Outdoor Team Building Games

Outdoor games can be a great way to refresh stressed out minds and bodies. The games not only help in team building, but they also motivate individuals. It is a great way to appraise an individual's capability of making split second decisions, management and leadership skills. I will try and list some outdoor games, which are really fantastic for team building.

Amoeba Race
This is a fun-filled race which requires close physical contact, group cooperation and competition. The group forms a biological cell, that is, cell wall, protoplasm and nucleus. A person who has good eyesight can be made the nucleus. He is supposed to sit on someone's shoulders as a look out. Others can stand together surrounding the nucleus. These people become the protoplasm. Some team members should surround the protoplasm and face outwards. Their elbows should be linked together forming the cell wall. Try to build a block or maze and ask the amoeba group to travel along the given track. The group should then split into two amoebas and the new group should have its own nucleus. Have a amoeba race to spice things up.

Zoom and Re-zoom
This activity helps build communication and problem solving skills in the team. A problem is given to the team. A story is made up, which contains the solution. The team is handed out pictures in a sequence, linked to the story. Each team member tries to explain his picture and find a link among the group. This requires patience and good communication skills. The story is linked and a solution to the given problem is found out.

Helium Stick
This activity is a good team building exercise. Bring a long, lightweight helium stick. Helium weighs lighter than air, thus, can float in the air. Ask the team members to stand in a straight line. Place the helium stick on their extended index fingers. Make sure they do not hold or pinch the stick between their fingers. The task is to lower the stick to the ground. The stick floats up rather than moving down. The group needs to be patient, work in tandem and try to bring the stick down (which is easier said than done!). The trick is, there is no helium gas filled in the stick. The collective pressure that is exerted by the fingers is more than the weight of the stick. This causes it to float up mysteriously.

Limited Senses
This is a rather difficult game but one which will be lots of fun. The obstacles should be removed from the area, where the game is supposed to be played. Hand over each participant one number, which they are to keep secret. Try and jump the series, for example, 1,2,4,5,3,6,7,10,8,9 and so on. Blindfold the participants and ask them to find the numbers before and after them without seeing or talking to each other. They can clap, stomp or do anything to find the missing link. It is great to see many people come up with innovative ways to express themselves.

Welded Ankles
This activity leads to communication, leadership skills and teamwork. Mark a straight line with bright paint or use a bright colored rope. The game is that the team has to walk from start to finish, maintaining contact of the ankles. If anyone from the group loses contact, the game has to be re-started.

There are many conventional sports like basketball, baseball or even beach volleyball which help develop team building spirit. You can try many other activities like treasure hunt or rafting. Outdoor team building games are stimulating and helps members know each other better. Leadership skills, problem solving attitude and many more hidden attributes are discovered through outdoor games. Outdoor team building games not only help in developing a team, but it is also a great break from the daily mundane tasks.