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Team Building exercises are important in establishing or keeping a group together. They are different from ice breakers because they require an individual to share more than normal or to step our of their comfort zone.

When to Use Team Building Exercises:

• A new group is formed
• New members have joined the group
• Members have been apart for while (i.e., after breaks)
• Members seem apathetic or irritable
• Members appear to be going off in different directions
• Members are drifting away from the group
• There is a great deal of conflict
• You want a break from the normal routine
• You want to boost team spirit
• The organization is not functioning as a team
• Organizational goals need to be focused on

Sample Team Building Exercises

Eavesdropping

1. Ask for two volunteers and tell them to go across the room and have a 3-5 minute conversation about anything they would like. Tell them the following: "Try to discuss something that is meaningful to both of you. Talk in very low voices. The rest of us are not supposed to be able to hear you. If we can hear you, I'll clap my hands. The clap will be a signal that you should lower your voices.
2. Tell the rest of the group the following: "We are going to eavesdrop on the conversation that these two are having. However, since we won't be able to hear them, we'll have to use other means for guessing what they are discussing. Observe them closely; look at their nonverbal behaviors and body language. Try to guess what they are talking about."
3. Let the conversation begin.
4. After the conversation is stopped, ask the observers to write what they believe the conversation was about.
5. Have the observers take turns reading aloud what they wrote. Once that is done, ask the volunteers to explain what they were talking about.
6. Ask the following questions:
   • What nonverbal behaviors and body language cues did you note as the reason for your guess?
   • Who guessed correctly and why?
   • Who was wrong and why?
   • How did the volunteers choose their topic?
   • How did it feel (the volunteers) to know that others were eavesdropping on your conversation?
   • What have you learned about nonverbal behavior and body language?
7. Repeat steps 3-6 with other volunteers.

Fill in the Blank

1. Have members sit in a circle (split large groups into smaller groups).
2. As you read the following open-ended statements, have each member fill in the rest of the statement (one at a time).
   You may want to take notes to refer to later.
   • I joined this organization because…
   • The biggest asset I bring to this organization is…
   • My biggest fear about what can happen this semester in this organization is…
   • Last semester, I was most proud of our organization for…
   • I feel the organization could have done __________ better last semester.
   • The other members of this organization can expect ________ from me.
   • It is important to me that this organization accomplish…

Note: Sometimes it is more effective to have an outsider facilitate the team building so that all members can work together. Problem-solving team builders can be especially helpful and are usually experiential.

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