skills that employees in all industries seek.

In this case, having the ability to overcome new situations through critical analysis is a must, and the following statistics help us prove this point:

• A survey by the American Management Association revealed that 72% of employees believe that critical thinking skills are key to their organization's success , yet only half of those surveyed reported these skills in their employees.
• A research paper by The Foundation for Young Australians ( FYA ) reveals that the proportion of jobs demanding critical thinking has increased by 158%, showcasing the importance of soft skills that encourage reasonable, rational, and logical decisions in various tasks.
• According to Harvard Business Review ( HBR ), the majority of new graduates looking for a position lack critical thinking capabilities , which puts a focus on encouraging the development of this skill to create high-performance teams in different industries. 

Introducing critical thinking, problem-solving , and classical team building activities into the workplace motivates employee engagement and contributes to improved productivity.

Let's explore 10 team-building games that encourage critical thinking and are suitable for both remote and in-person teams.

1. Escape Room

It's time to boost team morale by participating in an Escape Room challenge where participants collaboratively solve puzzles and decode clues to "escape" within a set time.

Teamland's Virtual Escape Room activity will encourage team members to collaborate as a united team in order to overcome the challenges ahead.

Virtual escape games enhance the communication and critical-thinking skills of remote team members, "forcing" them to make innovative decisions to achieve a common goal.

• Activity Duration : From 30 minutes to 1 hour.
• Best For : Small and medium-sized hybrid teams.

2. Virtual Murder Mystery

Virtual Murder Mystery is a classic team-building game by Teamland that will test the critical thinking skills of your teams to the limit.

In this immersive experience, participants work together to unravel a fictional crime through clues, witness accounts, and detective work.

All team members will join a virtual party and will need to collaborate with each other to discover the identity of the murderer before time runs out.

This activity not only hones critical thinking skills but also enhances interpersonal connections as team members become characters in a shared narrative, fostering a dynamic and engaging atmosphere for problem-solving and strategy development.

• Activity Duration : 30 minutes to 2 hours.

3. Company Debates

Company Debates is a simple team building activity that consists of holding a debate about different topics among all team members in the office.

Choose a topic, divide team members into smaller teams, and make them articulate their ideas to defend their points of view.

This activity sharpens critical thinking as team members weigh various perspectives, consider evidence, and articulate their positions persuasively.

4. Public Speaking Training

Public Speaking Training is an expert-led workshop by Teamland that teaches team members the importance of having public speaking skills.

Speaking in front of an audience enhances communication and transparency , fostering a more dynamic work environment where all team members learn how to prevent communication problems.

Learning how to properly communicate your ideas is a great way to improve critical thinking and foster the whole team's leadership skills. 

• Activity Duration : From 1 to 2 hours.
• Best For : All team types and sizes.

5. The Worst-Case Scenario

The Worst-Case Scenario is yet another standard team building game where everyone can participate.

Divide team members into groups, ask them to put themselves in the worst-case scenario (which can be a plane crash or stranded on a desert island), and make them come up with 10 must-have items (survival items, ideally) to overcome the situation.

Through an out-of-the-box thought process, team members will need to elaborate on why their items of choice will help them during difficult times.

It's important to make all team participants collaborate in the activity, as this will enhance the critical thinking skills of the entire group. 

• Best For : Small and medium-sizes in-office and remote teams.

6. Survivors

If you are familiar with the classic TV show " Survivors ," you'll love this team-building activity by Teamland.

In Survivor, team members will need to work with each other to overcome different challenges, which include both mental and physical activities.

This team-building game for adults will make "tribes" compete against each other in a friendly way, but they will all want to win the great prize, so thinking critically will be imperative. 

• Activity Duration : From 1 to 3 hours.
• Best For : In-office teams of all sizes.

7. Office Olympics

The Office Olympics are here, and it's time to win a gold medal!

Office Olympics involve a series of mini-games designed to foster teamwork, enhance company pride, and create a fun and creative space for your team.

Some games will be simple, and some others will be a real challenge - critically analyzing the situation and having strong communication is crucial to end up victorious.

Whether you're celebrating milestones, improving cooperation, or welcoming new team members, this activity is ideal for fostering critical thinking and instilling a sense of victory in your team.

• Best For : All in-person group types and sizes.

8. Bridge Build

If your team members had all the materials to build a small bridge, would they know how to do it?

If not, don't worry - Teamland's experts will show them everything they need to know about bridge building in our Bridge Build Experience .

In Bridge Build, contestants will need to build a bridge from scratch . Teams will compete against each other to build the more impressive and durable bridge and win the great prize.

However, keep in mind that the bridge needs to be strong and stable enough to allow a large remote-controlled vehicle to safely cross it - critical thinking will be crucial to achieve this! 

• Activity Duration : From 2 to 4 hours.
• Best For : All in-office group sizes.

9. Capture the Flag

" Capture the Flag " by Teamland may seem straightforward, but in reality, it's a game that pushes your team's problem-solving and critical skills to the max.

The concept is simple: there are two flags and two bases. Teams need to capture the enemy flag while also protecting theirs.

This game requires an immense amount of collaboration, but once everyone gets the hang of it, it'll turn into an unforgettable activity that will teach valuable lessons to everyone.

This activity, which sounds simple at first, unfolds into a challenging and strategic experience, requiring your team to work together, think on their feet, and come up with clever solutions to emerge victorious.

• Best For : Medium and big-sized in-office teams.

10. Teamopoly

Teamland has created Teamopoly , the ultimate outdoor adventure, which is a game that combines the best of Monopoly, Scavenger Hunts, and other outdoor activities.

Teamopoly is a city-wide scavenger hunt where team members will discover the most iconic places of their city while also acquiring properties as they would on Monopoly.

Although it might sound a bit complicated at first, the truth is that this original experience will not only keep your team members entertained for hours, but it'll also improve the whole team's critical, analytical, and communication skills. 

• Best For : All in-office team sizes.

Summary: Best In-Person and Virtual Team-Building Activities to Encourage Critical Thinking

Implementing any of these critical thinking building activities can help you create a powerful workplace and improve the potential of all team members. This is a quick summary of the best 10 team building activities to encourage critical thinking:

• Escape Room: Collaboratively solve puzzles to "escape" and boost team morale.
• Virtual Murder Mystery: Unravel a fictional crime through clues and detective work in a virtual setting.
• Company Debates: Encourage thoughtful discussions and argumentation on business topics.
• Public Speaking Training: Learn the importance of public speaking skills for improved communication and leadership.
• The Worst-Case Scenario: Think critically about survival items in a worst-case scenario.
• Survivors: Experience team challenges inspired by the TV show "Survivor."
• Office Olympics: Engage in mini-games to foster teamwork and company pride.
• Bridge Build: Compete to build an impressive and durable bridge.
• Capture the Flag: Strategically capture the enemy flag while protecting your own. ‍
• Teamopoly: Enjoy a city-wide scavenger hunt with Monopoly elements.

Author Details

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10 Team-Building Games That Promote Critical Thinking

Students may improve their capabilities in critical thinking and other skills that will help them be successful in the contemporary job by participating in Team-building games for critical thinking. Students who value collaboration (and who will go on to become employers!) have higher levels of motivation and creativity.

It is common knowledge that kids like collaborating in groups very lot. Why don’t we make it into a game instead? Games are often a better option than brain training activities for helping children develop lateral thinking. However, brain training activities may be employed. Implementing these strategies in your classes can help students become more critical thinkers and more successful collaborators.

Here are 10 Team-Building Games That Promote Critical Thinking;

1. minefield.

Minefield Team-building games for critical thinking is a time-honored exercise that has been shown to foster better communication and a sense of trust among participants of all ages. It requires the construction of an obstacle course as well as the grouping of the students into different teams. Students take turns navigating the “minefield” while wearing blindfolds and relying only on the support of their classmates to find their way. You might also encourage kids to use certain terms or hints in order to make it more challenging for them or to utilize information that is related to the topic in order to make it more interesting to them.

2. If You Build it

This exercise in establishing teams may easily be adapted to fit your needs. To get started, separate the children into teams and give each group an equal quantity of a certain substance. Some examples of this material are pipe cleaners, bricks, dried spaghetti, and marshmallows.

After that, you should assign them a project to work on. The challenge may take on a variety of forms, such as “which team can build the biggest castle that is also structurally sound?” Which side has the capacity to build the greatest number of castles in the least period of time? You may recycle this exercise throughout the year by modifying the challenge or the resources to correspond to other subject areas in the curriculum.

3. It’s a Mystery

Since many children, especially younger ones, like a good mystery, why not challenge them to solve it in a way that encourages them to collaborate with one another? It would be helpful to offer each child a numbered clue. The youngsters need to cooperate in order to find the answers to the clues in order to allow themselves enough time to solve the mystery, such as the case of the missing mascot. It’s possible that in order to solve the “case,” they’ll need to go about the room and look in other areas for additional clues.

Zoom team-building games for critical thinking is an old standby when it comes to games for constructing teams, and the many advantages that come with playing the game make it even more interesting. The children are seated in a circle, and one child gives each child an image of an item from Zoom.

The game begins with one child relating a story based on the image that they are holding, and the next student continues the story from where the previous student left off. The game helps youngsters improve their creativity, critical thinking, and communication abilities by compelling them to create the tales on the spot and challenging them to think critically about what they’ve written.

5. Save the Egg

During this team-building games for critical thinking, each team of three or four persons will have the opportunity to drop their egg from a certain height. They need to devise strategies that will prevent the egg from cracking while it is in the air. They are free to use whatever items or apparatus of their choosing to effect a soft landing for the egg or to guarantee that it settles in an unharmed state.

Because this one has the potential to get ugly, it is essential to choose a site that is risk-free and where no one will be worried about hurting valuable school property.

6. marshmallows-game

7. Go for Gold

The teams compete to achieve the same objective in this Team-building games for critical thinking, which is similar to the game “If you create it,” but rather than having the same resources, the teams have access to a huge quantity. For instance, the objective may be to construct, consisting of pipes, rubber tubing, and cardboard, a machine that, with the only assistance of gravity, can move a marble from point A to point B in a certain number of stages.

Although learning through textbooks is essential, teachers also have a responsibility to ensure that pupils can interact effectively with one another. Exercises that focus on fostering a sense of teamwork are an effective way to do this, and there is no sign that this fad will ever die out.

8. Keep it Real

Because it is founded on a straightforward concept that encourages conversation and problem-solving, this open-ended model functions as an efficient examination tool for students. Give the students the mission to identify and address a genuine issue that exists in their own schools or communities. For the purpose of assisting youngsters in defining their own boundaries, some restrictions, such as time limits, material limits, and physical limitations, might be put on them.

9. Shrinking Vessel

Critical thinking may be tough to understand after undergoing brain training, but after participating in exciting Team-building games for critical thinking like the shrinking vessel, it quickly becomes second nature. The participants will first be split up into smaller groups to begin the exercise. Every group is going to have to coordinate their efforts so that they can fit into a smaller and smaller area until there is no more room. Cones or a rope might be used to define the perimeter of the area. Playing this game will teach you how to collaborate with others to find solutions to challenges.

10. The Worst-Case Scenario

Students are split up into two or more groups, and each of those groups is given a tough scenario to solve. Some examples of these scenarios include being abandoned on a barren island or becoming lost at sea. They are then given the instruction to collaborate with one another within their teams in order to find a solution to the challenge and ultimately emerge triumphant. The children have to come up with a strategy in order to guarantee that everyone will live through the worst-case scenario.

In this particular situation, the students may be quizzed about the things that they will need in order to do the task, in addition to any other passages that they may come across. The fact that youngsters are required to cooperate with one another helps in the development of their ability to solve problems and teaches them the importance of working together as a team through Team-building games for critical thinking.

Bottom line

To achieve the highest productivity at work, Team-building games for critical thinking are conducted in distinct corporate games. However, these games can boost efficiency in the study if undertaken in a classroom atmosphere. They help students to break the monotony in the learning environment. We hope our blog helped you to get new ideas regarding Team-building games for critical thinking. You can implement them in your next session within the classroom.

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22 Unbeatable Team Building Problem Solving Activities

Problem-solving is a critical skill for professionals and with team building problem-solving activities, you can sharpen your skills while having fun at the same time.  

Updated: March 1, 2024

In the professional world, one thing is for sure: problem-solving is a vital skill if you want to survive and thrive. It’s a universal job skill that organizations seek in new potential employees and that managers look for when considering candidates for promotions.  

But there’s a problem. 

According to Payscale, 60% of managers feel that new grads entering the workforce lack problem-solving abilities – making it the most commonly lacking soft skill.  

Problem-solving skill needs to be practiced and perfected on an ongoing basis in order to be applied effectively when the time comes. And while there are tons of traditional approaches to becoming a better problem-solver, there’s another (much more interesting) option: team building problem-solving activities. 

The good news? This means learning and having fun don’t have to be mutually exclusive. And you can create a stronger team at the same time. 

16 In-Person Team Building Problem Solving Activities for Your Work Group  

1. cardboard boat building challenge, 2. egg drop , 3. clue murder mystery, 4. marshmallow spaghetti tower  , 5. corporate escape room, 6. wild goose chase, 7. lost at sea  , 8. domino effect challenge, 9. reverse pyramid  , 10. ci: the crime investigators, 11. team pursuit, 12. bridge builders, 13. domino effect challenge, 14. hollywood murder mystery, 15. code break, 16. cardboard boat building challenge, 6 virtual team building problem solving activities for your work group  , 1. virtual escape room: mummy’s curse, 2. virtual clue murder mystery, 3. virtual escape room: jewel heist, 4. virtual code break  , 5. virtual trivia time machine.

