It’s great that our country is mostly back to having people work out and play sports together. But, we also know that we’ve picked up new ways to exercise as groups. For instance, sports classes outdoors increased. And doing training through Zoom video conferences also took off. During the cold winter months, millions more are now comfortable doing sports and marathon training through video. So, we’ll take a look at team-building exercises you could do if you choose to increase your training and group program engagement.
In short, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t develop for your organization online courses. It’s an opportunity to cater to more people in your community and increases the chances that people will want to join. Let’s face it, some people prefer to work more independently, and Zoom online teams make perfect sense. But, when you get people together in a video conference, you still have to engage them—even in a remote environment.
How can you do a bit of team-building remotely during a Zoom call? Let’s consider a few of the ways you could answer the question of success for your virtual training programs related to creating team spirit!
Why People Need a Little Team-Building
People need to connect with other people. Even though people are introverts, extroverts, or a whole range in between, for the most part, people want to make a connection with others. That’s why team-building is an essential part of any program. And sport is an excellent opportunity for people to make connections with others. Still, it’s a little more challenging to create a team when you do a virtual program. For example, there is such a thing as Zoom fatigue, which happens when too much happens remotely. Nevertheless, you could create excellent sports programs and get a committed group of followers, and team-building helps.
1. Getting to Know Others With Two Truths and a Lie
The team-building exercise of two truths and a lie is one that’s been around for a long time. And, it’s a great way to have people who don’t know each other learn about each other. During each session, designate at least one person from the group who’ll share two truths and a lie with others. Essentially, they’ll reveal two things that are true about them and one that isn’t. During the Zoom call and before your sports training, others in the group decide which one is the lie. Everyone should take a guess, and then the answer is revealed. This team-building exercise is sure to get some laughs and engagement.
2. Creating a Team with Virtual Bingo
Bingo’s another game that’s been around for years. And the chances are that when some of your club or group members were young, they played it. To play a round or two of virtual bingo before you get started for team-building, send the bingo cards to people in advance of your Zoom call through text, messaging, or email. You could then use bingo number generators, available online or with apps to call out random numbers. To make the virtual bingo game more fun, think about giving away a prize to the winner of the game. Giving away a fun prize will bring on some fun competition.
3. Play a Zoom Whiteboard Game
As people on your call will know, Zoom has a whiteboard feature. Although this feature is usually used for brainstorming and business training work, it’s also something you could use for sports team-building. For example, you could play a couple of games of tic-tac-toe or Pictionary. For instructions on how to share a whiteboard in Zoom, you could find the instructions here. Another note, on this one. Whiteboard functionality is excellent for playing a team-building game. But, it’s also a great way to brainstorm or develop chemistry within sports teams.
4. Trivia Team-Building Exercises
So, let’s say that you lead a running club or racing group. Another fun team-building activity you could do is trivia. For runners, you could research and get 10 questions together, with some questions as follows. What’s the average finishing time for men and women for a marathon? How fast do elite runners a mile? Who are world record holders, such as with the women’s 50K world record? Again, if you want to create a little friendly competition, then all you have to do is to have a few fun prizes and give-aways.
5. Rapid Q&A Ice Breaker Questions
If you want to get a group of people together who will enjoy a class or training and get to know each other, asking quick Q&A questions about people is one of the best ways to do it. Ice-breakers should be short, fun, and easy for team-building. Fortunately, there are hundreds of questions you could ask. Check out this list of 160 ice-breaker questions. The questions are simple and easy to answer. For example, some of the questions include the following. What’s your favorite podcast? Do you prefer coffee or tea? Are you a dog or cat person?
In sum, when you do a little bit of team-building in advance of your sports training class, you get people more engaged. It’s an excellent way to involve people more in your training by increasing their level of participation. And playing into human nature, where people get to know who they train or work out with, is an excellent way for you to make your sessions more engaging and fun for everyone! In short, more people will want to join your group if you give them an excellent value.
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