Aloha! Last week we gathered with TYR Sport in Long Beach to enjoy a sunset paddle for our Outrigger Canoe Team Building Race event. Participants were treated to a brief lesson on the history of outrigger canoeing in California and a hands-on lesson in paddling. Then it was into the canoes for the tournament!
Our experienced na ho‘okele (steerers) captained each canoe and urged the teams to huki (paddle fast)! Their expertise was welcome since outrigger canoes are much more difficult to navigate than regular boats. Outrigger canoes require synchronicity and communication between teammates. Hence, outrigger racing is perfect for team building! If crews are able to work together they can get their vessels cutting quickly through the waves. Their speed when manned by a cohesive team invokes the memory that these canoes were once used as powerful war vehicles. Read more
https://fireflyteamevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/ff_website_main-495x226.png00Kelsey Cohenhttps://fireflyteamevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/ff_website_main-495x226.pngKelsey Cohen2018-02-23 19:15:202023-02-27 15:23:30Outrigger Canoe Team Building – Out-paddle the Competition!
We had a totally radical time with Ghirardelli Chocolate Company at the Pasea Hotel in Huntington Beach for an 80s themed team building event. Our newest, coolest and raddest Totally 80s Decathalawn! Our tubular clients came dressed to impress with leg warmers, bright makeup and BIG hair! Awesome costumes included Marty McFly, Slash, Madonna, Ghostbusters and lots of Jazzercise get-ups. Even our team got in on the neon fashion action!
Classic 80s Games With a Team Building Twist
We introduced new games inspired by the decade we were celebrating. Teamwork really came into play with Team Pac-Man. Individual team members controlled isolated movements of our favorite pie man. Everyone worked together to make sure Pac-Man ate all his Pac-Dots while avoiding the ghosts! Read more
Looking for a great way to get your group out of the meeting room and into the glorious sunlight? Imagine doing just that while also building strong working relationships in the process. These are the big draws for our ever popular Techno Rally team building scavenger hunt.
Location, Location, Location
First, pick any location. Our clients have been spotted arm-wrestling senior citizens and admiring Manic Panic hair-do’s in various parts of Los Angeles and Orange County. Any interesting location where you are having a meeting or group event is an option. Then, let us create a hilariously wacky adventure that your co-workers will thank you for arranging.
The Team Building Scavenger Hunt Is On!
Your group will be mixed into teams who will take on crazy challenges like re-enacting high school prom photo poses. So, we’ll give them a chance to cheese it up and chase each other down as they race against the clock to complete as many challenges as possible. Groups begin by picking team names that will strike fear in the hearts of their opponents. Then, each team will pick an “App Master” who will download our scavenger hunt mobile app. The app keeps the group in check as to what’s next on the timed agenda. Strategy is key because there’s no way to complete all tasks in the time allotted. Groups must wisely choose which tasks to tackle for the most points.
Finally, they’re off to snap photos with iconic local structures, interact with the locals, and other outlandish actions. Teams will be virtually race each other as they move up and down the app’s leader board throughout the event. And lastly, they must make it back to the final meeting point before the buzzer. We turn off the leader board results in the final moments, so the winner will be a surprise to all participants. The first round of drinks are on the winning team!
Personalization For The Win
Clients can add personal touches to the event with trivia questions or other checkpoint challenges related to the company. We will help you design the event to drive home a deeper team building message to everyone on your team. Contact James Bennett at james@fireflyteamevents.com to get a-movin’ and make this adventure happen!
https://fireflyteamevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/team-building-scavenger-hunt.png320700Kristin Sanchezhttps://fireflyteamevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/ff_website_main-495x226.pngKristin Sanchez2017-08-21 20:24:362017-08-21 20:30:10The Techno Rally: A Bold And Crazy Team Building Scavenger Hunt
I love L.A., we love it! We could sing all day of our love for Los Angeles. You will too when you see the endless team event opportunities in the City of Angels. Team building is not only a fun mental break for your employees, but it also shows them that you value their well-being. According to a Gallup study, 75% of workers leave their bosses, not their companies. Be the boss your employees don’t want to leave while strengthening team bonds with these top Los Angeles team building activities. Read more
https://fireflyteamevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/los-angeles-team-building-ideas.png320700Kristin Sanchezhttps://fireflyteamevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/ff_website_main-495x226.pngKristin Sanchez2017-08-10 15:30:422023-02-27 16:00:065 Fresh Ideas for Los Angeles Team Building Events
You are a competitive force to be reckoned with. You’re not interested in a Kumbaya learning moment, but a chance to demonstrate the wreckage you can cause with your kick butt team. You need to experience our extreme Dodgeball Tournament team building event.
