Hat’s Off to this Virtual Team Activity

If your team is meeting for work or even a “happy hour” – this is a fun twist.

Variation #1: 

Simply ask everyone to wear a hat of their choice for the next team meeting. Then, you can do a quick round robin, 30 seconds to one-minute per person, and ask them to share why they chose that hat or why they love that hat.

 Here is why I like Variation #1:

1. It’s easy to explain and facilitate.
2. Everyone has a hat in their home (or can make one if needed).
3. It does not take long to debrief and it’s short and sweet.
4. It allows people to be creative…. Or not… so it gives people autonomy to express themselves in a way that is comfortable.
5. People don’t have to fix their hair for this meeting which can be an added perk.

For this to work, you need to use videos in case that is not obvious.  😊

Variation #2:

I have a group that meets every few weeks and one of our meetings we selected a hat that started with, “I’ll bring the….”  Etsy has several vendors who sell these – and we paid about $16 per hat.  We had fun deciding whose hat would say what.  Then, we all chose the color we wanted and ordered our hats.  At the following get together, we all proudly wore our hats at the meeting.  I was “I’ll bring the Voice of Reason.” 

If you go this route, you may need to set ground rules about what is appropriate for your team.  Some vendors have premade hats to select from, and others let you submit your own words and they custom make them.  There are some hats your Human Resources Department would probably not approve of (depending on your organization), so establish boundaries as needed.

Here is why I like Variation #2:

1. It’s two team activities in one. The first one is to choose the hats. Then, later everyone wears them.
2. It creates excitement and anticipation as everyone waits to get their hat in the mail.
3. They have a keepsake that they can wear again and be reminded of their team.

Variation #3:

Surprise your team.  Choose an “I’ll bring the…” hat for each person on your team and have it shipped to their home office.  Ask them to wait to open the package until they are all together.  When they open it, you can explain why you selected the words for their hat. These should all be encouraging, of course.

I just did Variation #3 this week with a team of eight people it was a hit. The leader selected a hat for each person (and herself) and then shipped boxes to the team. They all opened them together at the beginning of the meeting, and then we took a fun picture (not included) and many wore their hats again the following day.

Here is why I like Variation #3:

1. The surprise element of getting a package in the mail and waiting to open it to find out what is inside.
2. It’s a unique way to acknowledge people.

Summary

Try this simple, fun activity to engage with your team virtually.  It’s guaranteed to get some smiles.

About the Author: Leigh Ann Rodgers, Founder of Better Teams and Forward, is an IAF Certified Professional Facilitator with 20 years of experience in the human development field. Leigh Ann is a skilled meeting facilitator, trainer, and coach working across the globe to help leaders cultivate teams that are happy and high-performing.

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