Easy Office-Based Team Building Ideas #11

Last time on Easy Office-Based Team Building Ideas, we looked at fitting your team building into packed schedules by utilising your lunch hour. But there's another way to strengthen bonds and boost motivation without taking up masses of precious work time, by using a technique we call the Long-Term Team Build.

The idea behind the Long-Term Team Build is that one person puts a simple, fun activity in place that then pops up in very short bursts over the course of many weeks, months or even years!

The beauty of this idea is that once the seed has been planted, it takes care of itself and needs little further organising or planning; you don't even need to make sure that everyone is available to take part at any particular time. Furthermore, this style of team build results in frequent, short bursts of motivation, maintaining the good vibes for a longer period.

Our Top Three Long-Term Team Builds

The Sweepstake

If the Monday blues are an ongoing issue for your team, then a sweepstake could be a great idea for kicking off the week. Take any popular event happening over the weekend, such as sports games and TV talent shows, and turn it into a weekly motivation booster. At the beginning of a sports season or talent show series, have people pick names of teams or contestants from a hat. If their team or contestant is kicked out of the tournament over the weekend, they have to bring in a small treat, such as a tin of biscuits, the following week. The person who picks the winner wins a prize! (Be sure to pick something that has enough teams/contestants for at least one per employee - if you have any left over toss a coin or ask people to complete forfeits for the honour of getting to pick two!)

Our favourite sweepstake is based around The Great British Bake Off - we had one client who told us how they really took this idea to town. The treats the losers brought in each week had to be based around that week's Bake Off theme - cakes, desserts, biscuits, and so on, and they even made masks of 'their' contestants to wear each week!

Office Bingo

The concept of Office Bingo couldn't be simpler - everyone gets a bingo card like the one above, and when something happens to fit one of the squares, they cross it off! It works best on a 'first come first served basis' - so the moment there's a delivery, for example, only one person can declare that they are crossing off a square - no one else can have it. The first person to get a line wins a small prize, and to keep the momentum going you may want to consider another prize for a 'full house'.

You can either make your own, print off our version here, or do a Google image search for 'office bingo' for more ideas.

Photo Tag

Another simple yet effective idea, Photo Tag will have you looking at your office in a whole new light! To begin the game, take a photo of some obscure part of your office - the corner of a window frame, the light fitting in the boardroom - and email it to the rest of the office. Everyone gets one guess at where the photo was taken, and the winner has to take the next week's photo. If no one guesses correctly, the person who took the photo has to take another go, with the game getting more difficult - but also much funnier - as the weeks go on and there are fewer places to choose from.

If you need something more than our quick refreshers, check out our amazing, professional team building events on our website, or call 0845 006 06 06 for a chat with our lovely sales team.

Team Building in Liverpool - The Team Adventure Treasure Hunt

We were recently in the delightful city of Liverpool to run our Team Adventure event - a fast paced and exciting treasure hunt that sees guests split into teams that compete for victory throughout the city. Armed with iPads with GPS mapping and a series of challenges that evolve as the activity progresses, there's never a moment to lose in this high energy team build!

Here's what our client had to say:

The event sold itself to my team the minute the event organisers got out the iPads and digital cameras. This immediately made my team realise that this was a well organised event and not just a few sheets of paper and a go find mission. My team haven't fully come back with their feedback yet, but a few have said "best team building ever" "brilliant when's the next"... so as you can see well received. It was simply great, did what I asked and surprised a team of 30 people who have done tonnes of team building over their careers.

We run team building events throughout the UK and Europe. Take a look at the Team Adventure, browse some other treasure hunts, read some more client testimonials or simply give us a call on 0845 006 0606 to discuss your brief with our team.

Team Building in Windsor - Champion Chariots at Oakley Court

We were recently at Oakley Court in Windsor to run one of our most popular creative team building events - Champion Chariots! The first challenge for the guests is to assemble their chariots from the high quality kit provided - there are no instructions for this so each team must work together to achieve their goal.

