Do you want your employees to be more adaptable? Adaptability activities can help your employees to become highly flexible and effective in the changing work environment.
So, what’s adaptability?
It’s a skill one needs in order to face challenges, learn new skills, and quickly respond to changes. When employees are highly adaptable, they will effectively communicate with others, solve problems, and cooperate well in a team.
In this article, you can see 10 adaptability activities for employees in your workplace.
So, let’s get started!
10 Adaptability Activities for Employees in Your Workplace
A Quick Note
Before running these activities, make sure you divide the participants into teams. Some of these exercises require a minimum number of people per group. Please be aware of that too.
If you want to know how you can conduct team building activities, you can read this article for inspiration: How to Facilitate Team Building Activities in Your Workplace?
Alright? So, let’s go!
#1. Diversity Poll
This is one of the fantastic adaptability activities to deal with diversity in the workplace. It can help your employees understand the different values as well as the beliefs of their colleagues.
Duration: 5-15 minutes
Number of participants: Any
Materials: None
How to conduct this exercise?
- First, you can tell a debating statement like:
“I like working in the comfort of my home rather than going to the office daily.”
“Vegetarian food is healthier than non-vegetarian food.”
- Now, instruct the employees to respond to the statement by expressing “thumps up” if they agree, “thumps down” if they disagree, and “cross the arms” if they are not sure.
- Then, ask them to explain the reason for that response. Also, give them a chance to change their response if they want to.
- Repeat this process by trying 3-5 statements of your choice (something related to your business or anything else).
#2. Dream Workplace
Dream Workplace is an amazing activity that will train your employees to be more adaptable. It highlights the importance of effective communication and creativity while dealing with challenging work conditions.
Duration: You decide
Individuals per group: Minimum 3
You need: Flipcharts, paper sheets, and markers of different colors.
How to run this activity?
- Initially, provide a flipchart, paper sheets, as well as markers to each group.
- Next, instruct them to draw their dream workplace on the flipchart, regardless of the cost. Also, make sure that the employees should not communicate verbally. They can only communicate by writing down their ideas on paper sheets.
- Finally, each team should explain their design.
#3. Flying Balloons
If you’re looking for adaptability games that require a lot of enthusiasm, then you can try this one. This activity can boost team spirit and encourage your staff to take on new challenges.
Duration: You decide
Group size: Minimum 2 members
You need: Inflated balloons
How to run this activity?
- At first, give a number of balloons to each group according to its size. Make sure all the members of a group have the same color balloons. However, no two groups share the same color balloons.
- Then, instruct the teams to launch their balloons into the air and keep them there without falling. They can hit them with their hands or head, but they must not hold them. Also, eliminate the balloons that hit the floor.
- Finally, identify the team that kept more balloons in the air.
#4. Name Choices
This activity trains your employees to be adaptable to changes. Moreover, it encourages them to respect the viewpoints of others.
Duration: 10-20 minutes
Number of participants: Any; but there must be at least 4 different teams.
Materials: None
How to conduct this exercise?
- Initially, instruct the employees to discuss and come up with two name choices for their team.
- Now, ask them to choose one name from these two that best describes them. Make sure they must keep it a secret.
- Next, tell them that they can finalize their chosen name only if other groups approve it. Now, each team should share the two choices with the rest of the groups. Then, the other groups can vote for the name that’s appealing to them.
- Finally, each team can compare the results in these two cases.
#5. Puzzled Hands
This is one of the traditional team building activities for adaptability as well as problem-solving. Here your employees will understand the importance of adaptability in collaboration.
Duration: 5 minutes
Group size: At least 5 people
Materials: None
How to conduct this exercise?
- At first, instruct each team to stand in a circle.
- Then, each person should hold the right hand of the person who is standing across the circle using his right hand.
- After that, each person should hold the left hand of a different person with his left hand. Nobody can hold the hand of someone who is standing directly next to them.
- Now, ask them to unravel everyone without breaking their connections.
#6. Rescue Ship
This is one of the great adaptability activities ever. This exercise trains your employees to handle challenging situations.
Duration: 5-10 minutes
Individuals per group: Minimum 3
You need: Blankets or tarpaulins
How to run this activity?
- At first, set the blankets/tarpaulins on the floor, and ask each team to stay on it.
- Then, let them assume that they are on a sinking ship, and they must move to a rescue ship immediately.
- Now, fold the blanket/tarpaulin to make it small in size. Then, invite each team to stay on the rescue ship.
#7. Silent Concert
The silent concert is one of the entertaining exercises to make your staff more adaptable. This activity can train your employees to use their adaptability skills in teamwork.
Duration: You decide
Number of participants: Any
You need: A smartphone or music player
How to run this activity?
- Start by instructing each team to conduct a musical concert for their favorite song. They can do this by lip-sync, air guitar, etc.
- Next, give them some time to assign various roles for each member – for example, singers, guitarists, violinists, etc. Then, they can do the rehearsal.
- Now, ask them to play the music and perform. Finally, identify the best performances.
#8. Transforming Words
This is one of the simple activities to improve adaptability skills. With this activity, your employees will understand the ways to become more adaptable.
Duration: 5-10 minutes
Individuals per group: At least 3
Materials: None
How to conduct this exercise?
- At first, the facilitator should tell some adaptability-related words one by one. For example, confidence, risk-taking, resilience, patience, persistence, etc.
- Next, instruct each teammate to choose a word from these. Then, they should come up with a few practical ideas to improve that particular area or skill. Now, each person can share their ideas with their teammates.
- Finally, each team should explain how they can use these ideas to be more adaptable.
#9. Virtual Teammate
This is one of the exercises that can help your employees learn more from their colleagues. In this activity, the employees identify the strengths that can make them adaptable.
Duration: 10-20 minutes
Group size: 4-6 members
You need: Pens and paper sheets
How to conduct this exercise?
- Initially, ask each individual to share their main strengths that can contribute to their team’s success.
- Now, instruct each group to assume that they have a “virtual teammate” with all these strengths. Then, let them write a short profile description about their “virtual teammate”.
- At last, each team should share this profile description with other groups.
#10. Web Passage
Web passage is one of the adaptability exercises that can be challenging as well as exciting. It encourages your employees to go outside of their comfort zone and solve complex problems.
Duration: You decide
Number of participants: Any
You need: Nylon cord
How to run this activity?
- First, set up a spider web between two pillars or trees. You can do this by using the nylon cord.
- Then, instruct each team to pass through the spider web. They should not touch the web. Also, they should not travel over, under, or around the web. If somebody touches it, he should go back and restart again.
- At last, see who performed well.
Want Some Unique Team Building Activities?
If you want to try some unique team building activities for your employees, you can get my new e-book:
Final Words
In this changing world, businesses need employees who are more adaptable. So, it’s important to improve the adaptability skills of your employees. Hopefully, the above adaptability activities will help you achieve that. Remember, an adaptable employee can be a long-term asset for your business.
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