There’s a good reason why winter holidays hold such a special place in our hearts. They’re heartwarming. They’re different. They’re anything but mundane.
And that’s precisely what you’d expect a winter-themed team building to be like.
Unfortunately, if you already did a quick search online, you’ve probably seen that most websites follow the same formula:
- Take an everyday team building activity.
- Label it “winter team building”.
- There’s no step 3.
We’re here to put an end to this injustice.
As the year comes to an end, you'll also find these articles helpful:
- 5 Christmas team building activities that spark joy
- 9 fun and festive virtual holiday team building activities
- Our team’s 7 favorite thankful team building activities
- 14 gift ideas to show your employees you care
1. Join an ice sculpting workshop
Winter score: ❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️
Remote friendly: No
Time needed: 1.5-3 hours
This fun winter team building activity is guaranteed to bring some festive spirit even to the teams located in the warmer climates. Team up with your workmates for a brand new experience and practice invaluable soft skills together, such as collaboration, creativity, and problem-solving.
You will need a professional instructor to provide supplies, explain the process, observe and curate your experience, and monitor safety guidelines. Fortunately, there are plenty of vendors there, such as:
- Techne Ice (US)
- Icebox (UK)
- Ice art (Europe)
2. Get together for a quick DIY session
Winter score: ❄️❄️❄️❄️
Remote friendly: Yes
Time needed: 1.5-2 hours
Nothing says “team building” better than a DIY project you’ve completed alongside your colleagues! Use your creativity to source the ingredients, work together or organize a small competition, and turn dated winter team building activities into an exciting experience you could be looking forward to!
Some of the things you could be working with:
- Bring an average sweater and turn it into the Christmas Ugly Sweater;
- Craft and send out handmade winter-themed postcards;
- Decorate your doorway with a DIY winter wreath with your company’s colors.
Take your online team building to a new level with these resources:
- The complete list of virtual team building activities for remote teams
- Must-have apps for an exciting team building
3. Prepare a winter feast with your team
Winter score: ❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️
Remote friendly: Could be
Time needed: 2-3 hours
Winter holidays are almost synonymous with food, so why not do your winter team building the traditional way? Choose some of your favorite winter recipes (think: gingerbread cookies, turkey, casseroles, cinnamon buns, etc.) and get to cooking!
The best part is that this sort of winter-themed team building is suitable for virtually any team:
- If you all go to the office, you could prepare dishes at home at get together for a festive potluck party;
- If you work remotely, you can choose the same recipe and cook online together to later share the meal with your loved ones;
- If you operate on a hybrid model, you could always get together in the office (or rented) kitchen and experience all the ups and downs of a festive dinner, from selecting the ingredients through the cooking mayhem to the actual feast.
Check out this article for more food-related ideas for team building.
4. Play winter team building games and sports
Winter score: ❄️❄️❄️❄️
Remote friendly: No
Time needed: 1-3 hours
If the weather allows it, opt-in for a fun day packed with outdoor winter team building activities. This would be an excellent opportunity for you to reconnect with your inner child, exercise, and see your colleagues from a brand new perspective.
Some of the team building activities you could try in winter are:
- skiing;
- snowboarding;
- ice skating;
- snowmobiling;
- snowshoeing;
- and more!
Make sure every participant is familiar with the sport or is accompanied by a qualified instructor to avoid accidents. Have fun responsibly!
Or play it safe with these evergreen activities
Winter score: ❄️❄️
Remote friendly: Yes
Time needed: 15+ minutes
Of course, you could say that whatever team building activity you try in winter can be considered a winter team building activity. And even though we encourage you to go all out with your winter team building, you’d be absolutely right! After all, you may not want to spend too much time on the events that will accompany you throughout the season.
So if you seek some evergreen ideas on how to spend some quality time with your team this winter, here’s what other companies do:
- Organize your very own game-show extravaganza team building
- Keep yourselves warm with unconventional office Olympics
- Improve your problem-solving in an online escape room
- Host a quick safe-for-work teambuilding session
- Meet online for free virtual team building
- Strengthen your team dynamics with communication-based team building games
- Kick off the new year by working on your leadership skills
Stay warm, stay tight, stay awesome!
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