Next comes decorating the chariots and the team themselves, before testing the overall design with a vigorous timed obstacle course.

Champion Chariots is a fantastic event for creative teams. From the problem solving involved with the initial build to the flamboyant nature of the final decorated chariot, it is an event that allows your team to let their hair down and express themselves!

Give our team a call on 0845 006 0606 to discuss which creative team building event would be right for your group.

Team Building in Buckinghamshire - Club Cocktail at The Crazy Bear in Beaconsfield

We were recently at the Crazy Bear in Beaconsfield to run our Club Cocktail event - where guests are given expert tutelage in the art of good cocktail making and then let loose on a whole range of spirits, mixers, fruits and syrups to try it for themselves! Club Cocktail is a great piece of indoor team building, and works as an event in its own right or as part of a full day of activities. As well as the 'art' of cocktail preparation guests will create some classic drinks, such as Manhattans, Whisky Sours and Mai Tais.

Then guests will put their new skills and knowledge to the test, crafting their own signature cocktails and innovative shots!

Club Cocktail is great as a reward for your team - why not add it to your next conference program? It fits in perfectly as a pre-dinner activity, and is a great way of engaging teams to work together on creative projects!

Give our team a call on 0845 006 0606 to find out more.

Treasure Hunts in Edinburgh - The Sherlock Adventure

We recently took to the rolling hills and delightful cobbled streets of Edinburgh for our increasingly popular themed team building treasure hunt - The Sherlock Adventure! At first glance perhaps a strange location for a Sherlock themed event, but look a little closer and you'll see that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Homles' creator, was not only born in Edinburgh but attended the world famous university here too!

So what better place (other than perhaps Baker Street in London) for our teams to race through the streets as recently employed consulting detectives!

Teams had to meet a series of Holmsian characters, from notorious criminal Shinwell Johnson to 'Young' Molly Scarlet, the Gin Palace Wench, gathering clues in an attempt to thwart the latest dastardly plans of the Napoleon of crime himself - Professor Moriarty!

Themed treasure hunts are fantastic for injecting some healthy competition and a lot of fun into your team building. Whether your team are local to the area or just visiting, we work hard to uncover the most fascinating and compelling details to concoct challenges for all abilities.

Give us a call on 0845 006 0606 to discuss how a themed treasure hunt could help to bring your team together!

Team Building in Hertfordshire - Rule the World at Down Hall

The sun was out in all its glory last week at Down Hall Country House Hotel in Hertfordshire for a high energy, outdoor team building event - Rule the World.

With a 35ft Monopoly style board, a massive variety of physical and mental challenges, a full size bank and jail and a Gamesmaster with a long list of forfeits up his sleeve, Rule the World is non stop entertainment!

Teams roll the dice to make their way around our massive board, challenging other teams to games of skill and teamwork to increase their funds, trying desperately to stay out of jail in the process.

The event climaxes in a frenzied land grab as teams buy and sell countries, charging other teams for landing on their shores and hoping that by the end they’ll have enough of a monopoly to Rule the World!

Event Manager Katrina Shoesmith said:

This is a great event for teams of any size. The sheer variety of the challenges means there's something for everyone, and the forfeits are hilarious -  everything from performing a 'haka' to synchronised swimming - without the water!

To explore which type of event would be perfect for your team, give us a call on 0845 006 0606 or visit our main site!

CCC Events Launch New Site

We're very proud to announce that we have a new resource for all your team building needs - CCC Events!

We have created a site with the intention of having everything at your fingertips, from event ideas to venue suggestions. Combined with our lightning quick response time, professional advice and free venue finding service, we are ready to assist you when it's time to take your team building to the next level!

