Five Quick Teamwork Exercises That Build Trust in 30 Minutes (No Facilitator Required)

Five team exercises that take 30 minutes each, run by the team leader without a vendor, and install specific trust patterns — not just fun. Trust compounds faster in the small containers of a short exercise than in the big container of a team-building day. Run one a week for five weeks and the pattern sticks.

The five: (1) name-a-risk circle — each member names one risk the team is underestimating. (2) Public-appreciation round — one specific thank-you per member, for judgment not effort. (3) Uncomfortable-truth prompt — what are we not saying? (4) Favor-trade — each member asks one peer for help, specifically. (5) Failure-retro — one thing that went wrong and what you would do differently. Each builds trust by making visible the things teams usually leave invisible.

Below is the mechanics of each exercise, why small-group scale is what makes them work, and how the participant-driven Learn2 frame makes these team habits instead of one-off activities.

Your employees should participate in team building exercises on a regular basis. Team building exercises allow your employees to learn more about each other. They also help employees loosen up and engage each other. Team building exercises do not have to take up a-lot of time. Below are five quick team building exercises for employees:

1. Two Truths and a Lie
2. Your Worst Job Experience
3. Paper Tearing
4. Quick Brainstorming Sessions
5. Show and Tell

TWO TRUTHS AND A LIE

This is an activity that is great to do before a meeting. All your employees have to do is say three things about themselves. One of the things has to be a lie. Everyone will have to guess which one is a lie. This is a simple team building exercise that can be completed in less than five minutes.

YOUR WORST OR FIRST JOB EXPERIENCE

This is another game that your employees may want to play before a meeting. Everyone will need to give a brief description of their worst or first job experience. In order to save time on this team building exercise, ask your employees to prepare their stories before the meeting.

PAPER TEARING

Divide everyone into small group, and tell everyone to close their eyes. Give them instructions on how to tear their paper. While you are giving instructions, you will need to tear the paper also. After you have finished giving them instructions, tell everyone to open their eyes. When finishing this quick team building exercise, the team whose paper looks the closest to yours should be given a prize.

QUICK BRAINSTORMING SESSIONS

Your employees are probably filled with great ideas that can help improve the company. Give your employees a chance to share their ideas during a brainstorming session. You should divide everyone into groups and give each group three to five minutes to come up with ideas. After the three to five minutes is up, give everyone a chance to share their ideas.

SHOW AND TELL

This quick team building activity may seem like a flashback to elementary school, but it can also be a fun way for your employees to learn more about each other. You should have your employees bring some interesting from home and let them share why it is important to them. Interesting articles, family photos, and vacation souvenirs are examples of some of the things that your employees can bring. You may also want to bring your own item. It only takes a few minutes to complete this activity.

EXPLORE TEAM BUILDING EXERCISES WITH LEARN2

Are you looking for some more fun team building exercise for your employees? If so, then you should contact us. We offer a variety of exciting team building exercises. Additionally, these activities can be customized to fit your company’s needs.