Organising a team building activity your entire team will love, while growing better bonds among co-workers to function more effectively as a whole, may seem like a simple task – but striking the perfect balance between business objectives and having fun can be quite a juggling act!

The secret is to stay true to the heart and soul of your business – your colleagues and the unique company culture they embody. By honouring who they are in your choice of activities and the setting, you gain their trust and create a relaxed atmosphere.

In fact, when Forbes magazine asked 14 members of their Coaches Council for input on the main ingredients of successful team-building activities, trust featured prominently as it creates a safe space for meaningful connections to be made, and team members can let their guard down.

They also emphasised that equality gives activities an added edge. When egos get the boot, titles and hierarchy are forgotten and colleagues are divided into teams that don’t represent your company’s management structure, new connections and collaborations are multiplied. And when bosses roll up their sleeves and participate on the same level as everyone else, the element of trust is even more entrenched.

4 Steps to Team Building Success

Apart from trust and letting go of rank and file, successful team-building activities share some other key ingredients:

1. An inclusive spirit: Keep the interests, likes, dislikes and sensitivities of all team members in mind to make sure that everyone feels valued and considered. When they know they’re not disregarded, judged or evaluated – and can just be themselves and think out of the box – it improves performance all round.
2. All for one and one for all: Great team-building activities facilitate working as one well-oiled machine – preferably in situations that require a variety of skills being pulled together towards a common goal. Whether it’s learning a new skill or developing better team relationships – there’s a positive take-home message at the end.
3. Shake things up! Challenging comfort levels is one of the best ways to level the playing field and getting thrown into the deep end together is a fantastic way to forge new bonds with colleagues. It also lays the foundation for resourceful ways to tackle work challenges in future.
4. Healthy competition: There’s just no better way to add excitement, sharpen everyone’s focus and get each team member to perform at their best!

Cape Town Put Foot Challenge : An amazing race on foot

10 activities that’ll knock off their socks

Underneath all the ­­fun and games, very useful skills, processes and ways of working better and smarter are embedded in team-building activities that pack a punch.

For example, a Mobile Treasure Hunt using a live mobile app will give the geek in your team a chance to shine, while inspiring everyone else to become more tech savvy as they learn to take better videos and upload them in a jiffy. Activities like these require teams to be creative, solve problems, communicate clearly and strategize on the go as they navigate their way against the clock.

Pursuits like the CSI Forensic Challenge – complete with clues from a recent murder scene – turns everyone into forensic specialists. Using genuine sleuthing techniques to piece the evidence together, the task calls for lateral thinking, common sense and careful planning. And while team members solve the crime together, valuable collaboration skills are entrenched that knit them closer together.

Of course, being a team player comes naturally when your group’s Braai Master status is at stake in an Ultimate Survivor-style Cook-Off; and making the most of a diversity of surprising skills really comes into play if you opt for a day filled with Beach Olympics – think everything from energetic volleyball to croquet for those who are serious about technique.

Red Bus Peninsula Amazing Race - Discover & Explore the Cape

Need More Team Building Ideas?

Red Bus Peninsula Amazing Race: The Hop-on Hop-off Red City Bus is the perfect mode of transport to zip from one hotspot to another while competing in an adrenaline-fuelled challenge like this.

Elgin Outdoor Adventures: For a team that prefers a slower pace and getting away from it all, being surrounded by forest, vineyards, mountains and lakes while kayaking and zorbing – and enjoying a goumet braai – is just the ticket to create lasting bonds.

Put Foot Challenges: Whether it’s a one-day exploration of the heart of the Mother City or an overnight experience in the heart of the Winelands, nobody will be bored on an adventure like this! With a whole range of tasks to be completed and noteworthy pitstops included en route, teams are literally kept on their toes from start to finish as they bargain, play and taste their way to the finish line.

Survivor Braai Cook Off - Discover the ingredients for success

Ready when you are

At Team Orange, the key elements ensuring successful team-building activities are part and parcel of how we operate as a business – and this enables us to seamlessly coordinate team-builders that suit our clients to a T. From suspenseful murder mysteries and exhilarating races to relaxing sports-filled days – all of the activities above are part of Team Orange’s offering.

Our years of experience in activities that infuse teams with renewed enthusiasm just show how much we love organising them for our clients. And as we keep hearing in the feedback we receive, they strike that perfect balance between strengthening the bonds within teams and providing unfiltered fun – which is after all the true measure of team-building success!