14 Icebreaker Games to Start Your Virtual Meetings off Right

Visit the Marshmallow Challenge website for more information. This version has an extra debriefing question added with sample questions focusing on roles within the team. Paper Telephone is a mix of two methods, “Telephone” and “Pictionary”.

  • If your team enjoys Two Truths and a Lie, tailor it to family lore.
  • This is a game where you have to solve riddles and puzzles to escape the room you’re put in.

Encourage the group to really get into their roles and provide some example questions to guide the group toward the topic of the day. Pick a phrase that is central to the reason you’ve gathered and have everyone write down or say a word that comes to their mind in relation to it. If you’re leading a meeting about planning an upcoming project, ask participants to share one word that they think describes the goal or the processes that are needed.

#30. Online escape room

Prompt your coworkers to get to know each other better by describing their hometowns or nearest city. Instead, everyone should pick a name, city product, or another notable fact. Your coworkers can pitch ideas while a timer counts down to develop their confidence, communication, and relationships. Finally, stop having a boring chit-chat at the start of calls—no more endless talk about the weather, and, more importantly, build deeper connections with the people on your team. Give your colleagues a thought-provoking question to ponder, then pair them randomly using breakout rooms (check whether your video conferencing tool allows for it).

Ask everyone to take a photo of the view from their closest window. Each person can take their turn showing off their photo and explaining their circumstances. This is also a great way for team mates to learn about each other and get more context about everyone’s situations. An icebreaker should not be too long, or it will take time away from the actual meeting. Icebreakers typically last anywhere from 5 minutes to 20 minutes.

icebreaker games for virtual meetings

And we all need that now and then, especially when working in isolation. What’s more, you don’t even have to think up quiz questions. Our ‘magic cube’ random question generator will do that for you. Without saying directly what they see, they should describe it to their pair without using words that clearly give it away.

online meeting ice breakers

Prepare a set of inspirational quotes prior to the session and the number of participants on individual slips of paper. Each participant picks up one quote, then picks a partner and begins to discuss what the quote says to them, if it is meaningful, and how. Sharing customs and values from your childhood can create more understanding and help form stronger bonds – a hallmark of a good icebreaker. This method is an adaptation of the well-known ice breaker ‘Two Truths And A Lie’ to create an activity that can be run throughout a day of a meeting or workshop. Days before the meeting ask your coworkers to send you a picture of their home office. Every Monday (or day you choose), share a picture of the office and they need to guess whose office is that one.

Share Your Feelings

Now that you have 100 virtual ice breaker questions at the ready, that means 100 more opportunities for your team to bond and become closer than ever before. Virtual work can be slightly isolating, especially without human interaction in the smallest forms like meeting at the coffee machine or having small talk in the elevator. Virtual team ice breakers can break down communication icebreakers for virtual meetings barriers, encourage creativity and collaboration while also decreasing feelings of isolation. Incorporate more laughter and philosophical thought into your virtual meetings to boost productivity, creativity and collaboration. On-site meeting participants can use sheets of paper, while team members joining remotely can use an empty Google doc or a virtual whiteboard.

Doing this icebreaker in a small group means you have more time to share what people came up with and the journey you all went on together. Once their avatar is ready, they “upload” themselves by sticking their card to the wall. Then they find the people they know and draw lines to make the connections. This is one of our favourite ice breakers when working with large, multi-discipline groups where connections might not be immediately obvious. Have everyone acknowledge and thank each other for surpassing expectations. This is a great mood booster – by lifting each other up, the energy just starts to vibrate in the room.

– great for medium size events where participants come from different organisations. All participants will need a 5×8 index card and access to markers or something similar to draw their avatar. They will also need a substantial wall covered in butcher paper to create the actual network. Once everyone has shared their phrases, discuss the results. This ice breaker helps explore different viewpoints about a common challenge, before starting the meeting.

  • There will be a lot to talk about, maybe even some arguments about which candy or which movie is the best.
  • It’s fun, dynamic, and easy to play with, especially for virtual meetings.
  • As you kick off your meeting, ask your teammates to post their highlights in an open text poll.
  • Many people have great memories from a childhood scavenger hunt.
  • Ask everyone to take a photo of the view from their closest window.

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