• 6. Virtual Jeoparty Social

There are a ton of incredible team building problem solving activities available. We’ve hand-picked 16 of our favorites that we think your corporate group will love too. 

Split into teams and create a cardboard boat made out of just the materials provided: cardboard and tape. Team members will have to work together to engineer a functional boat that will float and sail across water without sinking. Once teams have finished making their boats, they will create a presentation to explain why their boat is the best, before putting their boats to the test. The final challenge will have teams racing their boats to test their durability! Nothing says problem-solving like having to make sure you don’t sink into the water!

Every day at work, you’re forced to make countless decisions – whether they’re massively important or so small you barely think about them.  

But your ability to effectively make decisions is critical in solving problems quickly and effectively.  

With a classic team building problem solving activity like the Egg Drop, that’s exactly what your team will learn to do. 

For this activity, you’ll need some eggs, construction materials, and a place you wouldn’t mind smashing getting dirty with eggshells and yolks.  

The goal of this activity is to create a contraption that will encase an egg and protect it from a fall – whether it’s from standing height or the top of a building. But the challenge is that you and your team will only have a short amount of time to build it before it’s time to test it out, so you’ll have to think quickly! 

To make it even more challenging, you’ll have to build the casing using only simple materials like: 

• Newspapers 
• Plastic wrap
• Rubber bands
• Popsicle sticks
• Cotton balls

Feel free to have some fun in picking the materials. Use whatever you think would be helpful without making things too easy! 

Give your group 15 minutes to construct their egg casing before each team drops their eggs. If multiple eggs survive, increase the height gradually to see whose created the sturdiest contraption.  

If you’re not comfortable with the idea of using eggs for this activity, consider using another breakable alternative, such as lightbulbs for a vegan Egg Drop experience. 

With Clue Murder Mystery, your team will need to solve the murder of a man named Neil Davidson by figuring out who had the means, motive, and opportunity to commit the crime.

But it won’t be easy! You’ll need to exercise your best problem-solving skills and channel your inner detectives if you want to keep this case from going cold and to get justice for the victim.

Collaboration is critical to problem solving. 

Why? Because, as the old saying goes, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. This expression reflects the fact that people are capable of achieving greater things when they work together to do so. 

If you’re looking for a team building problem solving activity that helps boost collaboration, you’ll love Marshmallow Spaghetti Tower.  

This game involves working in teams to build the tallest possible freestanding tower using only marshmallows, uncooked spaghetti, tape, and string.  

The kicker? This all has to be done within an allotted timeframe. We recommend about thirty minutes.  

For an added dimension of challenge, try adding a marshmallow to the top of the tower to make it a little more top heavy.  

Whichever team has the highest tower when time runs out is the winner! 

If you’ve never participated in an escape room, your team is missing out! It’s one of the most effective team building problem solving activities out there because it puts you and your colleagues in a scenario where the only way out is collaboratively solving puzzles and deciphering clues.  

The principle is simple: lock your group in a room, hide the key somewhere in that room, and have them work through challenges within a set time frame. Each challenge will lead them one step closer to finding the key and, ultimately, their escape.    

At Outback, we offer “done-for-you” escape rooms where we’ll transform your office or meeting room so you don’t have to worry about:

• Seeking transportation for your team 
• Capacity of the escape rooms  
• High costs 
• Excessive planning  

That way, you and your team can simply step inside and get to work collaborating, using creative problem solving, and thinking outside the box.   

In this smartphone-based scavenger hunt team building activity , your group will split into teams and complete fun challenges by taking photos and videos around the city. Some examples of challenges you can do in this activity are:

• Parkour:  Take a picture of three team members jumping over an object that’s at least waist-high.
• Beautiful Mind:  Snap a photo of a team member proving a well-known mathematical theorem on a chalkboard.
• Puppy Love:  Take a photo of all of your team members petting a stranger’s dog at the same time.

It takes a ton of critical thinking and problem-solving to be crowned the Wild Goose Chase Champions!

Can you imagine a higher-pressure situation than being stranded at sea in a lifeboat with your colleagues? 

With this team building problem solving activity, that’s exactly the situation you and your group will put yourselves. But by the time the activity is over, you’ll have gained more experience with the idea of having to solve problems under pressure – a common but difficult thing to do. 

Here’s how it works. 

Each team member will get a six-columned chart where: 

• The first column lists the survival items each team has on hand (see the list below) 
• The second column is empty so that each team member can rank the items in order of importance for survival  
• The third column is for group rankings  
• The fourth column is for the “correct” rankings, which are revealed at the end of the activity 
• The fifth and sixth columns are for the team to enter thee difference between their individual and correct scores and the team and correct rankings 

Within this activity, each team will be equipped with the following “survival items,” listed below in order of importance, as well as a pack of matches:  

• A shaving mirror (this can be used to signal passing ships using the sun) 
• A can of gas (could be used for signaling as it could be put in the water and lit with the pack of matches) 
• A water container (for collecting water to re-hydrate ) 
• Emergency food rations (critical survival food) 
• One plastic sheet (can be helpful for shelter or to collect rainwater) 
• Chocolate bars (another food supply) 
• Fishing rods (helpful, but no guarantee of catching food) 
• Rope (can be handy, but not necessarily essential for survival) 
• A floating seat cushion (usable as a life preserver)  
• Shark repellant (could be important when in the water) 
• A bottle of rum (could be useful for cleaning wounds) 
• A radio (could be very helpful but there’s a good chance you’re out of range) 
• A sea chart (this is worthless without navigation equipment) 
• A mosquito net (unless you’ve been shipwrecked somewhere with a ton of mosquitos, this isn’t very useful) 

To get the activity underway, divide your group into teams of five and ask each team member to take ten minutes on their own to rank the items in order of importance in the respective column. Then, give the full team ten minutes as a group to discuss their individual rankings together and take group rankings, listed in that respective column. Ask each group to compare their individual rankings with those of the group as a whole. 

Finally, read out the correct order according to the US Coast Guard, listed above.  

The goal of this activity is for everyone to be heard and to come to a decision together about what they need most to survive.  

If your team works remotely, you can also do this activity online. Using a video conferencing tool like  Zoom , you can bring your group together and separate teams into “break-out rooms” where they’ll take their time individually and then regroup together. At the end, you can bring them back to the full video conference to go through the answers together. 

Many problems are intricately complex and involve a ton of moving parts. And in order to solve this type of problem, you need to be able to examine it systematically, one piece at a time.  

Especially in the business world, many problems or challenges involve multiple different teams or departments working through their respective portions of a problem before coming together in the end to create a holistic solution. 

As you can imagine, this is often easier said than done. And that’s why it’s so important to practice this ability.  

With a collaborative team building problem solving activity like Domino Effect Challenge, that’s exactly what you’ll need to do as you and your group work to create a massive, fully functional chain reaction machine. 

Here’s how it goes. 

Your group will break up into teams, with each team working to complete their own section of a massive “Rube Goldberg” machine. Then, all teams will regroup and assemble the entire machine together. You’ll need to exercise communication, collaboration, and on-the-fly problem solving in order to make your chain reaction machine go off without a hitch from start to finish. 

Being a great problem-solver means being adaptable and creative. And if you’re looking for a quick and easy team building problem solving activity, you’ll love the reverse pyramid. 

The idea here is simple: break your group out into small teams and then stand in the form of a pyramid.  

Your challenge is to flip the base and the peak of the pyramid – but you can only move three people in order to do so.  

Alternatively, rather than doing this activity with people as the pyramid, you can do another version –  the Pyramid Build  – using plastic cups instead.   

This version is a little bit different. Rather than flipping the base of a pyramid to the top, you’ll need to build the pyramid instead–but in reverse, starting from the top cup and working down. 

With this version, you’ll need 36 cups and one table per group. We recommend groups of five to seven people. Give your group 20 to 30 minutes to complete the activity. 

To get started, place one cup face down. Then, lift that cup and place the subsequent two cups underneath it. 

The real challenge here? You can only lift your pyramid by the bottom row in order to put a new row underneath – and only one person at a time can do the lifting. The remaining group members will need to act quickly and work together in order to add the next row so that it will balance the rest of the pyramid. 

If any part of your pyramid falls, you’ll need to start over. Whichever team has the most complete pyramid when time runs out will be the winner!  

The value of being able to approach problems analytically can’t be overstated. Because when problems arise, the best way to solve them is by examining the facts and making a decision based on what you know. 

With CI: The Crime Investigators, this is exactly what your team will be called upon to do as you put your detective’s hats on and work to solve a deadly crime. 

You’ll be presented with evidence and need to uncover and decipher clues. And using only the information at your disposal, you’ll need to examine the facts in order to crack the case. 

Like many of our team building problem solving activities, CI: The Crime Investigators is available in a hosted format, which can take place at your office or an outside venue, as well as a virtually-hosted format that uses video conferencing tools, or a self-hosted version that you can run entirely on your own.  

Each member of your team has their own unique strengths and skills. And by learning to combine those skills, you can overcome any challenge and solve any problem. With Team Pursuit, you and your team together to tackle challenges as you learn new things about one another, discover your hidden talents, and learn to rely on each other.

This team building problem solving activity is perfect for high-energy groups that love to put their heads together and work strategically to solve problems as a group.

Collaborate with your colleague to design and build different segments of a bridge. At the end, see if the sections come together to create a free-standing structure!   

Together as a group, see if you and your colleagues can build a gigantic “chain-reaction” machine that really works!

In smaller groups, participants work together to solve the challenge of creating sections of the machine using miscellaneous parts, and at the end, you’ll have to collaborate to connect it all together and put it in motion.

The case is fresh, but here’s what we know so far: we’ve got an up-and-coming actress who’s been found dead in her hotel room following last night’s awards show.

We have several suspects, but we haven’t been able to put the crime on any of them for sure yet. Now, it’s up to you and your team of detectives to crack the case. Together, you’ll review case files and evidence including police reports, coroners’ reports, photo evidence, tabloids, interrogations, and phone calls as you determine the motive, method, and murderer and bring justice for the victim.

You’ll need to put your problem-solving skills to the test as you share theories, collaborate, and think outside the box with your fellow investigators.

Using Outback’s app, split up into small groups and put your heads together to solve a variety of puzzles, riddles, and trivia. The team who has completed the most challenges when time is up, wins!

Can you stay afloat in a body of water in a boat made entirely of cardboard? Now that is a problem that urgently needs solving.

With this team building problem solving activity, you and your colleagues will split into groups and create a cardboard boat made out of just the materials provided – cardboard and tape.

Team members will have to work together to engineer a functional boat that will float and sail across water without sinking. Once teams have finished making their boats, they will create a presentation to explain why their boat is the best, before putting their boats to the test. The final challenge will have teams racing their boats across the water!

If you and your team are working remotely, don’t worry. You still have a ton of great virtual team building problem solving options at your disposal.

In this virtual escape room experience, your team will be transported into a pyramid cursed by a restless mummy. You’ll have to work together to uncover clues and solve complex challenges to lift the ancient curse.

You’ve probably never heard of a man named Neil Davidson. But your group will need to come together to solve the mystery of his murder by analyzing clues, resolving challenges, and figuring out who had the means, motive, and opportunity to commit a deadly crime. 

This activity will challenge you and your group to approach problems analytically, read between the lines, and use critical thinking in order to identify a suspect and deliver justice.  

If you and your team like brainteasers, then Virtual Escape Room: Jewel Heist will be a big hit.  

Here’s the backstory.

There’s been a robbery. Someone has masterminded a heist to steal a priceless collection of precious jewels, and it’s up to you and your team to recover them before time runs out.

Together, you’ll need to uncover hidden clues and solve a series of brain-boggling challenges that require collaboration, creative problem-solving, and outside-the-box thinking. But be quick! The clock is ticking before the stolen score is gone forever.

With Virtual Code Break, you and your team can learn to be adaptive and dynamic in your thinking in order to tackle any new challenges that come your way. In this activity, your group will connect on a video conferencing platform where your event host will split you out into teams. Together, you’ll have to adapt your problem-solving skills as you race against the clock to tackle a variety of mixed brainteaser challenges ranging from Sudoku to puzzles, a game of Cranium, riddles, and even trivia. 

Curious to see how a virtual team building activity works? Check out this video on a Virtual Clue Murder Mystery in action. 

Step into the Outback Time Machine and take a trip through time, from pre-pandemic 21st century through the decades all the way to the 60’s. 

This exciting, fast-paced virtual trivia game, packed with nostalgia and good vibes, is guaranteed to produce big laughs, friendly competition, and maybe even some chair-dancing. 

Your virtual game show host will warm up guests with a couple of “table hopper rounds” (breakout room mixers) and split you out into teams. Within minutes, your home office will be transformed into a game show stage with your very own game show buzzers! 

And if your team loves trivia, check out our list of the most incredible virtual trivia games for work teams for even more ideas.

