How To Make Team Building Walking Boards

October 22, 2022

A while back, I read an interesting article about team-building exercises for groups of people. The author discussed how you can use walking with a partner as one such activity. He described this as a great way to connect with someone else in the space and time frame that you have together.

He also mentioned something about these walking meetings coming up every year and everyone looks forward to them. So why not give it a try?

A walking meeting sounds fun and easy enough. Therefore, I will go into some steps on how to hold a walking meeting at the beginning of this post. Then, I will talk more about what types of content you can include and some tips.

I hope you enjoy reading my research-backed insights! If there is anything you think I left out or would like to add, feel free to comment below. Happy studying!

How to Hold a Walking Meeting

Make sure your participants are familiar with the concept of a walking meeting before having yours. You do not need to tell anyone what type of meeting you will be having, but make sure they know what to expect.

Create the environment

how to make team building walking boards

The next step in team building is creating an open conversation or activity that can boost teamwork. What kind of activity you choose depends on what type of group you are trying to build and what types of conversations you want to have.

You don’t need a lot of steps to start having these, we recommend starting with a “teambuilding exercise” first. An example of this would be taking a break together outside or asking someone to guess how many times you can say the alphabet before repeating it.

Another easy one is doing a quick brainstorming session about topics that will motivate your group for the next week. Things like ‘how to motivate people around you, ‘ways to improve leadership skills, or even just ‘what makes us laugh can do the trick!

In both cases, the aim is to come up with a topic that everyone seems to agree on and then talk about why it matters to them.

Invite people

A walking board is not a goal unless you invite others to join you in your quest for theirs. What kind of person hassles their colleagues, friends, or family members about going away for vacation? People who are not well connected and therefore lack this concept!

So how can you create an environment where individuals feel comfortable asking if they could come along as part of the trip team? You can start by introducing the term “travel buddy” into the conversation. This word feels less invasive than “roommate” or even just using the word “team member.”

Once you have these words out there, then it’s up to them whether or not they choose to accept your invitation. If they do decide to join you, that’s great! But if they don’t, at least you know now and can move forward with your planning.

And once you have your traveling companions, you will need to find appropriate accommodations close to both your destination and home base. It’s also important to consider transportation needs like finding a common route back from the airport or figuring out who owns a car and what city they’re coming from.

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Make the event interesting

how to make team building walking boards

A team-building activity that has been done for years is walking boards. This can be anything from having participants walk down the street as many groups of people have (street teams, school classes, etc.) or creating an interactive board where players must figure out how to navigate through it to win!

The first time I heard about this activity was at my college’s annual winter party which was organized by some students who wanted to do something fun to boost student engagement. Since then, I have seen it being adapted slightly to make it more engaging.

Participants are given a set amount of time to complete the task and they are usually allowed to use technology while trying to find their way around the board, but not helping you run your own business is a challenge!

What makes this activity special is that it doesn't need too much preparation aside from choosing a location and timing it correctly. You just show up and everyone comes together to solve the puzzle!

This article will go into detail on how to organize a walking board event for your group or company. There are several easy ways to implement this into your daily work routine if you want to give it a try.

Tell stories

how to make team building walking boards

A walking board is not about you, it’s not designed to make you look good, and it’s not even really a board — it’s just a well-timed, meaningful conversation.

So why are they so important? Because they create opportunities for conversations that would never happen otherwise.

By asking open questions and listening actively to others’ answers, you can learn a lot about who people are and what matters to them.

That includes things like how they spend their time, what responsibilities they take seriously, and whether there are any hidden talents or dreams they haven’t talked about yet.

It also means finding out if anyone else in the department could use some help from you with something – maybe they’ve been putting off doing that project because they don’t have the resources or someone to watch over them while they do it. If so, offer your assistance now!

And finally, if you notice that someone looks pretty relaxed around you but then suddenly gets very serious, ask what’s going on and see if you can help. Sometimes a colleague has a baby on the way, a family member died, or they lost a loved one recently. All of those things can put extra stress on people, and it’s our job as colleagues to be aware of that and keep them balanced.

The first rule of having a successful walk–roll chat is to simply start talking.

Do not share your opinions too much

how to make team building walking boards

As seen with many large corporations, team building is an integral part of working effectively at your job.

Team building exercises are typically done outside of work hours or during non-work time. They usually focus on having fun while also developing relationships among coworkers or people within a certain group.

Typically, participants in team-building activities must be open and honest about their thoughts and feelings. By being aware of what others say and do, you can better understand who they are and why things happen to them.

That knowledge could help you develop trust and strong friendships.

Disclaimer

It’s important to remember that although doing team-building activities such as taking a walk together is fun, it may not be appropriate or necessary at all times. Sometimes, just because two people like each other well doesn’t mean they should spend time together beyond work.

Let people speak freely

how to make team building walking boards

As mentioned before, team building is not about having fun with your coworkers, it’s actually about creating an environment where everyone feels comfortable sharing their thoughts and feelings.

By allowing others to express themselves, you will learn a lot of things such as how they handle stress, what kind of responsibilities they feel obligated to if they received praise or criticism, and more.

Enjoy yourself

how to make team building walking boards

A good team-building activity is anything that encourages people to connect and work together towards a common goal. If you want to know more about someone, ask them about themselves and their hobbies.

Teambuilding exercises that encourage social interaction are great ways to boost workplace relationships. These activities should be fun for everyone involved!

Participants of any age can enjoy this activity. It’s best if participants do not have too much experience as a team because it may feel very competitive.

For example, if there are two groups who both agree to play dodgeball in an open area, then one group could get organized and plan the game ahead of time while the other just has to watch the games happen around them.

Be honest and consistent

how to make team building walking boards

As mentioned before, one of the biggest hurdles in team building is having an open conversation about things that matter to you as a person. If you’ve got something on your mind, then bring it up!

If someone else brings up what they want or need, be sure to address them directly and respond with how you can work together to get what they want.

This way, each individual knows what will be addressed and there are no surprises.

Teambuilding exercises such as walking boards require some initial preparation, so make sure everyone is on the same page and knows their part ahead of time.

That means knowing what you should say and being able to do so at the right time. Being authentic and direct will help people connect more effectively with you.

Never forget that trust is a factor when doing group activities like this, which could potentially have significant consequences for individuals if done improperly.

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