Hello,
It is not always easy to keep the energy high at events and meetings and ensure everyone is participating. Of course, the time of the event and whether it is after a long meeting or before a critical meeting also affect this.
Well, apart from these factors, shall we take a look at what we can do with the 15% solutions in our own sphere of influence? (Whatever you say about 15% solution: 15% solution means solutions that we can do in our own domain without the need for additional resources, people, changes, authority, permission, etc. Solutions other than this generally fall into the 85% section :) )
In this article, we will talk about a few online and field-applicable methods that can be used easily by our Kanban and Scum Masters during Retros as icebreakers, warmers or energy boosters :) You can also share your experiences with us ;)
3 Methods That Can Be Used in Online Events
1. Red Sofa:
We love the red sofa, let it be red and it costs 5 lira more :)
Now let's take a look at the identity of our icebreaker;
Where can it be used:
· In retrograde
· Can be used to get to know a new member of the team better
Number of participants: >3
Duration: Min 5 min X person
Material to be used:
· Mural / Miro
· Zoom / Teams
Preliminary
· Establishing a Teams meeting
· Preparation of content according to the number of people on Mural/Miro etc. platforms
On the collaborative platform to be used, an image of a red seat and as many sticks (round visuals or post-its) as the number of people are placed, you can write your name here or ask the participants to upload their own photos at the beginning of the event. (If you are a new teammate, a single seat pouch will be enough)
The first volunteer to be placed on the red seat is determined by a method (the person whose second letter of the name is first in the alphabet, or the person who first shows object x on the camera, etc.), and their name or photo is placed on the red seat.
After our volunteer arrives, questions can be asked depending on the content of the event or comments specific to that person can be shared.
For example;
· If you are going to use it in retro and want to get off to a hot start, the whole group can take turns sharing the 3 features they like to see most about the volunteer.
· If you have a new friend in the team, you can ask 3 questions you want to know about him/her :) There may also be challenging questions.
· If you are going to choose SM/KM in the team, you can put your candidates in the red seat and ask them about their promises :)
The red sofa is fun and sometimes it can be tiring for the person sitting on the sofa :) Let's not forget to thank each other afterwards ^_^
2. Fun Questions
They say people get to know each other on vacation, but one of the best ways to get to know someone better quickly is to ask questions :) You can ask dozens of questions about their tastes, what they prefer, what they don't like, what makes them angry.
So, if we ask which questions, as an icebreaker, provide the opportunity to get to know our teammate better and also allow us to have fun, let's first take a look at our activity tag and then our method :)
Where can it be used:
· In retrograde
· At events where it would be beneficial for us to get to know each other quickly
Number of participants: >3
Duration: 10 min
Material to be used:
· Mural / Miro
· Zoom / Teams
Preliminary
· Establishing a Teams meeting
· Preparation of content according to the number of people on Mural/Miro etc. platforms
We allow our participants 2 minutes to answer the question and everyone works individually. It can be put as a visual or written on a post-it note.
After 2 minutes, everyone answers the question within 8 minutes :) We laugh, have fun, increase our energy and start our retrograde or move on to our activity in a pleasant way.
Note: Instead of using this method with different questions in each retrograde, I can recommend you to include different ice breakers and use this method every 2-3 retrogrades, it can lose its excitement when it is done too many times in a row :)
Example; What is the place you want to be, the food you want to eat, the drink you want to drink right now?
Other fun questions to ask:
If you could have dinner with anyone you wanted, who would it be?
If you could eat the same dessert every day for the rest of your life, what dessert would it be?
We invented the time machine. Which time would you like to go to and why?
What was your favorite movie or TV series/cartoon as a child and why?
What comes to your mind when you say alien? :D
If you were a potato, how would you like to be consumed? :D
3. 2 True 1 False:
In 2 True 1 False, we include some predictions in the warm-up activity. When you apply it to teams that have started to know each other a little better, the correct guess rate is higher, but it is always fun :) If you want, you can also add gamification to this method and give a prize to the person who guesses the most :)
Activity tag;
Where can it be used:
· In team activities
· In retrograde
Number of participants: >3
Duration: 15 min
Material to be used:
· Mural / Miro
· Zoom / Teams
Preliminary
· Establishing a Teams meeting
· Preparation of content according to the number of people on Mural/Miro etc. platforms
We allow our participants 2 minutes to answer the question and everyone works individually. They write 2 correct information and 1 incorrect information about themselves on post-it notes, but we do not make it clear which is correct and which is incorrect because a fun 13 minutes will be waiting for us soon :)
After everyone has finished writing, a volunteer starts and reads their cards and the game begins! We get predictions from the team about which card is right and which card is wrong. Afterwards, our friend who wrote the card tells us which is correct and which is incorrect.
Tip: Here, you can change the color of the correct and incorrect post-it notes if you want to look at them later and remember them. If you want to add gamification, you can write the names of the people who guessed all correctly under that person's card :)
For example, a template can be prepared as below. Would you like to guess the truths and falsehoods about me? :)
Best regards,
Merve Ergenç
16.10.2022
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