6.  Virtual Jeoparty Social

If your remote team is eager to socialize, have some fun as a group, and channel their competitive spirit, we’ve got just the thing for you! With Virtual Jeoparty Social, you and your colleagues will step into your very own virtual Jeopardy-style game show—equipped with a buzzer button, a professional actor as your host, and an immersive game show platform! Best of all, this game has been infused with an ultra-social twist: players will take part in a unique social mixer challenge between each round. 

With the right team building problem solving activities, you can help your team sharpen their core skills to ensure they’re prepared when they inevitably face a challenge at work. And best of all, you can have fun in the process. 

Do you have any favorite team building activities for building problem-solving skills? If so, tell us about them in the comments section below! 

Learn More About Team Building Problem Solving Activities  

For more information about how your group can take part in a virtual team building, training, or coaching solution, reach out to our Employee Engagement Consultants.     

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I love how this blog provides a variety of problem-solving activities for team building. It’s a great resource for anyone looking to foster teamwork and collaboration!

Games Promoting Collaborative Critical Thinking: Top 10

Fun Team Building Games To Improve Team Collaboration

While working in a business organization, employees have to come together, collaborate their efforts, indulge in critical thinking and ensure meeting common goals. Like any other organization, a business or a company is basically an amalgamation of employees who come together from diverse backgrounds, with different capabilities and skillsets to pursue common organizational goals. It is not uncommon to find some issues and problems that deter them from collaborating with each other. If the work environment becomes too negative and vitiating, it has a direct impact on the productivity and work performance of the employees. Companies must take some proactive action lest this situation gets out of hand leaving a detrimental impact on the company’s productivity and bottom line. Organizing team building games from time to time can help employees come together and indulge in collaborative critical thinking. Here, we bring you the top 10 games can help in this endeavor.

Triggertronics

It is an exciting and interesting challenge where the team has to come together and solve simple tasks in complicated ways. The challenge is based on Rube Goldberg’s Concept. The teams are given materials required to meet this challenge. They have to make use of the sequential trigger effect. The team participants have to collaborate their efforts and indulge in intuitive thinking thereby creating a self-running mechanism.

Gigsaw Challenge

In this challenge, the team is entrusted with the task of making a gigantic jigsaw by putting together a lot of jigsaw puzzles in such a way that it comes out to be meaningful. Each individual team is given a canvas to work on and they have to collectively come together to create an artwork that may symbolically depict the vision of an organization or simply create an abstract theme. The masterpiece of each team is then combined into a giant picture. Each team has to collaborate and has to contribute to the larger picture, the teams gain and learn a lot in terms of perspective.

Beat Box Challenge

It is a musical group activity where team members come together and learn a new skill. The best part of this activity is that there are no instruments and no musicians. The team participants have to beatbox or make use of their mouth to create music and perform together with close collaboration. They come together to learn a few beatbox sounds and come up with a specific beatbox rhythm. This activity encourages them to come together and collaborate with each other to create amazing music.

Pyramid Building

As part of this challenge, the team comes together to build a giant-sized pyramid. To complete the activity, a lot of planning and flawless execution is required. The team is given materials, tools, and instructions to complete this activity. Random material is used to create a pyramid. After each team build its pyramid, these are decorated with an organization’s name or logo, using brand colors and messages. Finally, the pyramids of each team are brought together and a giant pyramid is built with collaborative efforts and critical thinking.

Remoto Car Challenge

This is a fun activity where the team not only collaborates but competes to emerge as a winner. They have to work together to build bridges forming a circuit where remote cars can be raced. The team participants have to don their thinking hats and build a robust bridge that can at least sustain the weight of two racing cars. This activity requires close collaboration and critical thinking that ensures stability and strength of the pillars. The high point of this activity is the car race where all team cars race to reach the checkered flag.

Drum Jam Session

It is a music-based activity. This drum jam session help team members to enjoy, have fun and reduce stress. The energetic beating of djembe, a percussion instrument results in a rush of energy that leaves everyone overwhelmed and excited. The ‘unseen’ barriers seem to break down and the team comes together to form a strong bond. The hypnotic drumbeats fill the environment with energy and excitement that is unmatched to anything else. Music is rightly considered as the best healer and the perfect way to bring people closer to each other.

This challenge is based on the famous MasterChef-style challenge where teams are created, each entrusted with the task of cooking a 5-course meal. Each team has to prepare one dish and this task has to be completed within the stipulated timeline. It is very critical to manage time efficiently and effectively else the team has to go hungry. A five-star chef encourages the team to give their best and which results in more pressure on the teams to do a good job.

Junkyard Sales

As the name suggests, in this activity, teams come together to create something functional out of waste or junk that is of no use. The teams are assigned with junk items like paint boxes, plastic bottles, and many other scrap items.  Once the material is received, the team spend some time thinking about how to put the junk stuff to its best use. They not only have to design but also build a functional product that is sturdy, presentable and can be put to better use. Collaborative efforts and some critical thinking can transform even junk stuff into something of utility.

Beat The Trash

This is another activity that is a perfect example of how collaborative efforts and critical thinking can help in transforming junk into music. Urban wastes of every day are used to build music instruments creating a junkyard masterpiece. With growing concern about environmental conservation, and the need to follow the principle of reducing, reuse, and recycle, daily waste items like bottles, water cans, pipes, etc., is used to create music. Once the instruments are created, the team perform together, and it is a sight to behold and music to ears.

Raft Building

This activity is based on rescue efforts taken by a team that is stuck at an island with very limited supplies. The only way to get out of this situation is by building a raft that takes them to the mainland. The raft must be built using limited materials and must be strong enough to carry 4-6 people of each team to a certain distance. The activity requires close collaboration and critical thinking to complete the activity. 

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For more interesting team building activities, visit Trebound .  

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Skill-based team building

5 critical thinking team building activities for adults [research-based]

This just in: Critical thinking is one of the top 10 job skills of the future.

While that's not entirely shocking, most leaders aren't sure how to develop critical thinking. If you're one of those people, we've compiled five activities that will sharpen your team's skills and bring them closer together.

Dive deeper:   Reverse-engineering Google - Team building for high-performance teams.

How employers see critically thinking employees 

Thanks to critical thinking, you can stand out during the recruitment process and excel throughout your career. But what makes a powerful workplace critical thinker?

In 2020, the Journal of Entrepreneurship and Sustainability Issues (JESI) published a phenomenography study dedicated to an average employer's expectations from their workers . 

It identified 3 most-valued "categories" of critical thinking at the workplace : 

• Decisions to act here and now. Quick decision-making makes problem-solving and crisis management easier. To master this type of critical thinking, you need to take responsibility for your actions and opinions. 
• Verified and assured decisions to act. Here, team players driven by the company's values stand out. Learn to manage conflicts, highlight each others' strengths, and work as a team for the good of the organization. 
• Innovative decisions for operational improvement. This aspect of critical thinking encourages you to work with others and socialize, finding solutions that will improve the existing processes in your company. 

As you can imagine, it's pretty difficult to come up with a training that would cover all three specifics at once. Instead, work on each of the critical thinking categories on their own.

Anna Kvasnevska

Team Building Expert & Writer

Large groups

Prep required

Share fun facts and bond with a team quiz

Have your participants choose from a list of questions they’d like their coworkers to answer about them, before watching as they guess the right answer.

share-fun-facts-and-bond-with-a-team-quiz

Run a guided recognition activity

run-a-guided-recognition-activity

Organize a virtual cooking class

Hire a professional chef to help your team cook a delicious lunch or dinner. May be difficult for co-workers with families. To find providers and get tips, read our blog about virtual cooking classes.

organize-a-virtual-cooking-class

Hire a stand-up comedian

hire-a-stand-up-comedian

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Stop googling ideas. Get a long-term team building plan.

Critical thinking team building games to practice acting here and now.

According to the JESI research, this type of critical thinking directly relates to your internal inspiration and courage. You need to believe that what you decide is right and act accordingly . 

Classical team building activities like survival simulation and escape rooms are perfect for this practice. 

1. Take part in survival simulation activities

Survival simulation challenges your on-the-spot decision-making. This type of exercise puts you in situations where you need to think fast as if your life depends on it. 

2. Go to an escape room

Carefully scripted challenges of modern escape rooms work similarly to the survival simulations. It forces you to act here and now, knowing that your decisions will affect the rest of the team.

This kind of team building is perfect for remote teams , as you can do the most sophisticated escape rooms online ! 

Critical thinking team building activities for adults who want to make verified decisions

This type of employer-oriented critical thinking helps you understand professional activities better. Here, it's not just about finding the right solution. Instead, it's about discovering as many solutions as possible and justifying them . 

Try team building activities dedicated to research and group problem-solving, like the timely classics: SWOT analysis or group debates. 

3. Make a SWOT analysis together

SWOT analysis is a popular marketing framework for analyzing a project's Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. It encourages research, outside-of-the-box reasoning, and teamwork. So it also makes a fruitful critical-thinking team building experience! 

4. Hold a debate

Another great way to practice making verified decisions is by holding a debate-style team building event. This way, you'll get valuable experience backing up your statements with facts. Also, you will practice public speaking and argumentation - the other two highly-valued professional skills.

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Critical thinking team building activities to promote innovation.

You can use critical thinking to drive innovation and change. Innovators feel safe sharing their ideas and are ready to become leaders . For this, focus on team building activities that promote communication , creativity, and empathy . 

There are many team building activities for work that promote these behaviors. But today, we wanted to share the one that encourages innovation particularly well:

5. Create a vision board with your team

Think of a company you'd be proud to represent. Brainstorm the values it stands for. Present the opportunities it opens for the employees and the clients. Highlight the good things you already have. And think about what you could do as a team to turn it into reality. 

This powerful team building exercise works on many levels:

• It allows you to appreciate the benefits you may be taking for granted ;
• It demonstrates what goals and values you share with your team ;
• It creates a sense of direction for the positive impact you could have on the company;
• It promotes creativity, critical thinking, and trust among the participants. 

All these critical thinking team building activities work for remote teams as well as the on-site ones and are affordable ! All you need is a reliable virtual conference platform (like Veertly !) and some of the must-have software to make your online team building feel like a face-to-face one. 

Have fun and drive the change you want to see! 

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5 Team Building Games For Adults That Teach Critical Thinking Skills

Team building games are not only fun; they break the monotony of daily routines and help us to develop valuable skills. Some games help us to acquire critical thinking skills, which make us productive and increase our output in the workplace. Corporate training through critical thinking games is beneficial for both small and established organizations because it fosters trust and problem-solving skills among the employees. Brain training activities are quite common; however, critical thinking games are much better if you want to teach skills faster.

So keep reading on and learn if you want to learn a 5 new games for boosting critical thinking in your team.

Why Team Building Activities are Important

The leading organizations know the importance of corporate training. A business can either succeed or fail, depending on the ability of its employees. Regular training inculcates relevant skills and knowledge to the workers who in turn use it to boost production.

Team building activities improve work relations, therefore creating a conducive working environment. Working together to solve different problems shows the employees that they need each other to reach their organization’s goals. This knowledge is applied in the office as each one understands how to work with different individuals and talents.

Team building activities also allow employees to socialize, network, and get to know each other. Making friends in the workplace is the first step to increasing productivity. Employees can work together to solve problems. This is the moment when critical thinking games step in: a common goal to achieve in a playful format brings out each team members’ stregths.

When employees work together in team building games, they celebrate and have fun together, which inspires them to work harder and win more. Cheering and supporting each other in these activities promotes team bonding and motivates them to rise to the next level. Working together also promotes creativity and innovation. This is why critical thinking activities for employees need to be planned ahead and implemented withing your company.

Create games, self-guided and audio tours, team building events and educational content that captures peoples' attention.

Teaching critical thinking through team building games for adults

The good thing about corporate training and team building games is that they equip you with knowledge in and out of office. The following team building games will teach you critical thinking skills while having fun:

1. If You Build It

This critical thinking game for adults is not only simple, but it’s also flexible – this means that anybody can participate. The game starts when the teams are divided into small groups, given equal amounts of different materials, such as building blocks, pipes, or even marshmallows. The teams are assigned a task that involves construction. This can either be to build the tallest structure, for instance, a castle. The groups should work together until they come up with the required structure. This game inculcates problem-solving and communication skills.

Zoom is an exciting game that can be used both in the classroom and to foster cooperation in the workplace. The team sits or stands in a circle, and each is given a unique picture of an animal, object, or other items. To make it more exciting, the instructor starts a unique story then the next member continues the story following the picture provided. This team building game inculcates creative collaboration skills for adults and children alike. You can get more critical thinking and other games for Zoom here.

3. Shrinking Vessel

Critical thinking can be difficult to master with brain training; however, with fun team building games such as shrinking vessel, it becomes effortless. The activity starts with dividing members into small teams. Each group has to work together to fit into a shrinking space until; there is no room in between. The boundary can be made of cones or a rope. This game equips you with teamwork and problem-solving skills .

4. It’s a Mystery

Many people love a good mystery, and this can be exciting when people work in groups. In this critical thinking game for adults, each team member is given a numbered clue. In order to solve this mystery, for instance, if you are told to find the missing eggs, teams must work together following the clues in order. Solving this case might require the groups to move around to uncover more clues to solve the mystery. This game is important because it teaches you problem-solving and communication.

