Energize Online Meeting with this Activity

Run & Fetch provides a quick, fun, and energizing way to learn about your colleagues.  During long online meetings, we need a break from the screen and from sitting.  This fun online team activity ignites the creativity centers of the brain which energizes and excites your meeting participants.

This is a very adaptable activity.  Simply give your colleagues two minutes to fetch an object to share with the group.  Here are some examples of modifications.

As a quick 5-minute “movement” break:

1. Give them 2 minutes to “run and fetch” something that is [a color, a thing, a shape, etc.].  For example:

• If your organization’s brand colors are red and white, ask them to fetch something that is red and white.
• If you are about to talk about a cyclical cycle, ask them to fetch something that is round.
• If the purpose is to get a laugh, ask them to fetch something “unusual”.

2. When they are back, ask everyone to hold their item up to the screen and make a few comments, have a laugh, and move on.

As a 10-20 minute “movement and connection” activity:

1. Give them 2 minutes to “run and fetch” something that is [a color, a thing, a shape, etc.]  For example:

• If your meeting is about leadership, ask them to fetch something that represents leadership.
• If the goal is to get to know each other, ask them to fetch an item that represents something they value.

2. When they are back, ask each person to hold their item up to the screen one at a time and share their item and why they selected it.  Give them each 1-2 minutes, depending on the size of the group, and the purpose of the activity.

Additional Ideas:

If you really want to make this memorable, here are a few more suggestions:

1. Post a countdown timer on your screen and consider playing upbeat music.
2. After everyone has shared, ask them to hold their object up to the camera and take a picture.  Then, share the picture as a fun memory.
3. Ideally, everyone needs to have their videos turned on.  However, if someone is not able to be on video, ask them to describe their object.

Summary:

Run & Fetch is a fun online team activity guaranteed to energize your participants. Simply ask the meeting attendees to go and collect a specific item that relates to your session. When they return invite them to share what they collected.

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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