Fun Outdoor Team Building Activities and Exercises

-->

Regardless of whether you are working with organizations in a professional environment, colleagues, or even a team of kids, everyone can benefit from team building activities. Some of the best and most fun team building activities and exercises are done outside. This gives colleagues and teams, particularly those who work or go to school indoors most of the time, a chance to get out and experience the fresh air, have some fun, and learn something new and valuable.

So what are some of these activities that you can do for your team? Some activities include simple games that involve all team members while others may be more brainteasers. All in all, it’s up to the project manager or team supervisor or manager to determine which games would be best suited for teams. You can even include team involvement to see which would be the most popular or which would be the most fun for teams.

Ultimately, teambuilding activities and exercises should reach at least several of the following common goals and outcomes, according to Out of the Square Experience:

·      Teamwork and team spirit

·      Communication

·      Leadership

·      Problem solving skills

·      Planning and goal setting

·      Cooperation

·      Team introductions

·      Establish team relationships

Why outdoors?

First off, who doesn’t like to be outside? Especially when the weather is beautiful. Human beings thrive off sunlight, which gives us Vitamin D, which is a crucial vitamin to our health. So aside from the health benefits of being outside, teambuilding activities are best held outside because they also place everyone on a solid, common ground. Outside or unpredictable events or unfamiliar territories can also resemble or relate to different business environments or structures, particularly those situations that may have decreased morale in a business or organizational setting, or that may have made team members and coworkers uncomfortable. This is why being outside also helps those involved and participating to let loose and feel more comfortable.

While most of these sound like a lot of fun, especially the “playing outside” part, the fact is, most people, regardless of age or gender, dislike teambuilding activities initially. They are one of those “ice breaking” moments that most people dread and roll their eyes at. However, prior to breaking out the activities, perhaps spend some time with teams and explain why and how teambuilding can be so effective. It’s not solely about meeting others or even playing games, it also can be a learning experience. If you were to interview or survey teams prior to engaging in a particular teambuilding activity, most would claim they are uncomfortable or dread them. However, if you were to survey the same team afterwards, nine times out of ten team members would admit to at least one thing they learned during the exercises.

All in all, when people relax and loosen up and are having fun and are engaging in activities and exercises, they are learning, developing, and utilizing new skills that can be used in the work place, in their teams, and even when working on projects or in their day to day tasks. Most of all, teambuilding teaches attitude and helps break negative attitude trends and promotes healthy communication. 

HOCKEY PLAYER IN ACTION
© Kiankhoon | Dreamstime.com

© 2010, 2011, 2012, J.H. Language Solutions

*This topic was written and posted by J.H. Language Solutions on behalf of a third party.  J.H. Language Solutions in no way assumes ownership of the content above.