Fun Icebreaker Prompts For Video Chats

Ever led a meeting that felt like a freeze-dried snooze fest? ❄️💤 I used to think icebreakers were cheesy. Now I am a fan. Here's the deal: Teams that start with icebreakers see a 15-20% boost in performance. Why? They build trust faster. But we're not talking "If you were a vegetable what would you be?" here. Let's get clever. 1. Reverse Intros: Present your neighbor, not yourself. Suddenly, everyone's all ears. 2. Desert Island Tech: What 3 gadgets would you bring? Reveals priorities (and who's addicted to their smartwatch). 3. Five-Word Career Story: Sum up your journey succinctly. Mine? "Curious kid. Still asking why." 4. Skill Swap: Trade expertise with a teammate for a day. What would you learn? What would you teach? 5. Hidden Tech Heroes: Share an unsung innovator you admire. Spotlight the shadows of Silicon Valley. 6. Virtual Office Tour: Show one item that defines your workspace. That rubber duck? It's not just for bathtime. 7. 60-Second Solution Sprint: Pitch fixes for minor office annoyances. Coffee machine woes, begone! 8. Emoji Roadmap: Plot your next project using only emojis. 🔍💡🛠️🚀 (Decode that, team) 9. Tech Trend Time Machine: Predict an innovation 10 years out. Bonus points for boldness (and humor). 10. Tech Haiku Challenge: Describe your role in 5-7-5 syllables. "Bugs drive me crazy / Coffee fuels my keystrokes / Code, test, ship, repeat" These aren't just warm-ups. They're catalysts for creativity, trust-builders, and secret weapons for turning strangers into collaborators. Next meeting, ditch the small talk. Get connected. What's your go-to icebreaker for tech teams? Share below! 👇

Fostering respect, love and appreciation for each other is a key part of our focus for our executive team. Work is hard in the best of circumstances, and we refuse to pay an extra tax of negative energy. Time is never our team’s most important commodity; emotional energy is far more important. Executive teams that have to walk on eggshells, don’t respect each other and don’t believe that they are running at the same shared goals and vision will never win across a long-time horizon. Of course, it starts with a super-rigorous screening process to make sure there is cultural and energetic alignment before bringing in someone new to the team. But once you have those ingredients, it still takes a lot of effort to maintain and increase the goodwill that greases the wheels of high-performance. We do a lot of things to foster respect and love at work. One of my favorites is very simple. Our COO, Sam Zimmerman starts off every EOS L10 meeting with an icebreaker. These are often very simple, but the surprising things you learn are never what you expect, and it builds the habit of remembering that everyone is on a journey with surprising twists to it. Here are some of our recent prompts, try them out! What is the best advice you have received and how did you receive it? What is a time you did something that was against your own self-interest? What is your favorite movie and why? What is your favorite book and why? What mentor do you feel most appreciative of and why? What view have you changed most over the past year? What was your first job? What thing do you believe that you think no one else on the executive team does? What is the best event you’ve been to and what made it so great? What two things do you like about yourself? What is one thing you would like to change? What is the kindest thing someone has done for you? Do you have any mentees? Who on our team were you most recently impressed with and why? What is one thing you would like to never have to do again? What is one flex thing you’ve never shared with the team? Do you have any great prompts that have worked for you?

Please stop with the BORING zoom meetings! For anyone who hosts virtual meetings, please add one little thing. At the beginning of a meeting with a group of 4 or more, ask an icebreaker question in the chat to get the good vibes going. This can replace small talk and can serve as a knife to cut any tension. Use this if you usually have meeting participants slowly trickle in for the first few minutes, or if you're waiting for one particular attendee. Icebreaker questions in the meeting chat can be especially useful to get creative juices flowing and get people feeling comfortable speaking up if you're hosting a brainstorming session. Here are a few questions you can steal: --> If you could time travel, would you prefer to go forward or backward? --> What's a great book you've read recently? --> What city would you love to travel to next? --> What would be your strategy in a zombie apocalypse? --> What was the first concert you saw live? --> Which famous person would you invite to dinner? --> Favorite quote? --> Favorite food to eat? Asking icebreaker questions like these is exactly what Ryan K. and I did in my podcast this week. I really like his management style and I took a page out of his book and brought some fun into my workday :) Life is short. Office life can be dry. Introduce some fun. Let's give it a shot. Find a question in the comments below that makes you smile and leave a reply (or comment your own question that people can answer!)