Easy Office-Based Team Building Ideas #10

At CCC Events, we're big advocates of the benefits of regularly coming together as a team away from the stresses of everyday working life. The advantages of taking off your 'work hats' for a while and getting together in a relaxed environment are numerous - better working relationships, higher morale and increased productivity to name just a few. However, the number one reason many of our clients find it difficult to make this happen is lack of time; there's always things to be done and urgent tasks to attend to. Therefore, today's edition of Easy Office-Based Team Building Ideas looks at how you can slot fun team building activities right into your lunch break. Spending lunchtime with colleagues can strengthen bonds immeasurably, and having an activity to focus on will break the ice and carry the benefits over into the afternoon.

The key to lunchtime-based team building is to keep it light; it is people's free time, after all, so look at this more as 'lunch time entertainment' and make participation optional. You'll find that with enough prior notice, most people will want to get involved in something different to their usual deli run or desk picnic, and may even make it a regular activity off their own backs. Try any of the activities below or do a different one each week!

• Retro Boardgames

Simple yet effective, you can't beat the humble boardgame when it comes to creating light-hearted banter! Ask everyone to bring their favourite from home, then set up a designated 'arena' for the games to take place. To keep things relaxed, let people play whomever and whatever they like, but play against the clock - so when the lunch hour is up, whoever is in the lead wins, regardless of whether that game has finished. Our favourites are Jenga, Scrabble and good old Snakes and Ladders.

• Pot Luck Lunch

For a lunchtime feast that'll beat boring sandwiches any day, hold a Pot Luck Lunch. Everyone brings one dish - easily portable things like pasta salad, cold cuts, quiches and cakes work best - and shares them out at lunchtime. It's a lot more sociable than going out separately, and if you have any culinary geniuses amongst you, you'll get to enjoy the best lunchtime treats you've had in a long time.

• Get Arty

Getting artistic at the office actually works best for teams who think they have no creative skill whatsoever - taken with a big pinch of salt, creative lunchtimes can be a fun way of activating the parts of your brain you haven't used since primary school. Keep it simple with the materials - at the very least you'll need some paper and pens, but you can add felt tips or coloured pencils if you like. If you're already quite close as a team, a brilliant starting point is to pair up and draw one another's portraits - it's not for the easily offended, but in the right circumstances this activity can leave you crying with laughter.

• The Great Outdoors

We know the weather can be grim, but that's even more reason to take advantage when the it's not raining and get outside for a bit. Office lighting and heating can make people sluggish and demotivated, and even just a short burst of fresh air and vitamin D can boost moods and productivity. No need to get the hiking boots out - a quick group stroll to a nearby cafe (we find the promise of hot chocolate can persuade many) works wonders. Blow away the cobwebs and you'll return invigorated and positive - we promise.

• Start a Club

If you're an office of literature lovers, then a book club can be a great way of structuring lunchtime team bonding.  Simply take it in turns to choose a new book each month (there are some great suggestions here), decide on where you'll all read up to before your next meeting, and get together one lunchtime to discuss! If books aren't your bag, then choose something that is - the sky's the limit on this one! Running, card games, crochet; whatever you're into, put the feelers out and form a club - you might be surprised at who shows an interest!

For professional, corporate team building events to suit your schedule - from one-hour icebreakers to full day programmes - visit CCC Events or call us on 0845 006 06 06.

Easy Office-Based Team Building Ideas #9

Today's Easy Office-Based Team Building Idea takes TV classic Would I Lie To You? and turns it into a simple yet effective icebreaker tool that is both fun and effective. You'll learn unusual facts about one another, promoting team bonding, but you'll also be in stitches as usually-reserved colleagues try to convince you that they were once Judo champions!

To prepare for this exercise, ask each person who will be taking part to submit one or two unusual stories or facts about themselves that none of their colleagues are aware of. Tell people in advance what the stories will be used for, so that they only submit stories they are happy sharing and can have a think about personal facts that may surprise - and fool - others.