5. The Worst-Case Scenario

The objective of this activity is to foster teamwork. In this case, every team has to collaborate to come up with a list of must-have items in extreme circumstances. The members are divided into smaller groups; then the instructor explains an example of the worst scenario. For instance, one group could have a scenario where they are stuck in a burning house or a hijacked plane. Each group has to decide on 5 or 10 must-have items to get them to safety. The decision to choose the items must be unanimous. Among critical thinking games this activity draws out everyone’s personalities, expert knowledge and helps to prioritize.

Some managers don’t give them the attention they deserve, choosing to concentrate only on work itself, however, team building activities are important because they break the monotony and equip employees with relevant skills. Especially in the form of critical thinking games for adults, which are created with the purpose of training participants into making better decisions. These activities are beneficial to both the workers and the organization, and this boosts the output and productivity.

Waiting game for virtual meetings is a bonus in our list of games for critical thinking. This game needs input from people with different skills and knowledge base. Common goal to clean the gameboard and reveal hidden picture gets everyone talking. Logical puzzles promote discussion and breaks silence!

We hope you enjoyed this list of critical thinking team building activities and manage to implement some of them in your organization!

Authors Bio Hazel is an entrepreneur at heart and has built a regionally recognized and successful multi-million dollar businesses – Biz Group , starting the company in 1993 with just $700. The group now employs 62 professionals and provides services in the fields of design and delivery of corporate training, teambuilding, meeting facilitation and organizational health through culture and engagement.

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Top 7 Team Building Games That Promotes Critical Thinking

Workforce collaboration is nothing but strength to achieve great things with united efforts and mutual trust among individuals. Team building games are fun activities that help to break the pattern of a monotonous daily routine. Some games help in acquiring critical thinking skills, which make individuals productive and increase their output in the workplace. In the same context, educational institutions develop future employees. A sure-shot method to groom the next generation for education is to foster critical thinking. Yes, we know that there’s a lot to learn in terms of curriculum and textbooks, but education is more than that. Other skills that include how to get along with peers and cooperate well with others must be sharpened too. This isn’t something that can be refined through memorization or with strategically placed banners.

Teamwork should be practiced by students and employees to improve social dynamics . Team building exercises are a step in that direction as they permit the students to work together in tandem. This allows them to be better prepared for the situations and eventually encounter in the workplace as well. Let us have a look at some of the team-building games that can help in promoting critical thinking:

1. Egg Drop This activity is more suitable for older kids who can follow safety guidelines as it can get messy working with raw eggs. This activity aims to find a method to save the egg in a creative collaboration. It could involve finding a soft landing spot or constructing a device that could guide the egg safely to the ground. There’s a lot of space for the creativity of children along with problem-solving abilities to kick in.

2. The Worst-case Scenario Students are divided into two or more teams and each team is given a problematic scenario, like getting lost in the middle of a sea or being stranded on a deserted island. Then they are asked to work together in their teams to solve the given situation and come out successfully. The kids need to find a solution in which everyone arrives safely out of that worst-case scenario. In this case, children can be asked to think of the items that they must use in such a scenario or consider any other passages that they can find and use. Since kids are required to work together, it caters to developing their problem-solving skills and makes them learn the importance of cooperation in teams.

3. Zoom Zoom is an exciting game used in the classroom to foster cooperation in the workplace. The team sits or stands in a circle, and each team is given a unique picture of an animal, object, or other items. To make it more exciting, the teacher or instructor begins a unique story then the next member continues the story following the picture provided.

4. Dare to be different There are various real-world situations in which individuals must use out-of-the-box thinking to come up with solutions to common problems. ‘Dare to be different’ encourages children to think outside of the box to solve a problem together. Introduce a basic concept and then ask the children to come up with an unconventional solution. For example, a group has to eat Burrito without making a mess. This will enhance critical thinking in individuals.

5. It’s a mystery No one can deny the fact that children love solving mysteries and puzzles. Thus, designing a good mystery game can help them in staying engaged. The instructor gives every child a clue with a number. The mystery-solving begins with children coordinating with each other. They get clues from each successive number and this leads them to the final solution. We believe that such games promote a fun-filled learning environment that teaches adults the importance of accountability and enhances productivity.

Conclusion It might take some trial and error to figure out which team-building games are the best fit for your students or employees.

Don’t get discouraged if some games don’t go as well as you expected them to be. Simply keep trying different critical thinking games, observing the ones that are the most effective.

While education technology is a basic and essential part of the 21st-century classroom, teachers must still make sure that students are engaging with each other in meaningful ways. Team building games are a great method of doing this, so they can never go out of style. Taking examples from these childhood games, employees can get better at their productivity and output.

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10 Team-Building Games That Promote Critical Thinking

Preparing students for ongoing learning success needs to incorporate curriculum and extra-curriculum activities. The team at TeachThought  have compiled their list of games to promote better peer-to-peer learning in the classroom.

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22 Top Team Building Games That People Will Actually Want To Do

Team-building games can be played in and out of the office: you can get to know each other, practice communication skills, and exercise your problem-solving skills.

But my favorite one? Fun.

If you’re looking for a fun activity that your whole team will actually want to do, try these with your team for a bit of bonding. We’ve separated them into different categories so you can find the right ones that fit your space, mood, and available time.

Team-Building Games Here at Workzone

We don’t just sit around making project management software !

We actually have two favorite team-building games. It is a tie between bowling and cooking. We’ve done both multiple times. First, it never gets old seeing people throw a ball down a lane, poorly. Or messing with your team to get them to foul! But second, following a recipe actually takes some patience and listening. Then you get to eat at the end of it!

We’ve also gone ax-throwing as a team-building event too!

So which one of these team-building games will you and your team do??

Part I: No Props Needed

What are No Props Needed team-building games?

No props games are based on communication—whether it be verbal or non—and are super fun without prep or props.

2 Truths and a Lie 

Why play? Breaks the ice; exercises your poker face.

How to play: Have each person share 3 facts about themselves: 2 true and 1 entirely fabricated. Have the rest of the group vote on which “fact” is the lie, after which the speaker can reveal which statement is indeed false.

Conducted Story

Why play? Sharpens communication skills—especially listening and working together to create continuity through a story.

How to play: Have your team sit in a circle and start your story by saying, “Once upon a time…” and having the person next to you finish your sentence. Go around the circle, each person adding a sentence, the goal being to create a coherent, interesting story by the time you get to the end of the circle (or have rounded the circle a few times, depending on your number of team members).

Why play? Sharpen communication skills: this game can only be won by 2 people working together, over and over again—or by one person being creative enough to guess the winning word.

How to play: One person chooses a secret word. They tell the rest of the group what letter it starts with—let’s say, D—then the group asks questions to categorize the mystery word, like, “Is it an animal?”

If the answer is no, the word keeper must answer it by saying “No, it is not a Duck.” (They must answer with a word that fits the letter clues and category given—here, an animal that starts with a D.) If they can’t think of a word matching those restraints before a set amount of time, they have to tell the group the next letter.

This one works best with small teams and can take a few tries to get a handle on, but once you do, it’s super fun! Find more detailed instructions here .

Why play? Sharpens communication skills, reveals who is patient during times of frustration, and reveals who takes on a leadership role.  

How to play: In a circle, shoulder to shoulder, have each person reach out their right hand and grab another hand around the circle at random. Repeat with left hands. The group must untangle their circle without releasing hands within half an hour.

Silent Football

Why play? Practices nonverbal communication and restraint (no talking, laughing, or smiling!). And, you know—just for fun.

How to play: This one’s a bit complicated, but there’s a reason it’s so popular among university students, churchgoers, and pubgoers.

Here’s a basic rundown: you’ll move around the circle, passing an invisible ball from member to member, communicating with one another and passing the ball through only a set of silent gestures. Have a read-up on the rules here and try it at the end of your next meeting—you won’t be disappointed.

Tea & Coffee

Why play? Exercises memorization and listening skills.

How to play: Go around a circle, having the first person state whether they prefer tea or coffee and how they take it (cream, sugar, both, black). Have the second person recall the first person’s preference and tack their own on at the end. Go around the entire circle, where each person must recall the tea/coffee preference of the members before them while adding their own preference.

Part II: Just a Few Props

What are “just a few props” team-building games.

Paper, pen, a deck of cards—you won’t need much for these games, and you can do them all indoors.

A Better Place

Why play? Encourages teamwork to solve real-life workplace issues.

Materials: Paper, pen

How to play: Give small teams of 2-4 people an hour to come up with a plan on how they can improve a certain issue around the office or in the community with a small budget.

Have each team present their ideas at the end of the hour; whoever wins the most votes for best idea wins the small budget needed to make a difference!

Why play? Encourages thinking outside the box, teamwork, critical thinking, problem-solving, and—just for fun—survival skills.

Materials: Pen, paper

How to play: Paint the scenario for your teams of 2-3 people: they’ve just been stranded on a desert island and can only bring 10 things. Give them a list of 20 things—10 actually useful things they’d need to survive on the island, plus 10 decoys of things that may seem important, but actually aren’t

Use this Navy lieutenant’s recommendation list as a guide. Have each team order their list of items chosen and explain why they chose what they did. Whoever’s list matches the Navy lieutenant’s most wins.

Personality Chart

Why Play? To get newly-formed teammates talking to and learning about one another.

Materials: A pen, printouts of a table (described below)

How to play: To prepare, fill in a 5×5 table with characteristics that might apply to some of your team members in each slot, such as:

• has been to Prague
• drinks black coffee
• was born in another country
• plays an instrument
• has a strange pet

Print these and pass them out to your team. Have them go around the room and get team members who match the characteristics listed to sign their name in the box, the goal being to fill up the entire table with names first.

Later, have everyone go around the room and give more backstory to why they were able to sign their name under a certain characteristic.

House of Cards

Why play? To exercise teamwork, communication, and creative thinking skills.

Materials: A deck of cards and pair of scissors for each group of 2-3

How to play: Have each team build a structure of cards using only a deck of cards and a pair of scissors. Whoever can build the tallest structure that holds for 10 seconds wins.

Lights, Camera, Action

Why play? Exercises creativity and teamwork.

Materials: Pen, paper, cup, camera phone

How to play: Write down lots of different movie genres on slips of paper and jumble them in a cup. Divide your team into smaller teams of 2-3 people; have each team choose a slip of paper at random.

They’ll have to write and shoot a short film that falls under the genre selected, takes place in the office, and uses only props readily available. The most compelling short film wins!

Salt and Pepper

Why play? Exercises critical thinking, communication skills.

Materials: Pen, paper, tape

How to play: This one’s great for large groups. Write out a list of pairings—salt and pepper, cat and mouse, Sonny and Cher—with one part of the pair written on one sheet of paper, and one sheet of paper for each person. Tape each sheet to a team member’s back without revealing what’s on it.

Now, the team must work around the room, asking questions to figure out what person or thing is listed on their back and who might be the other person in their pair.  Once a pair has found each other, have them sit down and ask each other 3-5 questions about themselves.

Self Portraits

Why play? Self-expression, artistic expression. Helps team members understand how others see themselves.

Materials: Paper, markers, colored pencils

How to play: Have each person draw a self-portrait anonymously. Collect the portraits, put them up on the wall, and have the team guess which is whose. Once the right person is guessed, have them describe why they drew themselves the way they did.

Sneak-a-Peek

Why play? Teamwork, communication skills. Break down barriers by appointing a lower-level person team leader.

Materials: Basic sculpting or painting materials; a random (but distinctive) sculpture,  object, or photograph

How to play: Split into teams of 2-4 people. Appoint a leader (or “peeker”) to each team. Take the peekers to a separate area to show them the distinctive sculpture, object, or image you’ve chosen. Once the peekers rejoin their team, they have 5 minutes to describe to their teammates what the secret object looks like while their team recreates it best they can.

To make things more interesting, ban your peekers’ use of words obviously associated with the object!

Part III: Strictly Outdoors

What are “strictly outdoors” team-building games.

Exactly what it sounds like. Step outside to do some team building in the fresh air. (I mean, I guess you could do these in a big room instead, but that’s no fun, is it?)

Group Juggle

Why play? Breaks the ice, helps learn names, exercises memorization skills.  

Materials: Ball  

How to play: Have about 10-20 people stand in a circle. One person, say, Jim, starts off by saying, “I’m Jim,” and passes the ball to someone else across the circle. The person who catches it says, “Hi Jim, I’m Rachel.” Then Rachel passes the ball to someone else, following the same pattern. Increase difficulty by increasing speed and the number of balls in the circle.

Why play? Exercises communication and trust.

Materials: A few random, medium-sized objects like cones, balls, bottles, boxes

How to play: Divide the team into pairs and have one of each pair blindfolded. Layout objects in a random pattern in a sort of obstacle course, using 2 distinctive objects for the start and finish marks.

Have the un-blindfolded person lead the blindfolded person through the “minefield” with verbal guidance only. The goal is for the blindfolded person to make it out the other side without having touched any of the objects. The first person to finish wins!

Scavenger Hunt

Why play? Breaks the ice, encourages teamwork

Materials: Pen, paper, camera phone

How to play: Make a list of random, silly tasks your team can do around the neighborhood, like “take a selfie with a police officer” and “walk a stranger’s dog”—using photos as proof. The first team to check off all the tasks wins!

Part IV: Fancy Schmancy

What are “fancy schmancy” team-building games.

If you feel like splurging on your team, or have an employee development budget to spare, you might want to consider treating your team to these fun games that’ll cost a bit more than the ones we’ve mentioned so far.