If you’re making the perfect sandwich, what would be on it? What is one thing that never fails to make you feel better? What do you own that you’re pretty sure no one on the team owns? What is the most interesting thing in your fridge? These are some of the icebreakers I’ve posed in the team chat this year and the responses always reveal something I would never have known about my colleagues otherwise (like, some of us have very strong opinions about Dutch crunch bread)! It’s a simple act, but asking questions (and I mean really good questions) regularly is so crucial to building connection on my team. - How to do this: Use what Priya Parker calls “magical questions”: these are prompts everyone in the group wants to answer and hear and that go beyond small talk (e.g., “What was the first concert you went to, and who took you?” or “What’s a gift you got that you deeply loved?”) - When to do this: At the top of a team call (popcorn-style) or asynchronously in chat by posting a regular icebreaker thread. - Why to do this: A significant share of intrinsic motivation ties back to an employee’s relationship with their manager. That means we have to be intentional about creating personal connections, especially in a virtual workplace where this is less likely to happen organically. If you have a favorite magical question, please share it. I’m always on the hunt for compelling queries! #RemoteWork #Culture #Inclusion #Leadership 

Planning your Friday team sales meeting? Kick it off with a creative and engaging icebreaker to build camaraderie and set a positive tone for the day. While waiting for everyone to join, start with interesting questions to get everyone talking about their weekend plans: ❓“If you could spend the weekend in any fictional world, where would you go and what would you do?” ❓“What’s a hidden gem in your city that you plan to visit or recommend this weekend?” ❓“What’s the most spontaneous thing you’ve ever done on a weekend, and do you have any spontaneous plans coming up?” ❓“If you could turn any hobby into a full-time job for the weekend, what would it be?” As team members trickle in, ask them to share their answers to one of the questions above in the chat or verbally. This not only keeps the early birds engaged but also sets a fun and relaxed atmosphere for the meeting. Plus, it gives everyone a chance to learn something new and interesting about their colleagues! What questions would you suggest? I’m also curious what your answers to these questions would be. 😀 #leadership #icebreakers #meetings

After the usual Pride sprint of 20-plus workshops and speaking gigs, I realize I to created a bunch of new ice breaker questions, including: - What’s a memorable smell from your childhood? - What news story can you not turn away from? - What is the smallest victory you’ve celebrated recently? - What is the most boring, grownup thing that brings you joy or comfort? - What tv show or other entertainment are you binging right now? These have all brought fun, meaningful responses from the group that I am able to refer back to throughout the session. They have also opened up points of commonality AND difference within teams that they have used to deepen connection and curiosity. Facilitators, what are your favorite ways to informally welcome learners into a session— getting them used to jumping in the chat, coming off mute, or otherwise bringing them fully into the room while others trickle in?

Engage and involve your audience early and often, especially on Zoom. Conor Cunneen - IrishmanSpeaks asks the audience a question as attendees are entering the Zoom room, before he has even been introduced. One of his favorite questions to ask: “What was the first live concert you went to and how was it?” Simple enough but wait till you see the energy, excitement and connection that happens as you respond to the audience’s answers with questions such as, “Jack, was everyone dancing at that concert?” or “Mary, so your father went with you?” This is a better icebreaker than any staged one. Next time, vary the question: “What was the first wedding you attended, and what do you remember?” or “What’s your favorite city and which one do you hope to go to some day?” or “Which movie would you gladly watch over and over again and why?” Just like Conor, jump in and talk to your audience even before you are introduced, and prime them for a good time! Just make very sure you are not focusing on only one of your buddies. Nobody likes to hear ‘in jokes’…it reminds them of high school! #PresentLikeAPro #PresentationTips #PresentationSkills #OnlinePresentation