Meanwhile, it's your responsibility to come up with the 'Lies' that you will give out during the exercise. Be careful not to give anything that may be potentially embarrassing; judge it on how close you are as a team and how forthcoming people normally are. Here are some ideas to get you going:

• For two weeks I drove a car that could only turn left
• I used to speak French fluently, but have forgotten all of it
• I once won first place in my home town's windsurfing championships
• Until last Christmas I thought reindeer were mythical creatures
• I am a Grade 8 clarinet player
• I once wrote fan mail to Jason Donovan...and got a reply
• My middle name used to be 'Rainbow', so I changed it
• I was once interviewed by MI5 to be a spy
• I used to be in a rock band called 'Skullz'
• For two years my front door didn't lock properly so I leant an ironing board against it at night

Print each 'Lie' onto a separate piece of paper, and remember to write the word 'Lie' underneath, or use red ink to show it is false. Do the same with the 'Truths', writing 'True' or using green ink.

Then decide how many stories each person will tell - if you are short on time or there is a lot of you, just go for one per person. Decide who will tell their 'Truth' and who will tell one of your 'Lies' and pop the necessary pieces of paper into envelopes with the name of the person who will be reading them on the front. If you have more time, or there's only a small group taking part, you can give each person a few envelopes, one or two containing their 'Truths', the rest with your 'Lies' (make sure everyone gets the correct 'Truth'!) Allocating the 'Lies' yourself lends an element of surprise for everyone, but if you're short on time, you can always simply ask people to arrive with one truth and two lies of their own.

When you're ready to begin, explain the game and ask the first person to open an envelope. They must then relate what it says to the rest of the group, adding as much detail as they like, to convince them it is true. Other participants can then ask questions and discuss the answers to get more information and try to catch the main player out. Once everyone has asked a question, ask those who think it is a 'Lie' to raise their hand. Ask the main player to reveal the truth by turning the paper around for everyone to see, and give a point to those who were correct. If the main player gets a 'Truth' in their envelope, they may choose to double-bluff the other players by seeming as though they are lying - again, anyone who guesses correctly gets a point.

Taking it Further

This exercise works wells as a short icebreaker before meetings, but you can also make a whole afternoon or evening of it by splitting people into teams of two or three and adding extra rounds. Classic rounds from the TV show include:

• Ring of Truth: Everyone takes part in guessing during this round. 'Facts' are read out about well-known celebrities and players must guess whether they are true or false. For example: 'David Beckham gave a copy of his autobiography to Nelson Mandela for Christmas.' (True!)
• This is My...: If your colleagues are up for a bit of pre-game preparation, ask everyone to bring an object to tell a story about. Allocate people 'True' or 'False' stories beforehand so that you have an even spread. For example: 'This a lock of Simon Cowell's hair that I bought on eBay.'
• Quick-Fire Lies: If you've been inundated with funny stories people wanted to share, consider ending with a quick-fire round. Go around each person individually, giving them one story, and tell them who the story was from. They must answer within 10 seconds, without asking any questions.

Our Easy Office-Based Team Building Ideas are amazing, but our Corporate Team Building Events are on another level! To find out more, visit our website or call 0845 006 06 06 for a chat.

CCC Jobs: Sales & Event Coordinator

We are now recruiting for a Sales & Event Coordinator to join the team at our head offices in Hove. To see details of all available positions, more information and details of how to apply, please go to www.cccevents.co.uk/jobs.

Jobs at CCC Events

Based at our head offices in Hove, we have the following positions available: Event Manager - join our operations team delivering award winning events to our clients. Venue Coordinator - join our office based team of friendly and professional coordinators.

For more information and details of how to apply, please go to www.cccevents.co.uk/jobs.

Team Building Venues: The Grand, Brighton

As you may have gathered from our Venue Profile series, we're pretty passionate about great venues here at CCC HQ. We love to keep up-to-date on all the best places to hold our team building events, wherever in the UK they may be, so that we can best advise our clients through our free venue-finding service. So when we received an email from the lovely folks at De Vere, titled simply 'The Grand Dame Rises', a prickle of excitement ran through us as we knew it could only mean one thing: the jewel in our home town's crown is back to her former glory.