Where: Literally anywhere, we’ve hosted dodgeball tournaments on the beach, in parks, and indoors.
Why: Because your team is awesome and deserves an awesome team building experience.
Setting the Stage for Dodgeball Tournament Team Building
We start off every tournament by assigning teams and gearing up. You bring the “hoo” we’ll bring the “rah”. Those who can’t or don’t wish to participate we’ll crown cheer captains and festoon them with more noise makers than you can shake a spirit stick at.
Next up is a group warm up led by our experienced facilitators. Just because we’re chucking balls at each other with force doesn’t mean we actually want to injure anyone. Once everyone’s muscles have been properly prepared your group will square off against others in a round robin style tournament to crown the ultimate victor. You’ll need to practice the “5 D’s of Dodgeball: dodge, duck, dip, dive and dodge!” You can choose to have larger teams with alternates to allow for some breathing time during games. Even your strongest athletes will appreciate the respite as this sport is intense! All games will be refereed by our trained staff. Hence there’ll be no funny business with regards to rules or safety. We promise not to throw any wrenches at you.
So whether your team is a bunch of Average Joe’s or more like the Purple Cobras round them up at your next team outing. Our Dodgeball Tournament team building event can be run at a variety of different venues which makes it a flexible option for sales conferences, team bonding activities or motivational meetings. For more information about our team building events or to hear more decade old movie references contact us at james@fireflyteamevents.com.
https://fireflyteamevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/dodgeball-tournament-team-building.png320700Kelsey Cohenhttps://fireflyteamevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/ff_website_main-495x226.pngKelsey Cohen2017-06-28 08:30:122017-06-28 19:24:19Dodgeball Tournament Team Building: Your Next Extreme Team Experience
From Newport to Huntington Beach, from Irvine to Anaheim, the Orange County team building options are huge! With dozens of customizable team building concepts for your next staff meeting, incentive event, sales kickoff, or holiday party, FireFly Team Events knows just how to amp up the fun of your next gathering! We also understand that team building is more than fun and games. Our amazing facilitators will help your team recognize how these experiences can reveal powerful messages about your team. Take a look at some of our Client favorites below. Read more
https://fireflyteamevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/5oc_ideas.jpg320700Elizabeth Kallhttps://fireflyteamevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/ff_website_main-495x226.pngElizabeth Kall2016-11-09 18:48:212023-02-27 16:22:455 Team Building Ideas for Your Orange County Meeting
Now that Pokemon Go has decimated the US workforce’s productivity, it’s time to talk employee engagement. Pokemon Go has done what you as a manager need to be doing – it’s building engagement. It provides users with value, exercise, recognition, anticipation, and a sense of purpose. How can you as a manager help your staff discover value within your organization? What can you do to encourage strong interpersonal relationships? With the rise of the millennial work force employees are starting to care less about what they’re doing and more about why they’re doing it. The ability to find meaning and purpose in one’s work is rapidly becoming the number 1 reason for staff retention. If you can tear your team away from Pokemon Go try these 5 employee engagement ideas. (battling in a Pokemon Gym doesn’t count)
1. Develop a Health and Wellness Initiative Employees recognize and appreciate when their company cares for their well-being. Not only does having wellness programs demonstrate that you value your staff, but healthy employees tend to be more productive and less absent. Work with your staff to develop a wellness program that aligns with their interests. You could organize a kick ball team, have a weekly yoga class, or even offer healthy snack alternatives at the office. Your employees will feel better about themselves, and about the company they work for.
2. Recognize Staff Accomplishments I’m not saying gather your staff in a circle and sing “kumbaya”. Unless everyone wants to, then definitely do that and send us footage. Instead, ensure that your employees know YOU are aware of their hard work and achievements. It should be a clear recognition and a regular occurrence. Defeat divisive competition by making individual accomplishments team wins and celebrate them together. Promote a culture of encouragement and congratulations. Many offices have a seldom used compliment box, punch it up by having an occasional drawing and offering gift cards to the complimented and the complimenter. This spreads goodwill among all the staff. Read more
https://fireflyteamevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/pokemon.jpg400700Kelsey Cohenhttps://fireflyteamevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/ff_website_main-495x226.pngKelsey Cohen2016-07-13 01:30:012023-02-27 17:46:135 Employee Engagement Ideas vs Pokemon Go
Hunger Games style Nerf battle in the office? Team building. Bringing a photographer in to shoot new profile photos? Team Building. Office trashcan hoops tournament? Yes, team building. I can make cleaning the storage closet a team building moment. Team building activities aren’t limited to facilitator led sessions. Embrace the idea that it doesn’t matter WHAT you do. It’s about reflecting on what happened while you were engaged.