Icebreakers - love them or hate them? I firmly believe that dismissing icebreaker activities as irrelevant time-wasters ignores their pivotal role in nurturing connections and igniting creativity. Throughout my 15 years of leading workshops, I've seen how these activities kickstart engagement, stimulate curiosity, and set a positive tone for the rest of the session. Here are some of my favourites: Two Truths and a Lie: This classic game encourages participants to share unusual facts about themselves, opening a path for more camaraderie and human connection. Problem-Solving Challenge: Initiate a quick challenge related to your workshop's topic. This will not only break the ice, but also activate their problem-solving and collaborative skills. Dream Destination Sharing: Ask participants to share their dream travel destination and why. It's a fun, light-hearted way to learn more about each other's interests. Each of these activities caters to different professional settings, but their aim remains the same: to inspire a more collaborative, interactive, and productive work environment. Now, it's your turn. What are your go-to icebreaker activities? How have they transformed your team dynamics? Lisa Evans Lisa Partridge 🇸🇬🇬🇧🌍 Anna Seefeldt - Brand Strategist at Pink Pineapple Anna Norriss - Marketing Strategist Adelphia Lim (Social Media Manager) Megha Singh Melissa Laurie Charmaine L. Sally Leonard Razy Shah #TeamBuilding #Communication #IceBreakers #EntrepreneurshipAdvice

Ever felt awkward… initiating conversations with others? 🫣Sometimes, even the most extroverted among us can get the jitters at the thought of starting a conversation. Here are some go-to questions to help you break the ice and connect effortlessly👇🏻 🌟Personal life ↳ What’s a new hobby or skill you’ve picked up recently? ↳ What’s a favourite tradition or holiday memory you cherish? ↳ Have you traveled anywhere interesting recently? ↳ What’s your favourite book or movie to binge watch? ↳ Are you working on any personal goals or projects? 🗣️ In the workplace ↳ What’s the one thing you love about working at your company? ↳ Do you have any tips for staying productive and organized? ↳ Have you attended any interesting conferences or workshops recently? ↳ Have you noticed any interesting trends in our industry recently? ↳ Are you facing any challenges in your current/new role? 👩🏻💻In professional meetings ↳ Do you have any resources or tools that might be helpful in this project? ↳ What are some of the key goals you’re aiming to achieve in this quarter? ↳ Do you have any innovative ideas/ suggestions that could drive our projects forward? ↳ Are there any skills you’re currently focusing on developing? ↳ Can you highlight a recent success your team has had? 🌐 In networking events ↳ What brings you to this event today? ↳ Have you been to one of these events before? ↳ What does a typical day look like for you in your role? ↳ How did you get started in your current field? ↳ Did you hear about (recent industry news/event)? What are your thoughts on it? How do you kick off a great conversation? Share your favourites in the comments below😄

Yesterday was #NationalPlayDay, and a good reminder of the power of play. As psychologist, art therapist, and author Lucia Capocchione said: “Play keeps us vital and alive. It gives us an enthusiasm for life that is irreplaceable. Without it, life just doesn’t taste good.” When we make time for enjoyment, we lower stress, strengthen relationships, spark creativity, and make space for fresh thinking. This applies to your time at work, too. Something that’s easy to forget when you’re a leader: play isn’t a distraction from great work, it helps create it. Moments of lightheartedness can lead to stronger collaboration, better problem-solving, and teams that genuinely enjoy working together. One thing I’ve seen time and time again in my work with leaders is that creating opportunities for play doesn't mean sacrificing productivity. It means intentionally building moments of connection that help people bring their best selves to the work. Adding just a few minutes of play to begin or close out a meeting can go a long way toward boosting morale and output. 𝗜𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗽𝗶𝗿𝗶𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘆 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗽𝘂𝗿𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗲, 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗮𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝗱𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗻𝗲𝘅𝘁 𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗮: 💡 𝗪𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿: Pose a series of “Would You Rather” questions to the group, encouraging participants to share their preferences and reasoning behind their choices. 💡𝗧𝗲𝗮𝗺 𝗧𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗮: Divide participants into teams and host a trivia session with questions related to the meeting topic, company history, or fun facts about team members. 💡𝗖𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗶𝘇𝗲 𝗮 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱𝗹𝗲: https://word.rodeo/ Customize your own wordle puzzle to challenge your team and make the word relevant to the meeting topic or a team goal. Need more ideas? Get in touch. #nationalplayday #leadershiptools #icebreakers #meetingtips #teambuilding #tipsforleaders #wondershift