Improv Workshop

Why play? Encourages teamwork, listening, collaborating (not “no—but…” but “yes—and…”!) and is just plain fun.

Materials: Either a pro improv facilitator or a good instruction book on how to DIY

How to play: Does the local improv troupe/acting school offer group improv lessons? Take your team down for an afternoon of improv fun where they’ll play Whose Line- type games together.

Murder Mystery

Why play? Critical thinking skills, teamwork, and fun.

Materials: A venue (a home or even the office!), dinner, printouts of one of these murder mystery games

How to play: I mean, it doesn’t HAVE to be fancy, but it’s more fun if it is.

Have everyone dress up (according to your particular murder mystery’s theme) and bring a dish! Follow the instructions on your chosen murder mystery scenario, passing out invitations, name tags, maps, and suspect files. Let the team loose in groups of 2-3 and see who figures out whodunnit first.  

Why play? FUN. Also teamwork, communication, and strategy.

Materials: A paintball facility that’ll rent your team equipment and time on their course

How to play: A Saturday morning paintball competition is probably the most fun kind of team building their is. Head to the local paintball venue and ask for a small business discount!

Ropes Course

Why play? It’s the best way to test teamwork skills, determination, and patience.

Materials: A ropes course facility; or a book on how to make one with your own ropes, tools, and lumber.

How to play: Have an expert/venue sort this one out for you. They usually involve obstacles like a 20-foot wall that members must get over, a tightrope walk, and swinging ropes. This is great, but be aware of your team member’s physical ability and their willingness to participate.

Why play? Because golf is terrible and this looks much more fun. We can tell the stiffs in budgeting it’s for team building, though.

Materials: A trip to 1 of TopGolf’s nearly 50 locations and tickets inside

How to play: This one ain’t cheap, and it ain’t easy to describe. It’s basically golf on caffeine: lights, music, obstacles, and targets. But holy heck—gift this experience to your team and they’ll never forget it.

Will you use any of these team-building games?

Have you tried any of these games—or do you plan to? How do you break the ice and build better bonds? What’s worked for you and what hasn’t? Let us know in the comments below.

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Steve Pogue is the Marketing Operations Manager at Workzone . He writes about project management tips and the buying process. When not at Workzone, you can find him playing vintage base ball or relaxing with his family at home.

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Creative games and exercises to spur creativity in the workplace

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Think that only traditionally creative roles like artist, designer, and writer benefit from using creativity in the workplace? Think again! Innovation, growth, and change are powered by creative thinkers throughout an organization, whatever their role. Using creative games, creativity exercises, and brainstorming can help you shift perspectives, try new things, become more open-minded, and free any creative blocks too!

If you’re feeling a lack of creativity in the workplace or want to find new ways of thinking creatively as a team, the creative activities and group exercises below are a great way to jumpstart your creative process while also having fun and building better team connections. 

It’s so easy to get bogged down in the stress and admin of your job and lose sight of how you might do things differently or find joy in the tasks you complete or the company you share at work. We’ve put together this collection of creative games in the hope they help you and your team find ways to be more creative!

Let’s dive in! 

Creative games for getting to know others

Creative games for generating new ideas, exercises to support creativity at work, creative activities to improve team connections, creative exercises for radical planning, creativity exercises to promote reframing and metaphorical thinking.

• Rules and frameworks to spark and guide creativity

Why is creativity in the workplace important? 

Finding space to introduce more creativity into the workplace yields benefits for both organizations and individuals . Not only can it improve outcomes and create innovation, but it can help managers and employees communicate more effectively and improve job satisfaction too. 

Remember that creativity is not the sole preserve of more traditionally creative roles like designer or writer. Being a more creative problem solver and able to bring a creative approach into your day-to-day work is vital for everyone – whether you are a developer, support agent, manager, or something else entirely! 

It’s worth mentioning that creative thinking and creativity in general doesn’t just mean being able to draw, paint or write. Being a creative thinker means being able to see things from different perspectives and try new and creative approaches to solving problems, generating ideas and working with others . You can apply a creative approach to most tasks, challenges and roles and see better outcomes as a result. 

Interested in seeing ways to improve your creative thinking skills and see examples of how creative thinking has helped us solve challenges? Check out our collection of 19 creative thinking skills and how to use them ! 

In the following sections, w e’ll explore creative games and creativity exercises you can use when generating new ideas, breaking the ice or warming up a group, and many more workplace scenarios . By using these creative thinking techniques and methods as a team, you can find more creative solutions and have fun too. Let’s get started!

Breaking the ice in a team meeting with creative games or approaches is a great way of enabling a group to bring themselves more fully to the meeting while also having fun. Kicking things off creatively is also a great way to warm everyone up and pave the way for further creativity, whether you’re trying to find new solutions, solve problems or effectively collaborate.

Try some of these creative games for getting to know each other the next time you bring a team together and let us know how they went in the comments!

3 Question Mingle

• The Time Machine

Doodling Together

Break the ice with the four quadrants activity.

• Build a Shake  

Being creative often means finding ways to express your interests openly and clearly. When first getting to know others, finding ways to bring yourself more fully into the conversation can help break down barriers while also improving communication and understanding. 

With 3 Question Mingle, participants are invited to create three questions they would like to ask other members of a group. Invite them to be as creative, thoughtful, and curious as they would like. By creating space for more self-initiated and personalized communication, participants can take ownership of the getting to know you process while being creative.  

3 Question Mingle   #hyperisland   #team   #get-to-know   An activity to support a group to get to know each other through a set of questions that they create themselves. The activity gets participants moving around and meeting each other one-on-one. It’s useful in the early stages of team development and/or for groups to reconnect with each other after a period of time apart.

The Time Machine  

For some groups, traditional ways of getting to know each other can be awkward or forced. Avoid these potential stumbling blocks by inviting a group to be creative in their initial exchanges with an activity like The Time Machine. 

In this creative game, ask participants to share where they would like to time travel to, who they might like to meet and whether they would just want to visit or stay. By using a clear framework with scope for creativity, you can enable a group to communicate easily while also bringing themselves into the conversation. 

The Time Machine   #get-to-know   #ice breaker   #remote-friendly   Encourage creative thinking and getting to know each other better with a short round of ‘time travel’ questions to each of your participants.

Drawing, collaboration, and creativity go hand-in-hand. In this creativity exercise, invite the group to first draw a shape on a postcard or piece of paper before then passing it on. The next person then makes a person, animal or object from the shape before passing it on again. After several rounds of iteration, the postcard grows collaboratively from a single shape into a finished product. The results of this game are often amusing, varied and creative, and it’s a great way to help a group connect and build creative confidence too! 

Doodling Together   #collaboration   #creativity   #teamwork   #fun   #team   #visual methods   #energiser   #ice breaker   #remote-friendly   Create wild, weird and often funny postcards together & establish a group’s creative confidence.

Sharing something of ourselves within a safe, supportive framework can be transformative when it comes to getting to know others. Magic Box is a creative game that is especially good for groups that might contain introverts as well as extroverts. Start by creating a box full of objects (virtual works fine too!) and invite a group to pick an object from the box without thinking too much about it. Next, each person shares with the group who they are, why they’ve chosen the object and what they think the connection between the object and the workshop might be. 

Finding ways for everyone in a group to contribute safely and also bring some of their personality into the workshop space can be hugely generative at the start of a creative process. Give it a go!  

Magic Box   #team   #ice breaker   #get-to-know   #teambuilding   #remote-friendly   Ice breaking at the beginning of the workshop/meeting

Quotes  

Looking to others for inspiration is a key aspect of thinking creatively. This creative icebreaker helps a group tap into existing wisdom while also helping them get to know one another. 

Start by assembling a collection of quotations prior to a session and inviting each member of the group to select a quote from the pile. Participants then pair up and discuss what the quote means to them, whether it is meaningful and what thoughts it brings up. Having a ready-made talking point not only makes the getting to know you process easier but it also creates a framework for deeper and more creative thinking.  

Quotes   #ice breaker   #energiser   #online   #warm up   #remote-friendly   For participants to get acquainted with each other in a meaningful way

Creative exercises often work best with a simple, easy to follow framework that allows for self-expression. This icebreaker activity is a proven way to help a team get acquainted and spur creativity too! 

Start by having participants divide a piece of paper or online canvas into four sections. Ask the group to then draw a response to four questions in each section without using text. By having to draw an answer to each question and then invite the group to interpret and debrief together, this activity helps promote visual thinking and self expression too!

Break the Ice with The Four Quadrants Activity   #team   #icebreaker   #get-to-know   #teambuilding   The Four Quadrants is a tried and true team building activity to break the ice with a group or team. It is EASY to prep for and set up. It can be MODIFIED to work with any group and/or topic (just change the questions). It is FUN, COLORFUL and VISUAL.

Build a Shake

Combining creativity with physical activity is a great way to get to know people. Not only is it engaging and fun, but it promotes a different approach than visual or written responses that can work well for certain groups. In this creative game, have the group break out into pairs and create a two-step handshake – encourage them to be as wild and creative as they like. 

Once everyone has practiced, have everyone find a new partner and decide which shake to add additional steps to. Socially distancing or working remotely? Try creating a sequence of hand signals instead. Having rules or restrictions in place can actually create more creative responses! 

Build-a-Shake   #teampedia   #energiser   #get-to-know   #opening   #team   How to introduce yourself in a fun, creative way? Build a handshake!

One of the most common forms of using creativity at work is when it comes to brainstorming and finding new ideas. Whether it’s using games that draw on traditional creative skills like drawing, exercises that challenge you to think outside the box, or simply creating space for fast ideation, these creative exercises are a great way to kickstart any brainstorming session. What’s more, you’ll find that engaging with creative exercises can help everyone apply more creative approaches elsewhere after the session. Let’s take a look!

Bad Idea Brainstorm

The paper clip method.

• Apple Drawing Ideation

One Word Method

Mash up innovation, cover story, walking brainstorm.

What better way to start a section on creative brainstorming than with a creativity exercise that turns the process on its head? With Bad Idea Brainstorm, start by writing the problem you are trying to solve on a post-it or inside a virtual whiteboard. Then, invite the group to come up with the worst possible ways to handle the problem. 

Afterwards, share and reflect before trying to remix or reverse some of the bad ideas into good ones. By approaching the challenge in this way, you can fire-up a group’s creative muscles and generate some laughter too!  

Bad Idea Brainstorm   #brainstorming   #creative thinking   #idea generation   Name all the bad ideas to make room for good ones. Coming up with the perfect solution right off the bat can feel paralyzing. So instead of trying to find the right answer, get unstuck by listing all the wrong ones.

Creative games that challenge a group to think of new and alternative uses for existing items can be an effective way to catalyse creative thinking. With The Paper Clip method, task participants come up with as many different uses for the humble paper clip as they can in a short amount of time. This creativity exercise is a great warm-up before a more focused brainstorming activity but can also be used as a standalone exercise to show the value of quick ideation and alternative thinking – all hallmarks of creativity! 

The paper clip method   #sharing   #creativity   #warm up   #idea generation   #brainstorming   The power of brainstorming. A training for project leaders, creativity training, and to catalyse getting new solutions.

Apple Drawing Ideation 

Part of promoting creativity in the workplace is acknowledging that different approaches work for different people. For a more relaxed, image-based variation on some of the concepts of The Paper Clip method, why not try this creative drawing exercise?

In Apple Drawing Ideation, task participants split into groups and take it in turns to fill a grid with 30 different pictures of apples. By mindfully reflecting on the process, you can highlight some key creative thinking concepts: that quantity is a condition for quality; building on the ideas of others is necessary and useful; the ideas we come up with are often similar. 

Apple-Drawing Ideation   #hyperisland   #innovation   #idea generation   The purpose of this simple exercise is to demonstrate three key principles useful for creativity and idea generation: quantity is a condition for quality; building on the ideas of others; the ideas we come up with are usually all the same. The format is simple, with small groups standing and drawing apples. At the end of the exercise, the whole group reflects and draws out learnings and reflections.

Simplicity is often a key element of starting people on the path towards being more creative at work. By removing the pressure or barriers to entry, creative games like One Word Method are great for enabling a group of people to engage creatively.

Start by posing a central topic or challenge and ask the first person in the group to respond to the topic with just one word. The next person then adds a second word with the goal of forming a sentence. Not only can this game be a fun, creative warm-up, it can also help a group stretch some key creative muscles and see how important effective collaboration is to any process.

One Word Method   #product development   #idea generation   #creativity   #ice breaker   #online   #warm up   Creating a sentence relating to a specific topic or problem with each person contributing one word at a time.

Some of the best ideas come from combining unlikely elements. In this creative activity, tap into the potential of unexpected combinations and rapid ideation for fun and creative results! Begin by asking the group to brainstorm on three different areas such as technologies, needs, existing services and add all the ideas to a whiteboard. Next, have everyone combine two of the ideas to form a new concept at speed. 

By combining ideas in this way, exciting and unexpected new concepts can be born very quickly and creatively. Be sure to debrief afterwards so you can help cement the learnings of this creative game into something the group can carry forward into future projects!

