How well do you know the team members that work for your company? If you are the manager or owner of a business, you ought to at least have a clear idea of who everyone is. If you don’t, this is a detriment you can easily fix. The best way is to take the time to bond with your co-workers and employees in new and exciting manners.
Make the Most of Down Time and Lunch Break
There are plenty of ways to bond with coworkers that don’t have to feel forced or artificial. One of the most natural times for such an exchange is one that probably comes several times each day. When you’re relaxing during downtime, why not take the time to chat and share ideas?
Downtime and lunchtime are first-rate opportunities to share ideas, jokes, memories, and general impressions of your work, the office atmosphere, and each other. Someone may be celebrating an anniversary of their time at the company. Another person may be struggling to get a handle on some new aspect of the job that has just come up.
These are times during which you can laugh, share ideas, and generally get to know one another a good deal better. And since it’s all taking place during an interval when you don’t have anything else to do, it’s actually a fantastic use of your company time. The more indirect and informal it feels, the better for your ultimate purposes.
Enjoy a Relaxing Night Out
If you’ve had fun chewing the fat in the lunchroom, why not take things to the next logical step? You can organize a fun night out on the town for yourself and your team members. You don’t have to put a huge dent in your operating budget to pull this off. Why not schedule a meal at a nice Italian place, followed by mini-golf or bowling?
A relaxing night out on the town is a great way to break the ice and really get to know all of your team members. It’s also a good opportunity to let your own hair down a bit and show off your human side.
Your team members may need a little reminder that you’re not always just about business and the bottom line. It will be a bonding experience that will stick with them.
Try Team Building the Virtual Way
Thanks to the recent Covid-19 global pandemic, you may not always be able to bond with your co-workers and employees in person. In fact, you may not even be able to be in the same zip code as them. Social distancing is the law of the land and this means that you have to observe all of the required safety protocols.
But this doesn’t have to mean that you all become a bunch of strangers communicating only by the odd email and cell phone call. There’s a great new method that involves the technique of virtual team building. It’s a way to do all of the usual team-building exercises, only this time through a socially distanced conference call.
For example, you can host weekly Zoom or Skype gatherings that give everyone a chance to touch base. You can moderate a 30, 45, or 60-minute discussion that allows everyone to share their weekly adventures, family experiences, and, last but not least, work-related accomplishments. It’s a great way to relax, unwind, and socialize.
You can also use this time to give little pep talks, advice, or instructions for next week’s goals. Finally, when the work topics are quickly taken care of, you can even socialize with some team-building games. There are many interactive adventure games that can bond your team into a well-oiled machine, even by means of the conference.
The Time to Start Bonding is Now
Even with things as hectic and unsettled as they may be, the light at the end of the tunnel is showing. The lockdown won’t last forever. Sooner or later, things will be back to normal. This means that the time you have taken to bond with your team members as employees and peers has been well spent. It will serve you well in the days ahead.
