Sometimes when people hear the word 'icebreaker' they cringe or might feel super anxious about taking part in one. Yes, icebreakers can make you feel a bit awkward initially, but they are proven to help enhance relationships and encourage creativity. 'Icebreakers can help increase team bonds, boost performance and creativity'—Harvard Business School study Integrating icebreakers into your workshops or meetings is a great way to get everyone relaxed and ready to participate. But how do you choose the right ones so that you avoid those dreaded awkward silences? Here are my Top 2 Icebreakers that are easy to implement (in-person or online): 1. My First Job Ask everyone in the group to write down their name, their first job, and what they learned from that job. Then go round the group and have everybody read theirs out. 2. Pointless Questions Prepare a few fun questions ahead of the workshop, then go round the room and have everybody take turns answering the questions. It’s as simple as that—you don’t even need to write anything down! Here are some question suggestions to get you started: - If you could invite a celebrity over for dinner, who would it be and why? - What is your most prized possession and why? - You can have an unlimited supply of one thing for the rest of your life. What do you choose? Here are some more icebreakers for you to explore! What's another great icebreaker that I can add to my list?

I was brainstorming with ChatGPT4 for a new video where I want to talk about one-off team-building sessions being a waste of money and instead of an annual event – it's a daily practice. Leaders should be weaving connection activities into every meeting to foster engagement, trust, and collaboration. Well...Just for fun, I asked it to come up with some funny tweets. Here are my favourites, which one is yours? 1) Why limit team building to annual events? Let's throw in connection activities at every meeting – it's like trust falls, but without the chiropractor bills! 😆 #CrackingUpAtWork 2) Team building: from annual trust falls to daily meetings, because nothing says 'we got this' like navigating trust exercises while holding coffee! ☕😂 #CaffeinatedCollaboration 3) Let's make team building a part of every meeting, because who doesn't want to bond over the shared fear of being late to the next call? 🏃‍♂️😅 #ProcrastinatorsUnite 4) Weave team building into every meeting – because nothing says 'I trust you' like sharing embarrassing work stories over a video call! 🎥🤣 #VirtualTrustCircle 5) Who needs annual team building events when you can turn meetings into group therapy sessions with connection activities? Get ready to laugh and learn! 😂📚 #TherapyWithPowerPoints Let me know in the comments, which one is your favourite 😂#TeamBuilding #Leadership #NoMoreTrustFalls

When I lived in Canada I signed up with Retreatify (https://www.retreatify.com/) which helps organizations with planning corporate retreats and offsites. They take care of the venues, catering, logistics and also have a database of vendors that run different workshops and team building activities. I did not get a ton of inquiries through the website (also because of covid) but now I do get the odd request, but they think I am still based in Canada. So I was wondering if there are similar platforms or companies that are based in Europe. Have you worked with any of them and found them useful or not to find new clients?

If we met at a networking event and you asked me: “So, what do you do?”, I probably will say “I am on a small talk detox.” A few years ago, I created a deck of Connection Cards to help my friends bond on a camping trip, and now they're being used to turn shallow conversations into deep connections on every continent around the globe (yep, even Antarctica). Since then, I have been running countless experiences that promote trust, vulnerability and create a sense of belonging. I love to turn a group of strangers into friends with playful activities and meaningful conversations - so if you have any questions about facilitating connections for your participants, send me a message 🙂 Since 2020 I have trained thousands of people to create highly inclusive, engaging and meaningful experiences when we can’t be in the same room together in my Virtual Facilitator Trainings. This is where the pandemic encouraged me to bring my 10+ years of video production to the way I facilitate on Zoom. So, feel free to ask me about: ✅ Anything Zoom related ✅ Setting up a professional home studio ✅ Using virtual engagement tools like Ecamm Live Recently, I relocated from Canada to Germany to be closer to family, but my work is mainly in English and most of my clients are still based in North America. So if you're near Stuttgart, Germany, let me know as I am building my local network of like-minded people. I hope you’ll join me on my mission to help people feel less alone and fuel the movement for deeper human connection and answer one of my favourite "ice melter" questions in the comments: "If we met 1 year from today, what are you celebrating?" Feel free to connect with me on social (links in my profile)

Hey everyone. Check out this great audiobook. Would be handy in your facilitation journey. Listen to The Art of Gathering by Priya Parker on Audible.

Need some tips from you expert on how you keep you workshop participant engaged and participating while facilitating a remote workshop. As soon as the cameras are off it seem that some participating stops contributing (especially in long sessions). I know this because I'm one of those people 😅 Asking for a friend, thanks.

How often have you led a workshop or session, and found it difficult to keep everyone engaged? 😵‍💫​ Next week, I am hosting a free workshop on Butter.us - a very cool virtual meeting platform that is built for facilitators and has lots of cool engagement tools, plus you can build your agenda right inside the platform. I am excited to share my step-by-step methodology ("The Engagement Spiral") to make the most of every voice in the room, ensuring that even the quietest participants feel heard and valued. This balances the voices of all participants, ensuring that loud participants don't take over the meeting, while also helping shy participants find their voice.​ By the end of the workshop, you’ll know how to create a space where everyone feels invited to share their ideas and perspectives, leading to a more productive, inclusive and engaging experience for all. In this session you'll learn:​ 🤩 Different methods to encourage participation and engagement from all participants.​ ✨ How to balance the voices of all participants, making sure that no one takes over the meeting and even introverted participants feel seen, heard and valued. I'd love to see some familiar facilitators from our club there 😄 You can register for free here: https://lu.ma/ButterMixer46 And if you can't make it, I am hosting a couple more events and workshops this month. I just posted about them on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/jankeck_join-me-for-these-free-learning-opportunities-activity-7028715350359732224-oWRK