Every team building event should add value to your organization. After the event you need to reflect on what happened during the activity. Can you recognize how it affects, helps, or changes how you do your job? My goal as a facilitator is to help groups find that meaning. Any facilitator will help find where you’ve increased communication, elevated engagement, strengthened relationships, or increased trust. Each of those benefits has a direct effect on productivity and profits. If you don’t have a facilitator handy, below are 3 easy questions that can help you find meaning in ANY activity. Going Bowling? Ask these questions. Volunteering at a shelter as a company? Ask these questions. Covering a coworker’s car with Post-its? Post on Instagram then ask these questions.
Before you unleash these on your group, consider how You would answer them. Ask your first question to the group then count silently and slowly to 10. The group will break and speak before you do. The hardest part is staying silent until they break. You can do it.
1. Why did we do this activity?
This makes the group to consider the cause and effect of this outing. If you went bowling it wasn’t because you were dying to wear the shoes. Or because you really wanted to win a bowling match. What’s the greater truth to this action? Increased cameraderie? Building forearm muscles? Try to steer them away from catchall answers like “team building”.
https://fireflyteamevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/hunger_team.jpg400700James Bennetthttps://fireflyteamevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/ff_website_main-495x226.pngJames Bennett2016-06-17 00:19:452023-02-27 18:02:03Turn ANY Office Activity Into a Team Building Event
We never turn down sun, sand, and waterfront based team building. When our client One Legacy asked us to host our Iron Team Challenge at Newport Dunes resort we did a little dance. Newport Dunes has it all! We grabbed our team and headed down to their corporate meeting space with our big bag of team building tricks.
Winner of the Rock, Paper, Scissors energizer
We started the group off with our hilarious rock, paper, scissors battle on the lawn. The group was cheering and yelling and lifting victors into the air. We LOVED this group. We then challenged the group to dig a little deeper. Studies have proven that high performing teams excel at connecting on a personal level. One of the first steps is moving beyond “How was your day?”
Once we had the group divided into teams we unleashed them on our Iron Team Challenges. It’s our version of a team building Olympics. Each round teams rotate to a new challenge and face a new opponent. The challenges require teams to work together, communicate, and trust if they’re going to win. We’ve designed them so dominant skills or personalities can’t hijack the game.
Team building on one of the lawns next to the bay at Newport Dunes
After the mayhem and laughter of the Iron Team we moved into the meeting space. We primed the groups with prompts that allowed them to reflect on the experience and share highlights with people on other teams. Gathering them back into their teams we lead a discussion to discover what the takeaways for the day were. What can they take from the day’s activities that is relevant to their day to day responsibilities?
https://fireflyteamevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/iron_gaunt_01.jpg10671600James Bennetthttps://fireflyteamevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/ff_website_main-495x226.pngJames Bennett2016-06-06 21:44:112016-06-06 21:44:11Team Building at Newport Dunes Resort
I work in an industry that focuses on growth and being positive. But sometimes you need to practice tough love. People of Corporate America! Bowling is NOT team building. You will not see productivity increase because your company went bowling. You haven’t increased cohesion. You failed to address problem solving, communication or innovation. Worse, you’ve set the bar so low that your company will begin a downward spiral into mediocrity, thinking that for the cost of 2 hours lane time, a bowling shoe rental, and soggy nachos they’re “team building”.
Many social activities like to tack on the buzz phrase “team building” to their marketing schemes without bothering to actually offer anything actually useful to team development beyond a fun time. Bowling is a common offender and I’m calling them out. So what exactly should you look for in team building activities that bowling doesn’t have? Read more
https://fireflyteamevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/Copy-of-how-bowling-killed-the-team-1.png400700Kelsey Cohenhttps://fireflyteamevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/ff_website_main-495x226.pngKelsey Cohen2016-05-25 20:10:562023-02-27 18:35:02How Bowling is Ruining Corporate Team Building
Aloha! Last week we gathered with TYR Sport in Long Beach to enjoy a sunset paddle for our Outrigger Canoe Team Building Race event. Participants were treated to a brief lesson on the history of outrigger canoeing in California and a hands-on lesson in paddling. Then it was into the canoes for the tournament!
