Games at Meetings – Why Not?

• Posted on Carolyn
• in Meeting Design
• on December 14, 2015
• Comments Off on Games at Meetings – Why Not?

This time of year I love to snuggle on the couch with my family (yes, teenagers still do that!) and watch holiday movies.  The other evening I was watching The Santa Clause 2 (one of my modern favorites!). One of my favorite scenes in the movie is during the staff Christmas party when Scott Calvin (Santa) hands out classic games and as people start to play, the mood changes from “Why do we have to be here?” to “Wow, this is so much fun!”  The introduction of the games turned the event from something typical (punch & a buffet dinner in the gymnasium) to something extraordinary.

Why not introduce games into a meeting? You can add fun for not a lot of money.  Here are some ideas:

• Ask people to bring their favorite board game to the meeting and set up an afternoon break or evening gathering with cookies & milk (or adult beverages) and play board games. Watch the inner child (or fierce competitors!) come out.
• Have some rebuses on the table and see which group can solve first
• Create customized crosswords to reinforce concepts or use as a networking tool to help the group learn about others
• Set up some “Minute to Win It” style games during a break or networking session – most of the props for these games can be easily and inexpensively sourced

Sitting in meetings all day can be draining mentally and physically. Add the unexpected element to get your group moving around and interacting with others.  Make sure to offer options that appeal to the introverts (activities for one or smaller groups) and extroverts (larger and often more competitive activities) in the group. Adding an element of the unexpected yet familiar (board games at a meeting) can change the energy levels in the room dramatically and can do wonders for your satisfaction scores. What games have you used in your meetings?

Carolyn has successfully incorporated all the suggestions above (& others!) into meetings she has planned. Games connect people, help you tap into different parts of your brain and are just darn fun! She’s a fierce competitor at Disney Scene It? and can be as silly as the best of them in Apples to Apples – who’s in?