Mash-Up Innovation   #hyperisland   #innovation   #idea generation   Mash-ups is a collaborative idea generation method in which participants come up with innovative concepts by combining different elements together. In a first step, participants brainstorm around different areas, such as technologies, human needs, and existing services. In a second step, they rapidly combine elements from those areas to create new, fun and innovative concepts. Mash-ups demonstrates how fast and easy it can be to come up with innovative ideas.

Speculating about what the future might hold and combining words and images are two classic methods of creative expression. With this creative game, invite your group to tap into this fertile creative ground by first imagining an expansive and ideal future state for your organisation. Next, split into sub teams that each create a cover page for a magazine based on your achieving this future state, complete with quotes, images and a headline too! By running this exercise with multiple groups you can not only share different perspectives but find common ground and places for further creative exploration!

Cover Story   #gamestorming   #idea generation   #organizational development   #vision   #strategy   Cover Story is a game about pure imagination. The purpose is to think expansively around an ideal future state for the organization; it’s an exercise in visioning. The object of the game is to suspend all disbelief and envision a future state that is so stellar that it landed your organization on the cover of a well-known magazine

High intensity creative games can be an effective way to find new perspectives and generate lots of ideas, but they’re not for everyone! Finding time and space for reflection, observation and a quieter approach to building on one another’s ideas is an alternative approach that really works. 

Start by creating a large live or virtual space for people to place their ideas and invite them to silently brainstorm responses to a central challenge or topic. Next, invite each team member to walk around the room or virtual space and add additional ideas, responses or post-its to everyone else’s sections. Remember to use a “yes, and” approach to help people try and build on ideas, rather than point out weakness and you’ll help create a reflective, generative atmosphere for ideation!     

Walking Brainstorm   #brainstorming   #idea generation   #remote-friendly   This introvert-friendly brainstorming technique helps groups of any size to generate and build on each other’s ideas in a silent but dynamic setting. As the participants keep moving, the exercise is ideal to kick-off a full day workshop or re-energize the group after lunch.

Creativity without direction or support can sometimes lead to ineffective outcomes. While it’s important to be creatively free at work, particularly during the early brainstorming stages, it’s also worth acknowledging that being creative alone is not enough. These exercises and activities can help support creativity through fast, effective research, task management, and more.

Rapid Research

Lightning demos, stakeholder round robin brainstorm.

• Simple Ethnography
• Walking Questions

I Notice, I Wonder

Maintaining creative energy while also sourcing alternative viewpoints and gathering research can be a tricky balance to maintain. Rapid Research is a simple exercise that invites group members to quickly contact a co worker or other party outside of the workshop and solicit input on a creative problem, challenge or product they are working on. Not only can this input be surprisingly useful but doing so in this format means the group can see the benefit of sourcing opinions quickly and without breaking creative flow.

Rapid Research   #hyperisland   #innovation   #idea generation   A simple exercise that complements exploratory, discursive, and creative workshops with insights and opinions from outside. Use this exercise when brainstorming ideas, developing a new product or service or creating a strategy or plan that will include others. Participants phone a co-worker and ask them questions relevant to the task. This quickly generates meaningful input from a range of “outside” perspectives. Often, participants will be surprised at how simple it was to solicit this input and how valuable it is to the process.

Looking to others for inspiration is a great way of supercharging your creativity and most of the challenges you and your organisation face will not be unique. By looking to see how other individuals and teams have solved similar difficulties, you can explore ways of thinking which may not have occurred to you and use the research to creatively inform how you approach problem solving. Lightning Demos adds the additional wrinkle of presenting inspirations in a timeboxed fashion, asking you to both critically and creatively present what you have learned.   

Lightning Demos   #design sprint   #innovation   #idea generation   This is an exercise to inspire your team with products or services that they think they can use as inspiration for their concepts in the next phases of their design sprints.

When in full creative swing, it can be easy to lose sight of opinions and experiences outside of your own. Any creative process can benefit from the insight and knowledge of other groups, particularly if the solution or challenges touches many departments or disciplines. 

With this activity, create a separate flipchart for each different stakeholder perspective and invite someone from that group to brainstorm responses to your central question. Rotate between flipcharts to help a group understand a problem from the perspective of others before then inviting them to build on those ideas. The end result is a growth in understanding and a multifaceted response to the challenge you face – great for improving creativity in the workplace! 

Stakeholder Round Robin Brainstorm   #idea generation   #brainstorming   #perspectives   #remote-friendly   #online   A divergent process to generate ideas and understanding from different perspectives.

Simple Ethnography  

First-hand experience is always valuable when trying to creatively solve any problem or challenge. If you or your group is lacking perspective or needs additional user feedback in order to move forward with a project, this activity is a great way to support the process. 

Start by inviting your group to immerse themselves in the company of those with experiences relevant to the challenge being faced. Ask your group to observe and interact with your target group using the simple ethnography framework and collect their findings. By gaining insights and debriefing on what was learned, your group can better inform any project or creative process with quality data and learnings. 

Simple Ethnography   #innovation   #issue analysis   #liberating structures   You can enable participants to find novel approaches to challenges by immersing themselves in the activities of the people with local experience—often their colleagues on the front line or anyone who uses their product or service. You open the door to change and innovation by helping participants explore what people actually do and feel in creating, delivering, or using their offering. Their observations and experience can spur rapid performance improvements and expedite prototype development. The combined observations may make it easy to spot important patterns.

Walking Questions  

All teams are a bastion of knowledge and insight that doesn’t always surface. Some workshop formats, working practices or personality types aren’t great conditions for everyone and so finding a low-impact way to share knowledge and best practices can help everyone contribute and share knowledge in a way that works for them. 

In this exercise, have each person write a question they would like answered on the top of a sheet of paper. Pass this to the next person, who writes an answer to the question alongside their name. By passing these papers between the group, you can crowdsource different opinions and skill sets on a problem swiftly and effectively, with scope for followup if necessary. A great way to kick-off a creative process on the right foot! 

Walking questions   #what if learning style   #idea generation   #learning   This is a great facilitation technique to answer open questions of trainees with a “What if” learning style. It prevents the facilitator from answering all questions herself. With this method trainees can:  close knowledge gaps find solutions for personal problems imagine themselves using their new knowledge in future and prepare themselves for obstacles

Sometimes the best thing you can do to help solve a creative challenge is to give it some space and take time to reflect in a new setting. With this exercise, participants are invited to go to a busy place that resonates with the design challenge and sit quietly for thirty minutes and observe. They then write down those things that stick out as things they notice and then add a thought or curiosity that comes up too. By closely observing others and reflecting on what stood out and what curiosites this raised, your group can then bring any learnings back to their practice and find further places for investigation. 

I notice, I wonder   #design   #observation   #empathy   #issue analysis   Learn through careful observation. Observation and intuition are critical design tools. This exercise helps you leverage both. Find clues about the context you’re designing for that may be hidden in plain sight.

As children, we’re often invited to work on creative things in an effort to connect with others, share an experience and grow. This is no different for adults! Coming together around a creative premise or with an activity designed to help us think creatively is a great way to improve teamwork and help build a sense of togetherness. Try these creative activities to help a group think more creatively and communicate more effectively too! 

Open Questions Role Play

Blind drawing, paper telephone, marshmallow challenge.

• Who are you? The Pirate Ship Exercise

Lego Challenge

Telling our stories.

Active listening and effective communication are both key creative thinking skills, and role-playing games such as this one are highly effective in promoting these skills. In Open Questions Role Play, a group is invited to ask open questions based that must contain a word from the previous response.

For example, if the volunteer’s first comment was that they saw a squirrel on the way to the workshops, the next question must reference the squirrel but also be open in nature. By following this game through multiple rounds, participants not only learn to creatively respond to what is being said, but must also learn to better listen and think about how they are communicating with others.  

Open Questions – Role Play   #communication   #skills   #active listening   An extract from Rudyard Kipling’s poem in “The Elephant’s Child” literally OPENS up  opportunities to practice a key skill as part of a communication skills course as well  as allied skills in active listening and observation.

Being able to effectively articulate what we’re thinking while also being able to interpret what others are saying is a crucial skill for effective communication and when collaborating creatively with others. In this creative activity, one person in a pair or small group must describe an object without revealing what it is.

For example, they might describe a tree but aim not to directly give away that it is a tree. The rest of the group must interpret what is being said and draw what they think it is. Not only can this creative game be fun and challenging but it can help impart the importance of clear, effective communication when collaborating, particularly on creative projects!  

Blind Drawing   #teambuilding   #communication   #creative thinking   #remote-friendly   Test your communication and interpretation skills with Blind Drawing!

A great team activity based on a classic party game, Paper Telephone is a fun, effective creative game that generates laughs as well as creativity. Start by having each participant sit in a circle and write a sentence on a piece of paper. They then pass the paper to the next person who has to create a visual representation of the sentence. This image is then passed on to the next person who has to write a new sentence based on the image. Repeat until the stack of images and sentences returns to the original writer and share the results. 

You’ll find the results of this creative game often vary wildly from the original source and spur laughter while also demonstrating the importance of clarity, creativity and different ways of thinking. 

Paper Telephone   #teampedia   #ice breaker   #creativity   #team   #action   Paper Telephone is a mix of two methods, “Telephone” and “Pictionary”. It is a creative game aiming to fasten the get-to-know each other phase of the team while having a good time.

Our first response to a question isn’t always the best one. Being asked to further clarify, add depth or respond further can bring up more creative, useful responses and bring us closer to more impactful learnings. From another perspective, learning to listen to what has been said and ask further questions in a way that is mutually useful is another important creative skill. 

With this creative communication game, you can do both! Invite a group to start with a simple question and ask why questions again and again until the deepest, most fundamental point of the topic is reached. You’ll be surprised by how much deeper a conversation can go with the right approach and how much information might otherwise stay buried!  

Nine Whys   #innovation   #issue analysis   #liberating structures   With breathtaking simplicity, you can rapidly clarify for individuals and a group what is essentially important in their work. You can quickly reveal when a compelling purpose is missing in a gathering and avoid moving forward without clarity. When a group discovers an unambiguous shared purpose, more freedom and more responsibility are unleashed. You have laid the foundation for spreading and scaling innovations with fidelity.

Team games that invite creative solutions are great for bringing a group together in a common purpose while also inspiring new ways of thinking. If the activity also happens to be fun, even better!

Marshmallow Challenge is a creative game for small groups that challenges teams to build the tallest freestanding structure they can with a limited assortment of materials. By being asked to come up with a creative solution and explore them as a team, your groups will need to exercise many key creative skills in a short period of time – great for improving creative thinking and team building too! 

Marshmallow Challenge   #hyperisland   #team   A team-building activity in which teams must compete to build the tallest free-standing structure out of 20 sticks of spaghetti, one yard of tape, one yard of string, and one marshmallow. It emphasizes group communication, leadership dynamics, collaboration, innovation and problem solving strategy. The Marshmallow Challenge was developed by Tom Wujec, who has done the activity with hundreds of groups around the world. Visit the Marshmallow Challenge website for more information.

Who Are You? The Pirate Ship Exercise

Reflecting on our roles within a team through a creative lens can be an especially engaging way to improve group dynamics. Our idea of who we are and how we fit within a team might not match with how other people see us. With this creative exercise, ask your participants to look at the image of the pirate ship and explain who they believe they are on the boat and why. By defining ourselves within a creative context, we can consider our roles from a new perspective and reflect more openly on what we bring to a team currently and what more we could do in the future.

Who are you? The pirate ship exercise (dinámica del barco pirata)   #team alignment   #team   #remote-friendly   #teamwork   #warm up   #icebreaker   This an easy but powerful exercise to open a meeting or session and get participants to reflect on their attitudes or feelings about a topic, in the organization, team, or in the project.

Complex projects with lots of moving parts and stakeholders from different departments benefit massively from creative thinking. Balancing individual and group needs with those of a larger organisation is often a difficult act to get right. With Lego Challenge, small groups are tasked with co-creating a structure as a team while also aiming to fulfill a secret assignment known only to them. This activity is great for helping a group learn how to balance needs more effectively while finding creative solutions in a collaborative space. Also, it has Lego! 

LEGO Challenge   #hyperisland   #team   A team-building activity in which groups must work together to build a structure out of LEGO, but each individual has a secret “assignment” which makes the collaborative process more challenging. It emphasizes group communication, leadership dynamics, conflict, cooperation, patience and problem solving strategy.

Whether it’s to a group of friends at work, or to our families around the dinner table, storytelling is a creative skill that most of us use every day. Leverage this natural inclination to tell stories with this creative technique in order to build trust, promote openness and help everyone in a group bring themselves into work. 

Start by asking participants to individually answer questions relating to childhood, young adulthood and now before turning them into a story to share with the group. Thinking creatively about how to create a narrative from the raw material of our lives and present it to a group can be emotionally gratifying while also helping bring a group together. 

Telling Our Stories   #hyperisland   #team   #teambuilding   To work effectively together team members need to build relations, show trust, and be open with each other. This method supports those things through a process of structured storytelling. Team members answer questions related to their childhood, young adulthood, and now; then weave them into a story to share with the rest of their team.

A common misconception of planning and organization is that it is a purely administrative process with no scope or need for creative thinking. When it comes to balancing budgets, planning with agile or lean thinking methodologies, being a creative thinker who can explore alternatives while still seeing the bigger picture can help create faster, more successful outcomes. Radical planning is a means to reconsider how you might approach your work and is a great way of bringing creativity meaningfully into your day-to-day working practices. 

