Corporate Team Building

Running team building activities at Google Singapore was one of those activities that just stuck with me. Looking at this photo, I couldn’t initially remember the games we played that day, as I literally ran hundreds of game sessions over the years..

Back then, in addition to teaching games during our standing Friday afternoon gatherings, I’d run two or three of these special events every month, teaching new games, attracting people, and ending with a group photo like this one. The banner in the back says it all: The Google SG Board Game Café.

What I loved about those nights was the mix of people. The woman in the middle is @BX, a good friend who also runs improv workshops. BX was always an active participant in a number of my wilder initiatives, and here we were just… playing. Laughing. Figuring out rules together.

I’ve forgotten most of the individual games played, but I’ll never forget the feeling. For a few hours, colleagues were more than just colleagues, they were teammates, rivals, co-conspirators. It was a connection through play.

That experience still drives me today because you see people differently when you strip away titles and put them around a game table. Trust me, once you’ve seen that, it’s hard not to want to build more spaces like it.

If you’re curious how we’ve turned that same spirit of play into real leadership development, check out what we’re building at Teamwork Unlocked as it’s basically the grown-up version of those game nights (with fewer snacks, but just as much laughter).