The Grand, Brighton

At a Glance

• Recent multi-million-pound refurbishment, transforming bedrooms, dining and conference areas
• 13 meeting rooms, with the largest catering for up to 900 delegates
• Complimentary Wi-Fi in all public areas and meeting rooms
• Brand new spa, perfect for unwinding after your team building event
• Stunning sea views, sure to relax your delegates and get ideas and creativity flowing
• Fast, frequent train service from Brighton to Gatwick and Victoria

Why We Love It

We can be pretty biased when it comes to talking about our amazing home town of Brighton, but in this instance, it's entirely justified. Since beginning the refurbishment last year, De Vere have transformed this iconic piece of British history into a luxurious, opulent establishment that straddles the line between traditional and modern perfectly. The large, airy conference rooms are perfect for indoor team building events, and Brighton itself is the perfect backdrop for a corporate treasure hunt.

You may be visiting for business rather than pleasure, but The Grand allows you to blur the line between the two. Take advantage of the second-to-none business amenities that De Vere venues do so well, before relaxing in the spa or taking a stroll along the seafront - after all, why should the tourists have all the fun?

"The Grand has always been a CCC favourite, but the refurbishment has blown us all away - we'll be producing several team building events there this summer and we can't wait!"  - Ann Elcock, CCC Venue Co-ordinator

So you've got the perfect venue, but which team building event to choose? Check out the plethora of options available on our website or call 0845 006 06 06 to find out what's right for you and your team.

CCC Are Recruiting!

CCC are looking to recruit a full time Event Manager to join our friendly, professional team, working from our head offices in Hove.

For more information and details of how to apply, please go to www.cccevents.co.uk/jobs.

Easy Office-Based Team Building Ideas #8

Here at CCC Events, we get a massive buzz from motivating corporate groups through our fabulous team building events. But when the event day is over, we still want to help out - which is why we love our series on Easy Office Based Team Building Ideas. They are the perfect solution for those of you looking for quick, budget friendly motivators that you can run yourselves, between your 'official' team building days. This week, we are looking at Zoom, an illustrated book by Istvan Banyai, and how it can be utilised as a brilliant team building resource. Numerous corporate coaches use Zoom as a highly effective facilitation tool, but for a fraction of the cost it's easy to do it yourself.

Zoom is a world-renowned wordless children's book, written in 1995 and since published in 18 countries. Its illustrations take the reader though an amazing narrative as the eye of the reader 'zooms out' - see how it works here.

To apply Zoom as an easy motivational team building exercise, the only purchase you will need to make is of a couple of copies of the book, which is available for a couple of pounds here on Amazon. Separate and laminate the pages, shuffle them up and divide the pictures amongst your team.  Their task is then to arrange the pages in order of sequence, either 'zooming out' or 'zooming in'.

This is great energiser at the start of a small team meeting, but can also work as a fantastic icebreaker for large conferences. Simply prepare one page per person and place one at each table setting. Participants then have until the end of the conference to swap pages, the aim being that they can make up a complete sequence within their table. Swapping can be done during breaks or free time, providing a great conversation starter and encouraging plenty of networking.

Ready to take your team building to the next level? Check out our many amazing team building events on our website or call 0845 006 06 06 for a chat.

Team Motivation: Art for your Office #6

The latest in our series on team motivation reminds us that the application of every member is integral to achieving our goals as a team. If it's been a while since your last team building event and your team is lacking inspiration, the words of Vince Lombardi are sure to inspire.

Click here for a free, printable version of this poster.

Need a bigger boost? Give yourselves something to look forward to by planning your summer team building now! Visit our website or call 0845 006 06 06 for a chat.

Team Building Venues: Edinburgh Castle, Edinburgh

If your company organises a lot of corporate events, one conferencing venue can begin to look much like another after a while. But if you're after something a little bit different, somewhere that will impress your clients and make your team feel really valued, then read on! CCC Events has a huge wealth of experience when it comes to the perfect venue, as we've been producing events all over the UK and in Europe for over twenty years. Here on our blog we profile some of our favourites, and today we're looking at the dramatic and imposing Edinburgh Castle - the perfect venue for a grand, high-impact corporate event.

