Icebreaker Template
Start your remote meeting right, build trust, and get to know each other.
About the Icebreaker Template
When new people join a company or a team, it can be hard for everyone to get to know each other. This is especially true for remote and distributed teams. Icebreakers are games, activities, questions, or events that are used to get people comfortable with each other and bring everyone together. Effective icebreakers can warm up a conversation, reinforce the topic of discussion, and ensure that everyone is engaged in a session.
Looking for new ideas for icebreakers? Read our blog on 27 icebreakers great for remote and in-house team building.
How do you use the icebreaker template?
First, pick a question and place it in the working area of your icebreaker template. Then, sketch, write, or paste a picture with your answer. When everyone is done, ask for each team member to explain their answer and also share yours.
When should you use an icebreaker?
Icebreakers can be used to add energy to any meeting. They are especially valuable when team members aren't all located in the same office, are meeting for the first time, or are tackling a new challenge together.
Examples of icebreakers
Some icebreakers can be used just for fun. When team members are new or don't know each other, icebreakers are great tools to help get the conversation flowing. Icebreakers can also be used to segue into the topic of the meeting, or to get everyone's energy levels up.
Here are some examples of icebreakers questions you can use:
Describe yourself in just a single word.
Share a photo of yourself as a baby.
What was your first job? Your worst job?
If you were an animal, what would you be and why?
If you could live anywhere, where would you live?
If you could meet a historical figure, who would that be?
What is your favorite time of the day? Why?
Do you like to travel or are you more of a homebody?
What would be your superpowers of choice?
If you could become an expert in any field in a snap, what field would you choose? Why?
Get started with this template right now.
4 L's Retrospective Template
Works best for:
Retrospectives, Decision Making
So you just completed a sprint. Teams busted their humps and emotions ran high. Now take a clear-eyed look back and grade the sprint honestly—what worked, what didn’t, and what can be improved. This approach (4Ls stand for liked, learned, lacked, and longed for) is an invaluable way to remove the emotion and look at the process critically. That’s how you can build trust, improve morale, and increase engagement—as well as make adjustments to be more productive and successful in the future.
The Big Picture Icebreaker Puzzle Template
Works best for:
Icebreakers
Learn how to better collaborate and communicate with this fun and unique Icebreaker Puzzle Template.
Meeting Reflection Template
Works best for:
Meetings, Brainstorming, Team Meetings
When schedules get hectic, “learning by doing” becomes the default way to learn. So make time for your team to learn in other valuable ways — by reflecting and listening. Led by “learners,” (team members who share with the rest of the team), a meeting reflection lets teammates share new information about a client’s business or an internal business initiative, offer problem-solving techniques, or even recommend books or podcasts worth checking out. Meeting reflections also encourage colleagues at all levels to engage in each other’s professional development of their teammates.
Floor Plan Template
Works best for:
Operations, Workshops
Maybe you’re planning a big occasion or event. Or maybe you’re arranging seating structures and traffic flows that are more permanent. Either way, creating a floor plan—an overhead scaled diagram of the space—is equal parts functional and fun. This template will let you visualize how people will move about the space and know quickly if the space will do what you need, before you commit time, money, or resources. And you’ll be able to get as detailed as you want—finding the right measurements and dimensions, and adding or removing appliances and furniture.
Bang for the Buck Template
Works best for:
Project Management, Strategic Planning, Prioritization
The name pretty much says it—this Agile framework is all about helping you maximize efficiency by powering collaboration between product managers and dev teams. Together you can go over each to-do on the project agenda and evaluate them in terms of costs and benefits. That way you can prioritize tasks based on how much bang for your buck they deliver. This template is great for teams and organizations that want to make a strategic plan to tackle an upcoming sprint.
Soccer Retrospective
Works best for:
Agile Methodology, Retrospectives, Meetings
The Soccer Retrospective template offers a sports-themed approach to retrospectives, using the game of soccer as a metaphor for teamwork and strategy. It provides elements for reflecting on past performances, analyzing strengths and weaknesses, and setting goals for improvement. This template fosters a competitive yet collaborative spirit, encouraging team members to work together towards common objectives. By leveraging the metaphor of soccer, the Soccer Retrospective empowers teams to refine their tactics, enhance communication, and achieve their goals effectively.