Building trust within a team is one of the most crucial ingredients for making a team work well together. They need to be able to trust leadership decisions as well as each individual’s initiative while having the confidence to reject an idea if need be. Surprisingly, trust exercises, although transparent, can have the effect needed, and the skills learned during such exercises translate well into a real-life corporate environment.
You as the manager or employer have to be the first block on the foundation to building trust. Perhaps taking a team coaching program can help you learn the various strategies and techniques that could be employed in helping your team build trust. With the appropriate coaching skills, you can teach them to trust not only their own instincts but also each other’s by devising a myriad of different exercises. Such activities can help boost self-esteem, pride in work and also improve workplace relations. The activities below may not be for the faint-hearted, but they certainly are a lot of fun!
Positive expectations
You want your team to look forward to their trust exercises and to have a positive outlook from the very start of the day. A carriage hire can strike just the right note! It’s not often that people get the opportunity to ride in a horse-drawn carriage, and a team of beautiful horses is sure to charm your own team.
Get everyone happy and smiling before the day even starts with a beautiful horse-drawn carriage ride to your destination. After the ride, why not give your team-building exercises a friendly start by having your team yoke the horses – a challenging exercise that will require the ultimate cooperation!
Blindfold driving
A scary option it may be, but it is ideal for building trust within teams as well as ensuring a lot of fun in the process. You don’t want to do anything too silly though when hanging out with horses or ponies for that matter. Blindfold driving is just what it sounds like – as each team member has a chance to drive around a chosen course while blindfolded, with their colleagues in the back seat directing them as they go. This is a perfect exercise for building trust as well as improving communication skills as the team must direct their driver with clear and concise instructions, and the driver needs to trust in their instructions and remain calm.
Team trust falls
Whether you decide to have team members simply fall back into each other’s arms (or a cushion!) or if they fall from a height, team trust falls are a fantastic way of psychologically stimulating trust while guaranteeing a fun time!
With arms folded firmly across their chest, each member of the team falls back, trusting another member of the team to catch them. A variation of this requires one member of the team to be pushed by the group to a standing position before falling. Such exercises are a lot of fun while promoting a positive energy amongst your team that translates well to the workplace.
These are just a few trust exercises that can help forge better relationships amongst your team members. Whatever option you choose, remember the importance of keeping your team happy and making them feel rewarded, as this generally transfers to a positive attitude to work.
