Games that break the ice and loosen everyone make for a more comfortable workplace and they can even be used at the start of a meeting to relax the maybe awkward mood.
How much does a polar bear weigh? Enough to break the ice!
It is good practice to “warm up” before meetings to avoid awkward spells or gaps where people are unsure of what to say, getting to know the other people will help people to converse more naturally with one another.
Now, at this point I know what you’re thinking, these icebreaker and “get to know you” games are usually cringe-worthy and cliches, but they do not have to be that way. Basically any game that you like can be used as an activity that can break the ice and get everyone involved engaged and smiling. Even virtual activities can be a useful way to break the tension that is there when everyone initially joins a call. If you are really trying to get your colleagues or coworkers excited about these games and activities, then you can pair these games with snacks!
With that being said, here are some of our favorite games so you can enjoy them!
Get To Know You Activities
Below are some activities that will help you to become more familiar with those around you by doing these activities. Enjoy!
Bingo
This is a great option if you have a large group that you are trying to get involved with one another. To play, each team member must receive a board specific for this type of Bingo. Divide the group into smaller teams to promote interaction with one another. The name of the game is to write the person's name that best fits the description on the bingo board squares. The first person to fill our five squares in a line is the winner, you can also change it up and make the goal to get an X, as many lines as possible, or blackout the board where all the squares have to be filled in.
You can make your own template for this game or templates can easily be found online.
I Can’t Decide
This activity gets the players to choose between two quite similar options. The answer that they give will give everyone an insight into their personality, and can even show which players are the most similar to one another. This activity usually goes quite fast, so you easily fit this in wherever you have the time, be it at the backend of a meeting or during a lunch break.
Some example questions:
• Night or day?
• Movies or television?
• Car or motorcycle?
• Cocktails or coffee?
• Road trips or plane trips?
• Coke or Pepsi?
• Hammock or lawn chair?
• Sporting events or concerts?
• Speaking or writing?
• Staycation or vacation?
• Text or phone call?
Top Five
This is a simple game that gets the players to name their top five favorites in any of the categories provided. The categories are set out at the start of the game and each participant must make their own “best-of” list, and then one at a time everyone tells their answers to the entire group.
Some examples of categories that can be used:
• Breakfast options
• Dinner options
• Travel destinations
• Movies
• Albums or songs
• Brands
• Animals
• Celebrities
• Dessert options
These category options are quite general, but they can be made much more specific in order to target particular interests (or lack thereof) that the group may have. It can be fun to have some basic categories and then leave the rest up for suggestion to the group, that way the entire group is engaging right from the start of the game. An alternative way of playing this game is to play “Bottom Five”, the premise is exactly the same, but the players have to choose their five least favorite choices in every category.
Fun Get To Know You Games
Here are some fun get to know you games that are sure to make you and your team smile!
Figure It Out
This was a children’s game show back in the 1990’s, in which judges would try and guess what a child’s particular impressive achievement or unusual talent was.
How to play:
1. Pick one participant as the “player”
2. They must choose a secret, then pick up blank cards that represent each word within the secret
3. The judges/panel then has to ask questions where the answer is yes/no
4. From the answers they receive, they must attempt to guess the words within the secret, and if they get one right, the contestant fills it in on the appropriate blank card
5. Judges can guess words any time, but there must be a defined amount of rounds before the game starts so it does not drag on forever and makes the panel guess the secret faster
Eat It or Spill It
Again this is very similar to a game that is played on television hosted by James Corden, and that is where the inspiration for this game comes from. The name of this game is that a number of quite personal questions are asked to the player, and they must either choose to answer the (probably) uncomfortable question, or ingest a certain food. Now, the food that they have to eat is not ordinary food, it will either be very spicy, a large amount of food, a messy dish, or something that might be just disgusting to look at, never mind eat!
For instance, to avoid answering a question about their personal life, the contestant might have to douse six crackers in hot sauce and eat them all at the same time. Not fun, but extremely entertaining for everyone else. All the players will take their turn in asking others various questions. A good time to organize this game is on a break like lunch.
Get To Know Your Team Questions
These games are geared towards really getting to know each other, and also satisfying people’s nosiness into their co-workers' lives! Be prepared to spill some beans when you’re playing these games...
Truth or Dare
This is a classic, and it is very well known so you will more than likely not need to spend time explaining how this game is going to work. During each round, every player must either perform a dare or answer a question about themselves.
Some example questions to get the game going:
• What is the grossest thing your pet does?
• What is one lie you told your parents?
• Have you ever missed a deadline?
• What was the last junk food you ate?
• Have you ever worn a risque Halloween costume?
And some examples of dares in case the players don’t want to tell the truth!
• Make a dolphin noise
• Swallow a spoonful of lemon juice
• Show us the last picture you took on your phone
• Impersonate one of your coworkers
• Recite a movie dialogue
Make sure to keep this game safe for work, as it is known to take some strange turns, especially if alcohol is involved!
Would You Rather
This is an activity based around behavioural psychology, and gets the players to choose between two different courses of action. The situations that are described within the game are known to be uncomfortable, silly, awkward, or even just disgusting. It is a great way to get to know someone as it will show people how they think and also give an insight into their belief system.
Some example questions:
• Would you rather get famous for taking credit for someone else’s work, or have someone else get famous for taking credit for your work?
• Would you rather be hated for who you are or loved for who you are not?
• Would you rather have a runny nose or a persistent cough?
• Would you rather get a paper cut every day or stub your toe every day?
• Would you rather have unlimited money or your dream job?
• Would you rather be hated for who you are or loved for who you are not?
Twenty Questions
This is an activity that gets down to brass tax straight away, it involves one player interviewing another, and asking them 20 questions about themselves. Questions cannot be skipped unless it is agreed that the question is either unreasonable or too personal, so choose your questions wisely! There is a skill here to trying to extract as much information out of the person without getting too personal, so I would take some time over your questions and think about what you really want to know!
Clinked would love to know your favorites out of these get to know you games and activities, and if you plan on using them in work or not. If you have anything to add or have any thoughts on these activities, we would love to hear them in the comments below!