Strategies For Virtual Icebreakers

Please stop with the BORING zoom meetings! For anyone who hosts virtual meetings, please add one little thing. At the beginning of a meeting with a group of 4 or more, ask an icebreaker question in the chat to get the good vibes going. This can replace small talk and can serve as a knife to cut any tension. Use this if you usually have meeting participants slowly trickle in for the first few minutes, or if you're waiting for one particular attendee. Icebreaker questions in the meeting chat can be especially useful to get creative juices flowing and get people feeling comfortable speaking up if you're hosting a brainstorming session. Here are a few questions you can steal: --> If you could time travel, would you prefer to go forward or backward? --> What's a great book you've read recently? --> What city would you love to travel to next? --> What would be your strategy in a zombie apocalypse? --> What was the first concert you saw live? --> Which famous person would you invite to dinner? --> Favorite quote? --> Favorite food to eat? Asking icebreaker questions like these is exactly what Ryan K. and I did in my podcast this week. I really like his management style and I took a page out of his book and brought some fun into my workday :) Life is short. Office life can be dry. Introduce some fun. Let's give it a shot. Find a question in the comments below that makes you smile and leave a reply (or comment your own question that people can answer!)

If you’re making the perfect sandwich, what would be on it? What is one thing that never fails to make you feel better? What do you own that you’re pretty sure no one on the team owns? What is the most interesting thing in your fridge? These are some of the icebreakers I’ve posed in the team chat this year and the responses always reveal something I would never have known about my colleagues otherwise (like, some of us have very strong opinions about Dutch crunch bread)! It’s a simple act, but asking questions (and I mean really good questions) regularly is so crucial to building connection on my team. - How to do this: Use what Priya Parker calls “magical questions”: these are prompts everyone in the group wants to answer and hear and that go beyond small talk (e.g., “What was the first concert you went to, and who took you?” or “What’s a gift you got that you deeply loved?”) - When to do this: At the top of a team call (popcorn-style) or asynchronously in chat by posting a regular icebreaker thread. - Why to do this: A significant share of intrinsic motivation ties back to an employee’s relationship with their manager. That means we have to be intentional about creating personal connections, especially in a virtual workplace where this is less likely to happen organically. If you have a favorite magical question, please share it. I’m always on the hunt for compelling queries! #RemoteWork #Culture #Inclusion #Leadership 

Ever led a meeting that felt like a freeze-dried snooze fest? ❄️💤 I used to think icebreakers were cheesy. Now I am a fan. Here's the deal: Teams that start with icebreakers see a 15-20% boost in performance. Why? They build trust faster. But we're not talking "If you were a vegetable what would you be?" here. Let's get clever. 1. Reverse Intros: Present your neighbor, not yourself. Suddenly, everyone's all ears. 2. Desert Island Tech: What 3 gadgets would you bring? Reveals priorities (and who's addicted to their smartwatch). 3. Five-Word Career Story: Sum up your journey succinctly. Mine? "Curious kid. Still asking why." 4. Skill Swap: Trade expertise with a teammate for a day. What would you learn? What would you teach? 5. Hidden Tech Heroes: Share an unsung innovator you admire. Spotlight the shadows of Silicon Valley. 6. Virtual Office Tour: Show one item that defines your workspace. That rubber duck? It's not just for bathtime. 7. 60-Second Solution Sprint: Pitch fixes for minor office annoyances. Coffee machine woes, begone! 8. Emoji Roadmap: Plot your next project using only emojis. 🔍💡🛠️🚀 (Decode that, team) 9. Tech Trend Time Machine: Predict an innovation 10 years out. Bonus points for boldness (and humor). 10. Tech Haiku Challenge: Describe your role in 5-7-5 syllables. "Bugs drive me crazy / Coffee fuels my keystrokes / Code, test, ship, repeat" These aren't just warm-ups. They're catalysts for creativity, trust-builders, and secret weapons for turning strangers into collaborators. Next meeting, ditch the small talk. Get connected. What's your go-to icebreaker for tech teams? Share below! 👇

After the usual Pride sprint of 20-plus workshops and speaking gigs, I realize I to created a bunch of new ice breaker questions, including: - What’s a memorable smell from your childhood? - What news story can you not turn away from? - What is the smallest victory you’ve celebrated recently? - What is the most boring, grownup thing that brings you joy or comfort? - What tv show or other entertainment are you binging right now? These have all brought fun, meaningful responses from the group that I am able to refer back to throughout the session. They have also opened up points of commonality AND difference within teams that they have used to deepen connection and curiosity. Facilitators, what are your favorite ways to informally welcome learners into a session— getting them used to jumping in the chat, coming off mute, or otherwise bringing them fully into the room while others trickle in?

Planning your Friday team sales meeting? Kick it off with a creative and engaging icebreaker to build camaraderie and set a positive tone for the day. While waiting for everyone to join, start with interesting questions to get everyone talking about their weekend plans: ❓“If you could spend the weekend in any fictional world, where would you go and what would you do?” ❓“What’s a hidden gem in your city that you plan to visit or recommend this weekend?” ❓“What’s the most spontaneous thing you’ve ever done on a weekend, and do you have any spontaneous plans coming up?” ❓“If you could turn any hobby into a full-time job for the weekend, what would it be?” As team members trickle in, ask them to share their answers to one of the questions above in the chat or verbally. This not only keeps the early birds engaged but also sets a fun and relaxed atmosphere for the meeting. Plus, it gives everyone a chance to learn something new and interesting about their colleagues! What questions would you suggest? I’m also curious what your answers to these questions would be. 😀 #leadership #icebreakers #meetings