Edinburgh Castle, Scotland

At a Glance

• Amazing setting, steeped in history
• Fantastic views over the Edinburgh skyline
• 25 minutes from Edinburgh Airport by car
• Meeting rooms situated in the heart of the castle itself
• AV equipment included in your day delegate rate

Why We Love It

Nowadays, many historical listed buildings are forced to build separate conference centres in the grounds, as the original rooms just aren't suitable - but we love the fact that at Edinburgh Castle, this isn't the case. Our favourite private function space, The Queen Anne Building, is situated in the heart of the castle and your colleagues will be blown away by the breathtaking views and grandiose atmosphere. Being here is inspiring to say the least, so your team will be flowing with constructive ideas on how to push your company forward, and everyone will be talking about it for months to come.

"Edinburgh is one of my favourite cities - it's the perfect balance between historical and cosmopolitan. The Castle is an amazing venue, and as one of the most haunted places in the world, it's the ideal setting for a Murder Mystery" - Mike Horner, CCC Event Manager

Easy Office-Based Team Building Ideas #7

This week's Easy Office-Based Team Building Idea takes inspiration from the hit TV show Minute to Win It. It's the perfect solution if you're after low-budget yet high-octane team challenges that bring people together for a fun Friday afternoon.

The concept of Minute to Win It is simple: a range of (seemingly) straight-forward challenges are set, which participants must complete in 60 seconds or less in order to earn points for their team. The beauty of using this concept as a team building exercise is that once the clock starts ticking, it becomes highly competitive whilst also being very light-hearted; participants will be so focused on completing their challenge in under a minute that they won't care how silly they look whilst doing it!

To prepare for your Minute to Win It team building afternoon, begin by deciding which challenges you want to set. You can find a full list of challenges, as well as explanatory videos on the US Minute To Win It website, but some of our favourites are:

• Defying Gravity - tap 3 balloons to keep them off the ground for 60 seconds
• Floatacious - build a floating tower out of fizzy drink cans
• Noodling Around - pick up six pieces of penne pasta from a table using only one piece of uncooked spaghetti in your mouth
• Office Tennis - using only a clipboard, volley a ball of paper into a bin 15 feet away
• Roll With It - unspool two rolls of toilet paper at the same time, using only one hand for each

Once you've gathered everything you need, divide the group into teams. Present the first challenge (you can either explain it yourself or play the website's video on a computer or through a projector) and give the teams 30 seconds to nominate their first player. Have the players come up and compete one at a time, keeping track of their scores. Once they are done, move onto the next challenge until everyone has competed at least once. Be sure to have a camera on hand - if you want to win, there's no way to tackle these challenges glamorously!

If you think our Easy Office-Based Team Building Ideas are great, you should see our Corporate Team Building Events - they're amazing! To find out more, visit our website or call 0845 006 06 06 to speak to our sales team - they're lovely.

Team Motivation: Art for Your Office #5

This week's motivational poster is a reminder that when times get tough, the best teams pull together and tackle the problem as a group. It can be easy to lose sight of the importance of a strong team sometimes - remind yourselves by printing our poster here and sticking it up in your office. You can also check out the rest of this series here.

"Tough times don't last - tough teams do"

If you want to boost motivation further, check out our range of team building events or call 0845 006 06 06 to have a chat about the many team building options available with CCC.

The First Team Building Event: Stonehenge

Here at CCC Events we like to keep abreast of all things team building, so were fascinated by this article in The Telegraph which claims that Stonehenge in Wiltshire may have been the product of the world's first team-building exercise. Rather than being a place of worship, it may have been that it was the process of building Stonehenge that was important to it's creators, rather than the end product itself. And what better way to boost motivation and personal bonds than by creating one of the planet's most mystical and significant landmarks together?

