I took a handful of my team out for a teambuilding day — and not the normal let's-have-lunch kind.
The day was an adventure park, an escape room, lunch in a twelve-story mall (the food is on the tenth floor), laser tag, and another escape room. A bunch of things that are unique, that help bond a team together — and, it turns out, that are a lot of fun.
Sometimes, in the hectic life of busy corporate America, it's important to just go be kids for a day. Challenge each other — and not on a computer. The climbing tower got loud fast. Everybody found out who's secretly athletic and who should stick to spreadsheets.
The escape rooms were the best part. You learn more about how your team solves problems in sixty locked minutes than in a quarter of status meetings. Who takes point, who notices details, who keeps everyone calm when the clock says four minutes.
The day starts with some awkwardness — work friends aren't always adventure friends yet. We ended it as both. That's the whole point: you spend the day as coworkers and walk out as friends.
The team you build on the course is the team you get in the meeting.
Until the next run out — work hard, play hard.