• 15% Solutions

Backcasting

Future mapping, gap analysis, making space with triz, 15% solutions  .

One of the major benefits of radical planning is being free to find quick, easy-to-implement solutions and try them out. Making immediate changes in a small, test environment can help generate solutions, save time and empower a group to make an impact. 

15% Solutions is a creative exercise that invites a team to reconsider where they can make an impact at their own discretion and without needing too many additional resources. By discovering where they might be able to find an extra 15% and create bottom-up solutions, you can really help a group bring creative thinking into their work.

15% Solutions   #action   #liberating structures   #remote-friendly   You can reveal the actions, however small, that everyone can do immediately. At a minimum, these will create momentum, and that may make a BIG difference.  15% Solutions show that there is no reason to wait around, feel powerless, or fearful. They help people pick it up a level. They get individuals and the group to focus on what is within their discretion instead of what they cannot change.  With a very simple question, you can flip the conversation to what can be done and find solutions to big problems that are often distributed widely in places not known in advance. Shifting a few grains of sand may trigger a landslide and change the whole landscape.

A simple and effective way to reframe the planning process is by starting not from the beginning state but instead, working backwards from the desired goal. We can often find it difficult to know where to begin when planning complex projects, particularly if the end result is ill-defined. 

With this creative thinking activity, a simple reorganization of the normal planning process helps your team see a process more clearly and think methodically about all the steps involved and how best to achieve them. Try this creative planning method if you’re finding more traditional approaches leave you stuck or you think your team is getting lost along the way! 

Backcasting   #define intentions   #create   #design   #action   Backcasting is a method for planning the actions necessary to reach desired future goals. This method is often applied in a workshop format with stakeholders participating. To be used when a future goal (even if it is vague) has been identified.

Effectively imagining the future often means successfully analyzing trends past and present, and identifying patterns that might inform any creative planning process. Future Mapping is a great method for supporting creative thinking and can help develop a shared understanding among the group too. 

Start by asking participants to review key trends from last year and this year ahead of forecasting trends and patterns for three years into the future. By then reflecting both as groups and individuals, your team can identify what patterns and trends might be most important both personally and professionally in the future and then build creative strategies and plan around them too. 

Future Mapping   #hyperisland   #innovation   The purpose of Future Map is to create a shared view of industry trends in the recent past, present, and future. In the workshop, participants map key trends from the past year, the current year, and three years ahead. They then review the map, identify patterns and discuss the relevance of different trends. It is useful for supporting discussion and debate around high-level themes: society, technology, politics, etc.

Effective planning is often about correctly identifying what can help you reach a desired goal and assigning tasks to help your team reach that goal. With this creative thinking technique, your team will explicitly consider the gap between your desired future state and current position and brainstorm all the things that contribute to creating the gap between your current and desired positions.

By reframing the process to focus first on what the potential gaps might be before then figuring out how to resolve each of them, your team can proactively move towards the desired state and plan more effectively.  

Gap Analysis   #project planning   #reflection   #planning   ##project review   ##problem solving   #online   Determine the gap between the present situation and a desired future state

Some planning processes can be hampered by what we might assume is the right way to proceed. When organizations develop tried and tested ways of working, habits that might actually harm creativity or the efficacy of the project can emerge.

Making Space with TRIZ is a creative thinking activity that empowers a group to challenge accepted ways of doing things and create space to come up with new, better ways of working. Start by asking a group to consider what we must do in order to achieve a terrible result can surface problematic items that can then be challenged and turned into more productive methods.

This kind of creative reframing or your working processes can be instrumental in helping a team plan more effectively and also create an effective space to challenge norms and solve deeper organizational problems .

Making Space with TRIZ   #issue analysis   #liberating structures   #issue resolution   You can clear space for innovation by helping a group let go of what it knows (but rarely admits) limits its success and by inviting creative destruction. TRIZ makes it possible to challenge sacred cows safely and encourages heretical thinking. The question “What must we stop doing to make progress on our deepest purpose?” induces seriously fun yet very courageous conversations. Since laughter often erupts, issues that are otherwise taboo get a chance to be aired and confronted. With creative destruction come opportunities for renewal as local action and innovation rush in to fill the vacuum. Whoosh!

Approaching problem solving or ideation in a new way or from a fresh perspective is a hallmark creative skill. It’s not always easy to bring this kind of creative thinking into the workplace, and so creative games that can help us tap into metaphorical or perspective-shifting frames of mind can be especially helpful.

By helping us change our approach or perspective, these activities can pave the way for innovation and help us reconsider problems or situations effectively. Let’s take a look! 

Forced Analogy

The thing from the future.

• Make it personal
• Distance Makes The Brain Grow Stronger

Most creative games and creativity exercises aim to help change our perspectives or find new ways of thinking subtly or by gently guiding us in the right direction. With Flip It, why not try using this approach obviously and directly? 

Start by writing down concerns and ideas relating to fear before then reversing each of the statements into a hopeful statement. This simple flipping approach can help your group see how a shift in perspective can be transformative when approaching a problem solving process and thinking about the future. 

Flip It!   #gamestorming   #problem solving   #action   Often, a change in a problem or situation comes simply from a change in our perspectives. Flip It! is a quick game designed to show players that perspectives are made, not born.

Placing one object, idea or person in the context of another can be a great way to inspire creative thinking and help people reconsider things they might take for granted. In this creative game, have people quickly find an object of their own or choose from a collection of objects matching a description like, “something blue” or “something that makes you happy.” 

Once everyone has their object, challenge them to articulate how their object might correspond with their feelings on a subject, problem, themselves or another subject. You can even go further by inviting more metaphoric thinking and asking further questions – if for example, this hairbrush is the company and you are a bristle then what is the handle? The results are often fun, illuminating and can help prime a group for further creative activities. 

Forced Analogy   #divergent thinking   #zoom   #virtual   #remote-friendly   People compare something (e.g. themselves, their company, their team) to an object.  

Creating tangible, physical objects as part of a group process can turn a run-of-the-mill workshop into something fun, memorable, and creatively engaging. With this creative activity, first present a selection of objects and invite the group to imagine them as objects that have time-traveled from the future.

Have each person select an object, consider what it might do, and then improve it with craft materials available on the table. When the objects are complete, each person presents their prototype to the group and considers how it might help the team reach an ideal future state. 

As a creative game that encourages physical creation and abstract thinking, this is a great way to galvanize a group and engage them in ways that might not often happen in regular work! 

The Thing from the Future   #imagination   #storymaking   #idea generation   #issue analysis   Help a group to time-travel and tap their imagination by fictional objects. With tangible objects and the stories your participants make up w/ them you’ll get so much richer inputs and context to inform joint visioning / strategizing: The future doesn’t look that far away when you can pick it off the shelf.

Make it Personal

Connecting with an idea, product or service on a personal level isn’t just a creative way of thinking – it can help improve connections with team members too and job satisfaction too. This creative thinking game tasks a group to create a persona for the product, idea or experience and build a dating profile to match.

By creatively considering how we might present and discuss a product if they were a person, we can highlight strengths, weaknesses, and attractive qualities that can help us reconsider what we’re working on. Bonus points for writing a quippy Tinder bio to go with the personal ad! 

Make it personal   #creative thinking   #creativity   #idea generation   #ideation   Build personas of ideas, products or experiences. Imagine your product is a person. What’s its name? What would its ideal date night be? Does it prefer the beach or the woods? This exercise is a playful way to nail down the essence of your idea, product, or service. Use it in ideation or as a way to hone an existing concept.

It can be easy to get carried away with good ideas or feel held back by seemingly massive problems. Recontextualising what is helping a group move forward alongside what might be holding it back can really help a team make purposeful progress. 

Speed Boat is a creative thinking activity that asks participants to imagine that their product or organization is a boat and that there are elements pushing the boat forward (the engine), as well as some pulling it back (anchors). Brainstorming these elements in a new context can help new perspectives surface, and gathering them together can help foster shared understanding. Follow up with dot voting and reflection to really cement the learnings and collectively decide on future actions too.

Speed Boat   #gamestorming   #problem solving   #action   Speedboat is a short and sweet way to identify what your employees or clients don’t like about your product/service or what’s standing in the way of a desired goal.

Distance Makes the Brain Grow Stronger

Have you ever noticed how it’s often easy to give someone else advice, while trying to give yourself advice feels difficult? Using a creative game to shift your perspective and tap into this element can make all the difference when trying to solve problems, particularly those that relate to you personally. 

In this creative activity, share the two handouts among the group equally and tell everyone to work on the handout individually and solve the problem as quickly as possible. (At this stage, everyone will assume they have the same handout!) Then, debrief the activity by noting that the solution is the same on the two different handouts, the only difference is whether the reader is involved or not.

Using this technique as a basis to discuss how psychological distance can help us solve problems creatively and with a measure of abstract thinking is then something your group can take forward in the future!

Distance Makes The Brain Grow Stronger   #creativity   #problem solving   #thiagi   #action   This interesting exercise replicates research done by Evan Polman of New York University and Kyle Emich of Cornell University on construal level theory. You can find more information about this theory by visiting this page in Psychlopedia: http://www.psych-it.com.au/Psychlopedia/article.asp?id=79 The participants work with two different versions of the same problem. One version describes a problem faced by someone else while the other version identifies the problem confronting the reader. The debriefing suggests that it is easier to come up with creative solutions when people are thinking for someone other than themselves.

Rules and frameworks to spark and guide creativity 

One misconception about creativity is that it best functions when we are given complete freedom. Often, it can be creatively energizing to be given a framework or ruleset to work with and around, rather than being given free reign. Think of how hard it can be to approach a blank piece of paper, rather than responding to a prompt or question.

These creative techniques tap into the idea of using frameworks and rules to help shape and inform a creative process. They can be especially useful if you’re helping a group start to use creative thinking at work and they’re uncertain about how to begin.

Brainstorm Questions Instead of Solutions

The creativity dice, idea & concept development.

• Six thinking hats

Some of the best creative games and activities are based around the implementation of a simple rule in order to guide a group’s creative thinking. Something as simple as having a rule to brainstorm questions relating to a problem before coming up with any potential solutions can help promote creative thinking. 

With this creative thinking game, invite your group to work with questions instead of solutions and initially reserve judgement on those questions. Once you’ve had a round of brainstorming, then invite your group to reflect on which questions prompt further ideas and potential solutions and follow those further. By approaching the creative brainstorming process with a simple caveat, you’ll find the results are quite different and generative too!

Brainstorm questions instead of solutions   #questions and answers   #brainstorming   When we are given a problem our reflex is to find answers. But it can be difficult to leave the comfort zone and to come up with creative answers. This exercise will encourage to think out of the box.

Want to develop an even more effective set of creative rules? Why not have a group create their own framework and identify only what they need to move forward? With Min Specs, first have a group brainstorm all the do’s and don’ts of approaching and completing a current challenge, project or initiative. Next, ask your team to reduce the list to the bare minimum you need in order to achieve your goal. 

The result is a list of minimum specs you can use as a framework for moving forward swiftly, effectively and in a way the group have all agreed on. Applying this can remove roadblocks, push a team forward and help inform creative projects – all with a self directed list you can amend and update in the future.   

Min Specs   #innovation   #issue analysis   #liberating structures   By specifying only the minimum number of simple rules, the Min Specs that must ABSOLUTELY be respected, you can unleash a group to innovate freely. Respecting the Min Specs will ensure that innovations will be both purposeful and responsible. Like the Ten Commandments, Min Specs are enabling constraints: they detail only must dos and must not dos. You will eliminate the clutter of non-essential rules, the Max Specs that get in the way of innovation. Often two to five Min Specs are sufficient to boost performance by adding more freedom AND more responsibility to the group’s understanding of what it must do to make progress. Out of their experience in the field, participants shape and adapt Min Specs together, working as one. Following the rules makes it possible for the group to go wild!

Inviting elements of chance into a creative space is a common artistic practice. With this creative game based on rolling a dice to dictate your approach to a problem, you can actively pursue one line of thought while incubating another. 

Start by writing down a short phrase that encapsulates the target of your creative thinking or a problem you wish to work on. Next, roll a dice and spend 3 minutes on an activity based on the result. This might be writing a specification, investigating further, ideating or something else entirely. By moving quickly between tasks, you’ll find that one thought is left hanging and given time to develop while considering another thought. The results can be surprising and by having a ruleset to follow, your group can avoid getting stuck on deciding on an approach.

The Creativity Dice   #creativity   #problem solving   #thiagi   #issue analysis   Too much linear thinking is hazardous to creative problem solving. To be creative, you should approach the problem (or the opportunity) from different points of view. You should leave a thought hanging in mid-air and move to another. This skipping around prevents premature closure and lets your brain incubate one line of thought while you consciously pursue another.

Ernest Hemingway’s six-word short story – “For Sale: baby shoes, never worn.” is famous for its ability to cram so much meaning and feeling into an incredibly small space. This creative game invites a group to do the same by trying to encapsulate their ideas or thoughts on a subject into a six-word sentence.

By needing to be succinct and clear while cutting away fluff, the six-word sentence can help reveal and refine the core of an idea. We love creative activities that ask a group to think both creatively and critically and deploy some deeper thinking. This is a simple-to-understand framework you and your team can use again and again!