This got us thinking about how the process of doing something as a team is the backbone of a successful team building event. Nearly all of our events have a competitive edge, which makes being the winning team the ultimate goal of the day, and that's great: it gets people involved, spurring enthusiasm and commitment. But when it comes to achieving the more subtle aims of team building - forming bonds, breaking the ice, working together - it's the process of teamwork, rather than the end product, that counts.

Take our Cryptic Challenge as an example. Teams tackle numerous challenges, including fiendish puzzles and more physical tasks, all in the hope of being the Cryptic Challenge Champions. But in the process, they must employ a wealth of valuable team qualities; communication, trust, teamwork and even humour. Often, they don't even notice it's happening, but by the end of the event they've laughed together, spoken to new people, and overcome obstacles in a fun and relaxed environment.

The Telegraph's article also suggests that the Stonehenge site was uninhabited for most of the year. Rather than tackling the building of Stonehenge in one go, the article claims that people came together a couple of times a year to meet up and work together. Modern team building is strikingly similar: it is of course necessary to spend most of the year doing our day-to-day jobs, but coming together once in a while to tackle something entirely different not only brushes away the cobwebs, it also allows people to socialise away from the usual stresses of working life.  Providing a fun common goal provides a focus to the day, and helps to form bonds between colleagues, which in turn makes for a more efficient team and better productivity in the long run.

So it turns out that we aren't all that dissimilar to our ancestors from 4,500 years ago. Every once in a while, it benefits us to team up, work together and have some fun... just like they did.

For ideas on how team building can benefit your team, check out our website or call 0845 006 06 06 for a chat with our sales team.

Easy Office-Based Team Building Ideas #6

If you're looking for budget-friendly team building ideas that are simple yet effective and that you can run from the comfort of your office, check out our series on Easy Office-Based Team Building Ideas. This week, we're taking a look at how a simple deck of cards can be used in a range of icebreakers and team builds - pick and choose from our list, or tackle them all for a fun, motivational afternoon.

• House of Cards - Give each person 10 playing cards, and divide the group into pairs. Each pair must try and build a house of cards within two minutes - the catch is, each person is only allowed to use one hand. The team that manages to build the most layers wins. 

• Fruity Throwing - This one is great fun and is good if you want to get everyone giggling. Cut a watermelon in half lengthways and prop it up on a bookcase or filing cabinet, with the flesh facing outwards. Divide the group into two teams and give one team black cards and the other red. Everyone must stand 15 feet away, and should throw their cards in such a way that they stick into the watermelon, like darts. You could have people throw one at a time, but we prefer the added chaos of getting everyone to throw at once and adding up the cards still left in the watermelon at the end by colour. The team with the most cards still stuck wins!

• Say What You See - Divide the group into teams and deal one card per person. The teams must use the first letters of the numbers or suits to create a sentence. For example, if a team had a King, jack, one and five, their sentence might be; "Kangaroos jump over fences". Each team must show their cards to the rest of the group before acting out their sentence. If another team guesses it, both the team acting out and the team that guessed correctly get a point.

• Don't Blow It - Take 2-litre plastic bottle, fill it with around 100ml of water and place a deck of cards on the lid. Teams must blow the cards off of the bottle without it falling over - the catch is, the bottom card must be left in place. Set a time limit of three minutes - the team that has removed the most cards (without removing the bottom card) by the end wins.

• Pick a Card - Structure an icebreaker session by allocating categories to each card type, then asking individuals to speak on that subject. For example, hearts might be "Where I've travelled", spades "Careers I admire", Kings "My proudest moment" and so on. Ask each person to pick out four cards, and encourage them to speak for at least a minute or so.

• Pick a Card (with a twist) - For a more entertaining take on 'Pick a Card', allocate forfeits to some of the cards - for example, if someone picks a Joker, they have to tell their best one-liner, if it's a Queen they must say the alphabet backwards, and so on. Picking an Ace means you get the honour of choosing the next person to pick!

If you're ready to take your team building to the next level, check out our website or call 0845 006 06 06.