50 Ice Breakers Employees Don't Hate (Because I Tried the Bad Ones First)
Charles Stein ran the ice breakers everyone dreads so you don't have to. 50 that actually work, sorted by what bombed and what didn't.
GAMES & ACTIVITIES
Charles Stein
8/26/20263 min read
Okay, real talk — my first ice breaker as an HR generalist was "if you were a kitchen appliance, which one would you be." I got four "toasters," one guy who said "the one nobody uses," and a silence so long I started reading the wall clock like it owed me money. That was two years ago. Since then I've run probably sixty of these things at all-hands meetings, new-hire orientations, and one deeply regrettable "mandatory fun" retreat. Some of them worked. A lot of them didn't. Here's the list, organized by what I learned the hard way.
The Ones That Bombed (So You Don't Have To Try Them)
Anything with the word "appliance" in it
Two Truths and a Lie when nobody's met each other yet — people just lie boringly
Any question that starts with "if you could" and ends with something career-related
Making people stand up and move to a corner of the room based on their answer — great for a 20-person team, a slow-motion trust fall for anyone over 60 people
"Share something not on your LinkedIn" — too vague, everyone freezes
Quick Ones (Under 60 Seconds Per Person, Good for Meeting Kickoffs)
What's the last thing you Googled?
Coffee, tea, or "I don't understand the question"?
What's currently open in one of your browser tabs that you're a little embarrassed about?
Show us the most recent photo on your phone (with an out if it's private)
What's your go-to order at the place closest to your desk?
One word for how your week is going, no explaining
What's a food you will defend to the death?
What app do you check first in the morning?
If your Friday had a theme song, what is it?
What's something you're weirdly good at that has nothing to do with your job?
Slightly Deeper (Good for Team Meetings, Not First-Day Orientation)
What's a skill you learned outside of work that you use more than you'd expect?
Who's someone who influenced how you work, and how?
What's a small thing a coworker did once that you still remember?
What's a task you've gotten weirdly efficient at?
What's the most useful thing you learned in your first job that had nothing to do with the actual job?
What's a rule you follow that isn't written down anywhere?
What's something you thought you'd be bad at and turned out to like?
What's a compliment you got once that stuck with you?
What's your least popular opinion about how meetings should work?
If you had an extra hour today, guilt-free, what would you do with it?
For New Hires (Low Pressure, Doesn't Require Tenure)
What made you say yes to this job specifically?
What's a question you're a little nervous to ask but should?
What's your ideal way to get feedback — direct, written, in the moment?
What's something you want people to know about how you work?
What's a misconception people have about your previous field or role?
What's one thing that would make your first month easier?
What time zone brain are you actually operating on right now?
What's something small that would make you feel welcome here?
Remote and Hybrid Friendly (Nobody Has to Stand Up)
Show us something within arm's reach of your desk right now
What's your video-call background — real or virtual — and why
Type your answer in chat instead of saying it out loud (great for the quieter half of the team)
What's the weather actually like where you are?
What's a snack you keep at your desk that you'd defend in a debate
What's one thing about working from home nobody warned you about
Drop an emoji that describes your current task, no words
What's the last thing that made you laugh out loud alone at your desk
For When You Have More Time (Team Offsites, Longer All-Hands)
Tell us about a job you had before this one that taught you something surprising
What's a decision you made that you're still proud of a year later
What's something your team does that you'd want every team here to do
What's a piece of advice you got that you didn't take, and are you glad or not
What's the most "you" purchase you've made recently
If you designed a new company holiday, what would it celebrate
What's a skill you wish more people asked you about
What's something this team got right that you've bragged about outside of work
What's a small tradition you'd want this team to start
What's one thing you want to be true about this team a year from now
What I'd Actually Tell You
The pattern I noticed after enough of these: the questions that land are specific and low-stakes. "What's in your browser tab" gets a real answer in three seconds. "What's your leadership philosophy" gets a rehearsed one, if you get one at all. Match the question to how much time you actually have, and don't make someone perform vulnerability before they trust the room. I still don't have this fully figured out — ask me again in a year and half this list might be different. What's the ice breaker that's actually worked for your team? I want to steal it.
Questions? Reach out anytime.
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