6 Words   #ufmcs   #red teaming   This tool is designed to help critical thinkers focus on a core idea by writing a short phrase summarizing their thoughts into a set number of words that are clear, concise, and accurate. This idea is based on a complete short story written by Ernest Hemingway: “For sale, baby shoes – never worn.” Six Words forces people to synthesize their ideas in a succinct and meaningful way, cutting away fluff and distilling the idea to its bare essence.

Free ideation and brainstorming can be great when starting a creative process but without further direction or refinement, those ideas can get lost in development hell. This creative thinking framework from Hyper Island is a means to not only start generating ideas, but to iterate, develop and select the best.

If your team needs a little direction or you find that you get stuck in the post-ideation phase, this method is a great way of guiding a project to completion. Want the short version? Check out the ideation tools section for a set of alternative ways of thinking you can use to bring creative ideas to the fore!

Idea & Concept Development   #hyperisland   #innovation   #idea generation   Ideation and Concept Development is a process for groups to work creatively and collaboratively to generate creative ideas. It’s a general approach that can be adapted and customized to suit many different scenarios. It includes basic principles for idea generation and several steps for groups to work with. It also includes steps for idea selection and development.

Six Thinking Hats

All creative processes benefit from working with others. As a team gets used to one another, you’ll often find that each person tends to occupy a certain role based on their skills and interests. You might have one person who is great at coming up with wild ideas and another who is more analytical and can see potential areas for caution easily. While this is helpful, it can also be creatively energizing to mix these roles up and push people gently out of their usual positions when generating ideas or working on something creatively. 

In this creative activity, invite participants to see the current challenge or project from one of six perspectives before then swapping. By imposing a ruleset to how we think and approach a project, we can unearth things we might otherwise have missed and challenge our assumptions too. 

The Six Thinking Hats   #creative thinking   #meeting facilitation   #problem solving   #issue resolution   #idea generation   #conflict resolution   The Six Thinking Hats are used by individuals and groups to separate out conflicting styles of thinking. They enable and encourage a group of people to think constructively together in exploring and implementing change, rather than using argument to fight over who is right and who is wrong.

Over to you

Being creative makes us happy and more productive. We hope that with these creativity exercises and creative games, you and your team can be more creative at work and find new ways of thinking, whatever your organisation or role.

Want to learn more about how to improve your creative thinking skills and explore creativity in more depth? Our guide on improving and using creative thinking skills at work is a great place to start! 

Have some thoughts on how else you might bring creativity into the workplace or want to share some creative activities you’ve used? We’d love to hear from you in the comments section below!

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Going from a mere idea to a workshop that delivers results for your clients can feel like a daunting task. In this piece, we will shine a light on all the work behind the scenes and help you learn how to plan a workshop from start to finish. On a good day, facilitation can feel like effortless magic, but that is mostly the result of backstage work, foresight, and a lot of careful planning. Read on to learn a step-by-step approach to breaking the process of planning a workshop into small, manageable chunks.  The flow starts with the first meeting with a client to define the purposes of a workshop.…

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A Short Guide to Building Your Team’s Critical Thinking Skills

• Matt Plummer

Critical thinking isn’t an innate skill. It can be learned.

Most employers lack an effective way to objectively assess critical thinking skills and most managers don’t know how to provide specific instruction to team members in need of becoming better thinkers. Instead, most managers employ a sink-or-swim approach, ultimately creating work-arounds to keep those who can’t figure out how to “swim” from making important decisions. But it doesn’t have to be this way. To demystify what critical thinking is and how it is developed, the author’s team turned to three research-backed models: The Halpern Critical Thinking Assessment, Pearson’s RED Critical Thinking Model, and Bloom’s Taxonomy. Using these models, they developed the Critical Thinking Roadmap, a framework that breaks critical thinking down into four measurable phases: the ability to execute, synthesize, recommend, and generate.

With critical thinking ranking among the most in-demand skills for job candidates , you would think that educational institutions would prepare candidates well to be exceptional thinkers, and employers would be adept at developing such skills in existing employees. Unfortunately, both are largely untrue.

• Matt Plummer (@mtplummer) is the founder of Zarvana, which offers online programs and coaching services to help working professionals become more productive by developing time-saving habits. Before starting Zarvana, Matt spent six years at Bain & Company spin-out, The Bridgespan Group, a strategy and management consulting firm for nonprofits, foundations, and philanthropists.  

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The Best Problem-Solving & Critical Thinking Team Building Activities, Games & Ideas! Virtual & In-person!

January 19, 2023

Eugene Alcide

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"Problem-solving is arguably one of the most crucial skills and aptitudes for your team to develop. Improving your team's problem-solving skills will enhance the creativity and innovation aptitudes of your team! When you incorporate critical thinking into a fun and engaging team-building activity, you're onto a winner!"

In most cases, teams can see problems and complications as a barrier. Critical thinking team building activities allow your team to widen their train of thought to see roadblocks as opportunities for growth, personal development, and innovation! It is one of the most important skills to develop with your team. No matter what your job title is, you will always experience roadblocks and complications, problem-solving games are one of the best ways to not only improve employee engagement but also help develop your teams' soft skills! So let's dive straight into our list!

1. Virtual Escape Rooms

Virtual escape rooms take our number one spot when it comes to problem-solving and critical thinking ideas. Escape games require strategy as well as an out-of-the-box thought process in order to get through the action-packed puzzles, red hearings, and brain-teasing moments. This activity is the perfect way to improve your team's communication whilst improving their problem-solving skills. Virtual escape rooms are fun to play and will always keep your team on their toes!

Arctic Survival - Will see your team take part in an arctic expedition and you've suddenly been separated from your main group! It's cold, it's dark and the storm is closing in! You'll need to use everything available to you inside any shelters you can find as you unlock riddles and clues and take on 3 exciting levels! Your team will need to use image recognition and augmented reality to get through all of the interactive challenges! Play Now

Art Heist - Don't panic, but you've just been framed for an art heist and even worse, you're locked in the art gallery! You'll need to use the clues around you to escape before the police arrive. You are 100% innocent, but think of how it will look if you don't get out in time and the police arrive, you'll need a day to explain the mix-up! Your team will use the interactive clues and challenges to see if you can crack the code to make it out in time. Find those clues to avoid spending a life behind bars! Play Now

Zombie Apocalypse - Calling all The Walking Dead Fans! In this suspenseful game, your team will be virtually transported to a post-apocalyptic, zombie-infested state of New York. The aim is to survive, just like in The Walking Dead! You'll need to hurry and complete 12 sets of challenges across 3 levels. Each level will comprise of puzzles, codebreaking, challenges, and riddles! There will even be the use of Google Street View and what3words, which will really immerse your team into the location! Play Now

2. CSI Team Building Jury Games

Nothing says problem-solving quite like Jury service games ! Your team will immerse yourselves into the courtroom to observe some very complex cases! This is the perfect team building game for really challenging your team's problem-solving and critical thinking skills, as your team will need to dive into evidence files, read witnesses' statements and even listen to relevant phone calls to form your narrative. There is so much for your team to unpack and it will really challenge your team to apply their critical thinking, whilst working together and communicating! Jury games are full of loads of red hearings, so be sure not to take everything at face value. You'll also need to decide if the defendant is guilty or innocent!

MacLean House Jewellery Heist

The case of solving a high-end jewelry heist which is definitely a case of organized crime! Your team will need to decide the fate of a man that is currently standing trial. You'll have to review the case files and evidence all in the name of deciding if the defendant is innocent or guilty! A man's fate is in your team's hands! Play Now

The Vanderwit Murder

Your team will need to decide the fate of a father who is standing trial for the supposed murder of his son! You'll need to put your detective and critical thinking hats on to decide whether you think he is guilty or innocent! Be sure to go through the evidence thoroughly, as with any jury case there will always be some red hearings! Play Now

3. Murder Mystery Team Building Activities

Murder mystery games are another favorite of ours. These games are perfect for encouraging your team to apply both critical and problem-solving logic to the situation being analyzed. Your team will need to balance speed and precision to investigate the murder. Strategy is so important with these games as naturally, everyone has their strengths and weaknesses, and delegating the tasks to suit everyone's strengths will also help your team to improve their communication and overall cohesion. Most importantly, murder mystery games are fun and when it comes to bringing teams together, fun is one of the most important elements to consider!

Murder On The Train

We've got some bad news, there's been a murder! We're hoping your team can help us solve this case, so be sure to bring your best detectives in order to solve this mystery. You'll need to work together to solve the clues, piece together the evidence and work out who the killer is. The train conductor, Raul will be your best guide for this, or will you suspect him as well? You'll have just 1 hour to catch the killer! Play Now

Murder On The Slopes

You and your team are on your way to a wonderful ski resort when things suddenly take a deadly turn! One of the resort's staff has gone missing! Everyone is now considered a suspect and it's up to you and your team to figure out who the murderer is. The aim of the activity is to earn as many points as possible but more importantly, find out who the killer is. The evidence board will be your best friend in this situation. So get ready to uncover clues via augmented reality as well as some red-hearing interactive challenges. Will your team solve this chilling case in time? Play Now

Manor House Murder

7 people attended a school reunion, but only 6 left alive! We need you and your team to explore the manor house, work through the evidence and catch the killer before it's too late! As top detectives, you'll need to use the interactive evidence and examine the witness cards as you progress your way through the crime scene. Get ready to use image recognition as well as augmented reality to try to piece together the jigsaw in order to create a timeline to catch the elusive killer! Grab your magnifying glasses, check for fingerprints and catch the killer before it's too late! Play Now

4. The Pitch

Nothing says critical thinking and problem solving like The Pitch . The Pitch is a team game based on the popular US and UK tv show, The Apprentice! Your team will work together to create a product, as part of the process, you'll develop, market, and pitch your ideas to see if you can make a case to be on the winning team! Strategy will be key here, as you'll need to delegate tasks that play to each individual team member's strengths. You'll even need to pick your own project manager, just like The Apprentice! Get ready to create marketing, finance, and design teams as you head to the studio to design your product and logo to bring your team's vision to light! Play Now

Why Organize a Problem-Solving Team Activity?

Bringing your team together is always a good way of improving team comradery! It's even better when you combine fun into an activity that helps develop and encourages your team to build on their problem-solving and critical-thinking skills. Why not view our range of indoor team games , office party games , and virtual team building activities ?

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Strategic Thinking Games for Adults: Boost Your Mental Agility

Strategic thinking games for adults are beneficial tools for building essential problem-solving and decision-making skills. These games encourage individuals to tap into their creativity and develop their cognitive abilities, as they plan and implement strategies to navigate challenging tasks. Engaging in strategic thinking games not only provides a fun and entertaining experience but also fosters critical thinking, which can be applied in everyday life situations and workplace environments.

Various strategic thinking games are available and tailored to adults, ranging from board games to online resources that challenge the mind and promote teamwork. A key aspect of these games is to help participants interpret their environment creatively, practicing strategic thinking in a safe, enjoyable context. By playing strategic thinking games, adults have the opportunity to enhance their mental agility, resource allocation, and preparedness for the unexpected, ultimately improving both their personal and professional lives.

Benefits of Strategic Thinking Games for Adults

Enhancing creativity.

Strategic thinking games challenge individuals to engage their creative faculties by exploring new ideas and developing innovative solutions to problems. By playing these games, adults can stimulate their minds, learn to think laterally, and adopt a more imaginative approach to problem-solving. For example,  Mind Benders  is a game that offers puzzles in geometry and magic squares, which encourage creative thinking and exercise the brain.

Improving Decision-Making

Boosting management skills, promoting leadership and team building.

Many strategic thinking games require collaboration and teamwork, honing leadership and team-building abilities. Participants must adopt a cooperative attitude, communicate effectively, and motivate other players to achieve common goals. These skills are crucial for successful workplace interactions and can contribute positively to professional development.

Developing Critical Thinking Abilities

Popular strategic thinking games, board games, puzzle games, scenario-based games.

Scenario-based games can also assist in developing strategic thinking skills. These games often involve players making decisions that affect the outcome of a story or situation. For example, the game Pandemic puts players in charge of finding cures for diseases while managing outbreaks and epidemics. These games help individuals learn how to assess situations, make decisions that consider various factors, and adapt to changing circumstances.

Letter and Number Games

Incorporating strategic thinking games into training sessions, group exercises and teamwork, opinions and listening skills.

Strategic thinking games can also improve participants’ listening skills and promote a better understanding of different opinions. Activities that emphasize active listening, such as  games introduced during workshops , can help participants learn to appreciate diverse perspectives and foster a more inclusive learning environment.

Imagination and Creative Scenarios

Setting goals and objectives, brain training and personal development through strategic games, innovative mindset, expanding your thinking abilities.

Strategic games offer a wide range of benefits that contribute to the expansion of an individual’s thinking abilities. These games can focus on various cognitive skills, such as memory, attention, coordination, and language, as seen in the  Peak Brain Training  platform. By actively practicing these skills and continuously challenging oneself, an individual can strengthen their mental abilities and develop a broader perspective on various issues.

Challenging Mental Obstacles

You may also like, strategic thinking exercises for teams: enhance collaboration and decision-making, can you teach strategic thinking: effective methods and techniques, the top 5 modern day strategic thinkers: insights into contemporary minds shaping our world, strategic thinking and artificial intelligence: unlocking new possibilities in problem solving, download this free ebook.