A great way to boost morale and offer your workers some organized fun is by planning a team-building event. Team events are a great way to reduce employee stress, facilitate bonding with team members and simply allow your employees to get to know one another outside of work.
But what’s the best team building activity to bring the office together and boost productivity?
If you try googling ideas for a great team outing, the endless results are a little overwhelming. Certain team outing ideas may not be suitable for all of your employees. Here is one sure-fire team building activity that is bound to offer your employees buckets of fun.
A Poker Tournament For Team-Building
Poker is a relatively simple game that people can play at any skill level and easily learn on the fly. It is the perfect game for employees in any field with any kind of background. No matter how big or small your team is, you can easily include everyone in a game of poker. It is also a relatively low-cost activity. You can rent or buy affordable poker sets and even use this free poker app to keep track of your games.
A game of poker gives you the ability to add in bonus incentives for the winners to encourage some friendly competition. A poker themed team-building event is also a great way to build camaraderie in an educational and entertaining environment.
Not only is poker a fun activity for your employees but poker can actually teach and sharpen your team’s business skills by helping them:
- Learn how to take bold and calculated risks
- Build relationships and connect with their team
- Give them a chance to exercise their confidence
- Gain experience reading non-verbal cues and understand what people are really communicating with their body language
- Focus on how to handle challenging negotiation situations
Overall this unique team building activity will help grow your team’s core leadership skills by improving communication, helping them learn new effective strategies, improving productivity and by encouraging adaptability.
Improving Communication
A casual night out playing poker is a wonderful way for your employees to destress and enjoy an evening with their coworkers. Giving your employees the rare opportunity to relax and get to know each other on a more informal basis will encourage bonding. With these newly formed bonds, overall communication is likely to improve across your organization.
Learning Effective Strategies
When broken down, poker is a game of critical thinking and strategy. Your employees will have the opportunity to compete with one another and be forced to pick up on nonverbal cues. Becoming a master at reading body language is a necessary skill for a prized negotiator.
Improving Productivity
Productive employees are happy employees. It is as simple as that. Giving your employees the opportunity to really relax and enjoy a fun night out will result in improved employee happiness and morale. When your employees are content, their productivity will soar.
Adaptability
To be a champion poker player (or at least the last chip leader standing) you have to be extremely adaptable. An individual’s strategy will change dramatically as they advance throughout the game and their opponents change. Poker requires an element of fast subconscious decision making which is an incredibly valuable trait for any core employee.
Lasting Benefits of A Team-Building Event
Hosting a fun and relaxed poker night for your employees is bound to lead to enjoyable memories that will last for quarters to come! The laid-back atmosphere is perfect to encourage your team to develop friendships and enjoy a night off. A poker themed team event is truly the perfect team building experience for any office.