8 Team Building Activities That Boost Morale in Startups
To discover the most effective team-building activities for boosting morale and cohesion in startups, we asked CEOs and founders for their insights. From building trust through failure discussions to strengthening unity with escape-room challenges, here are the top eight activities that have positively impacted startup teams.
- Build Trust Through Failure Discussions
- Boost Morale With Cross-Department Meetings
- Enhance Cohesion With Skill-Share Day
- Foster Openness With Candid Feedback
- Create Welcoming Online Spaces
- Encourage Creativity With DIY Projects
- Recharge With Mindfulness Retreats
- Strengthen Unity With Escape-Room Challenges
Build Trust Through Failure Discussions
Holding monthly (or bi-monthly during particularly busy periods) discussions about our most significant failures helped us build trust within our startup team. These are meetings where team members share stories about their recent mistakes, and this creates an environment of radical transparency, where people feel comfortable being vulnerable and admitting their flaws. When everybody is open about their mistakes, the team can see that it’s okay to fail and that failure is a natural part of growth and innovation.
Then, we feel more comfortable taking risks and stepping out of our comfort zones, for instance, when finding a new approach to crafting job descriptions or experimenting with talent pools. In other words, we get a chance to do something better than yesterday. The most brilliant thing about discussing imperfections is an opportunity to extract valuable lessons from them.
After each story, the group has an open discussion about what went wrong, what could have been done differently, and what was learned. This process of reflection and analysis helps us avoid repeating the same errors and apply the lessons to our further work. What’s also great is that sharing our failures publicly brings them into sharper focus. We’re less likely to make the same mistake twice if we know we’ll have to own up to it in front of the whole team.
Ann Kuss
CEO, Outstaff Your Team
Boost Morale With Cross-Department Meetings
One team-building activity that significantly boosted our startup’s morale and cohesion was our Cross-Department Collaboration Meetings.
We set up regular meetings where different departments, like legal, tech, and client services, came together to discuss ongoing projects and share insights. One memorable instance was a meeting where we tackled a challenge in our client-onboarding process.
By bringing together diverse perspectives, we not only identified the root causes but also developed a unified strategy that incorporated everyone’s expertise. This collaborative approach not only solved the problem effectively but also fostered a greater sense of teamwork and mutual respect among departments.
The meetings became a platform for open communication and idea-sharing, enhancing our overall cohesion and making us more agile and connected as a team.
Aseem Jha
Founder, Legal Consulting Pro
Enhance Cohesion With Skill-Share Day
One team-building activity that’s had a fantastic impact on our startup’s morale and cohesion is our quarterly Skill-Share Day.
Here’s how it works:
Every three months, we dedicate a full day to learning from each other. Team members volunteer to teach a skill or share knowledge about something they’re passionate about—work-related or not.
We’ve had sessions on everything from coding tricks to baking sourdough bread. Our UX designer taught a crash course in basic design principles, and our accountant ran a personal finance workshop that was surprisingly popular!
The beauty of this activity is multi-fold:
- It breaks down silos. People from different departments mix and learn together.
- It showcases hidden talents. We’ve discovered some amazing skills our team members have outside their job descriptions.
- It promotes a learning culture. Everyone gets to be both a teacher and a student.
- It’s fun! There’s always lots of laughter and engagement.
- It builds respect. People appreciate each other more when they see the depth of knowledge their colleagues possess.
We’ve noticed a real boost in cross-department collaboration since starting this. People are more likely to reach out to colleagues they might not work with directly.
It’s also helped with impostor syndrome. Seeing that everyone has something valuable to teach has boosted confidence across the board.
One unexpected benefit? It’s become a great onboarding tool. New hires get to showcase their skills early on, helping them integrate faster.
The key to making it work is keeping it voluntary and diverse. We make sure there’s a mix of work-related and fun topics each time.
Yash Gangwal
Founder, Urban Monkey
Foster Openness With Candid Feedback
During team-building, we often do this exercise in which people are randomly paired with another teammate, and they are encouraged to offer candid feedback to each other. We always ask the employees to focus on sharing both positive and constructive feedback based on actual examples. It’s a very simple exercise, but as it happens in a less rigid environment than the office, we’ve seen it have an amazing effect on people.
Many feel seen during this exercise and are surprised to learn how much their teammates notice about them. Many feel grateful to receive the constructive feedback outside of the office and have a chance to improve. It’s exactly the type of conversation you wish you could have outside the office: helpful, personal, and vulnerable.
Will Baker
Director, Skirtings R Us
Create Welcoming Online Spaces
One of the keys to effective team-building is making work a place where your employees want to spend their time. In a remote environment, one of the keys to this approach is to make our online collaboration spaces welcoming ones. We’ve let our employees establish off-topic chat channels on a variety of subjects as a way for them to connect and get to know each other better. These channels have spawned a fantasy football league, TV watch groups for several shows, and countless pictures of pets and children.
Nick Valentino
VP of Market Operations, Bellhop
Encourage Creativity With DIY Projects
Creative activities involving DIY art projects and brainstorming sessions are fantastic for encouraging teamwork, boosting a team’s morale, and enhancing creativity. Tailoring games according to the niche industry will always be an option.
For instance, in the e-commerce realm: brainstorming activities include organizing friendly competitions among team members to gather innovative ideas for improvement. DIY projects, such as designing a team mascot, working on a company mural, or finalizing the team’s logo, tagline, and so on, raise the bar of creativity when everyone contributes.
Activities like group painting, decorating the venue, or participating in sculpting projects allow members of my organization to express themselves artistically and strengthen their connections.
At my company, the above-mentioned group activities provide employees with a much-needed break from their monotonous routine, promoting creative thinking and cohesion at the same time.
Faizan Khan
Public Relations and Content Marketing Specialist, Ubuy UK
Recharge With Mindfulness Retreats
The team-building activity that had the most positive effect on our team’s morale and cohesion was a retreat focused on mindfulness and wellness. We organized a weekend getaway where our staff participated in activities such as yoga, meditation, and group discussions on stress management and self-care.
This retreat not only helped our team members recharge and bond outside of the workplace but also reinforced the importance of mental health and well-being in our professional lives. The experience fostered a stronger sense of community, improved communication, and enhanced overall team cohesion, positively impacting our work environment and client care.
James Mikhail
Founder & CEO, Ikon Recovery
Strengthen Unity With Escape-Room Challenges
One of the most impactful team-building experiences we had was the thrilling adventure of an escape-room challenge. This activity not only required effective communication and teamwork, but also problem-solving skills under pressure. It allowed us to see different sides of our team members and how they handle challenges.
We were able to work together in a fun and high-intensity environment, building trust and camaraderie along the way. It also helped break down any barriers between team members and created a stronger sense of unity within the team. The escape-room adventure was a highly effective and enjoyable team-building activity that had a long-lasting positive effect on our startup team’s morale and cohesion.
The experience also taught us the importance of teamwork and communication in achieving our goals as a team. It was a great bonding experience that brought us closer together, making it easier to work together towards our common vision. We have since incorporated similar problem-solving activities into our regular team meetings to continue fostering a strong sense of collaboration and camaraderie within our team.
Evan Tunis
President, Florida Healthcare Insurance
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