When you hear the phrase ‘team-building’, how does it make you feel?
Some people shudder in fear and wish they didn’t have to take part, whilst others are all for it. The problem is, many team building sessions in the past have been focused on the wrong areas and as a result, many employees see them as totally pointless.
There is a very strong and important point to team building days - it helps to cultivate strong working relationships between colleagues which could help everyone learn to deal with mental health issues in the workplace and other problems far more effectively. When everyone is getting along, when there is a bond of trust, and when employees feel confident confiding in one another, the entire picture within the contemporary office is a far more positive and uplifting one.
There are many team-building exercises you can try and it really comes down to finding options which fit the needs and characters of those in your team. However, there are also several rules which should be applied to team building days, to help make them a fun and productive use of your time.
- Don’t push people - You might have some introverted or even shy employees who don’t want to be dancing around in the middle of a circle or doing something which they feel extremely uncomfortable with. In that case, make sure you have a varied range of activities to suit everyone and don’t make anyone partake in an activity which makes them fearful or upset.
- Get away from the regular office environment - Whilst it’s possible to turn your office into a team-building location for the day, it’s a better environment to get out of the office and somewhere neutral. This helps to break down barriers and let’s be honest, nobody wants to be seeing their office desk for longer than they need to anyway!
- Ask for suggestions - What types of activities do your employees want to see? Ask them for suggestions and ideas and this will help everyone to feel bonded together as a team. You could have a brainstorming session around the modern boardroom tables beforehand to try and find out as many ideas as possible.
- Encourage everyone to mingle - It’s very easy for colleagues to stick to the same groups, but it’s a good idea to encourage everyone to mingle and work with those they don’t normally spend time with. This will widen the team circle and help to encourage more collaboration too.
- Focus on building trust - Trust is a vital aspect for healthy teams, so make sure that the activities you choose have a trust element to them. This will also help in knocking down the stigma which still unfairly relates to mental health in the workplace problems.
Team-building days aren’t a waste of time provided they’re organised properly and employees are firmly on board with them. Don’t push people beyond their limits and make sure that you encourage everyone to mingle with people they don’t normally speak to. You should also do plenty of pre-planning and ask for suggestions to make sure that employees feel included in the planning sessions and that they understand what the team building day is for.
At the end of the day, healthy employees are productive employees, but there are many different problems which can arise within a working environment. For instance, stress can easily lead to depression and anxiety, and these are all problems which for some reason, people still don’t feel comfortable discussing.
If you can build up the trust between employees and create a ‘one for all and all for one’ atmosphere, people will feel far more able to talk openly and share their problems, rather than keeping everything bottled up. You should also include a session on mental health in the workplace within your team building days - this is a great opportunity to raise awareness and promote different healthy ways to cope with problems such as this.