Team Building Icebreaker – “Have You Ever?”

If you’re looking for a fun team building icebreaker for a group of 15 people to up to 60 people, the “Have You Ever” team activity is a fun choice. It requires very little to setup and provides a lot of laughs.

Setting Up the Game:

First, you’ll need a set of items to mark each person in the group.

• • If you want professional looking markers, do an Amazon search for “half cone markers” and you’ll see many nice options.
  • If you need something quick or if you’re on a budget, go to your local grocery store and look for colored paper plates. These look just fine, are easy to buy, and are disposable.
  • For every person in the group, you’ll need one marker, so make sure you have enough!

Second, place the markers in a rectangle (circles are actually really difficult to make). Except for the very last marker—put that one in the middle of the shape. Finally, have each person stand with one foot close to one of the markers. All participants should be outside of the rectangle, except for the last person to claim a marker—they’ll be assigned to the one in the middle.

Playing the Game:

The person in the center then asks a question starting with, “Have you ever…?” (Incidentally, I typically make a rule that the question has to be “G” rated.) All the participants who have done that particular thing must then travel outside of the rectangle, all the way around, one complete time until they pass their starting point. Only after they’ve done that are they allowed to claim an empty spot marker. (Of course, the person who asked the question can immediately claim an empty spot—so there will always be one person left without a market). The person without a marker then moves to the center, and the activity starts all over again.

Common “Have You Ever” Team Building Icebreaker Questions

• • Have you ever moved from one state to another?
  • Have you ever got a speeding ticket?
  • Have you ever cheated on a test?
  • Have you ever received a quarterly bonus?

The key is to ask questions that get a lot of people moving around the rectangle. This icebreaker is designed to get the group to know each other better, and it’s also a fantastic way to get the energy of the group to a much higher level. The first time a question is asked, most people are very polite and slow moving. However, as they begin to realize that someone is going to be left out each time, they begin to move faster. After a few questions, the “question asker” will often get a little clever and begin to ask funny questions. When they do, your group will begin laughing hysterically. (By the way, don’t force these questions on the group. It’s more fun when they happen naturally.)

Some of the questions I’ve heard participants ask include:

• • Have you ever called in sick when you weren’t
  • Have you ever blamed your mistake on a coworker?
  • And… my all time favorite… “Have you ever been arrested?

When these questions start naturally, it’s really funny, because a few people will start to move, and then realize what was just asked and go back to their starting point (hoping that no one noticed.) Realize that, once the funny questions are starting to be asked, stop the exercise. Otherwise, each new questioner will try to outdo the last, and someone will eventually ask an embarrassing or inappropriate question. Stick to making this team building icebreaker activity fun and light hearted, and the group will have a blast.

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