Although there are a lot of remote work fans, working from home can be lonely. For some, their office hours are an opportunity to escape the crazy environment of a household full of kids and be productive without any sort of distractions. For others, being at the office is an opportunity as good as any other to socialize and even have fun. 

In our case, some Exauders really appreciate their office time and enjoy daily group activities. We’re very fond of our ping pong matches, FIFA tournaments and even Pizza Day. Yet, we’re going back into complete lockdown once again and part of our team is still at home, it’s time to consider some alternatives to our mask-to-mask (excuse the dad joke) daily activities. 

Rise and Shine

If you’re a sleepy head like me, nothing will wake you up as a Zoom sync up. Don’t stress out, it doesn’t have to be an early morning stand up full of work talk. Starting your morning taking 10 minutes drinking coffee with your team while running small and distressed updates is a perfectly viable way to kick off the day organized and properly caffeinated. You can chit chat about the news, your to do list and fight over which coffee brand has the best roast and blend.
Pro-tip: Doing it every day of the week can be a stretch, so consider picking a specific day (why not Friday?) to do so! 

Lunch Hour Party

Not a morning person? Lunch is always a good option! You obviously don’t have to stare creepily at your co-workers while they eat. We’re fans of Jackbox and usually play it during our lunch break. Thanks to Google Hangouts and screen sharing, it’s pretty easy to play alongside with colleagues that went completely remote during the pandemic. All you need is your computer, a smartphone and a reasonable internet connection. 

Zoom Happy Hour

There’s something really satisfying about wrapping the work day while having a drink with your colleagues. Why not do the same thing via Zoom? Consider finishing an end of the day sync up with a beer or even a nice cocktail. You can extend the invitation to other team members and  go for something funnier, like a themed Happy Hour – everyone has a flannel shirt at home for that casual 90’s throwback!

Show and Tell

Although the economy is going through a rough patch, Covid-19 also required new tools for us to adapt and respond to it, leading to new projects in the IT area. If your company happens to be one of those looking for new talent to join your workforce as soon as possible, you might need to have a solution to introduce new hirings and do a proper onboarding. You’re meeting your new team mate for the first time and so are they! In fact, they’re meeting a bunch of new people and it can be awkward, especially when you’re new and still looking to lose that initial shyness. A good initiative can be a Show and Tell game where everyone can pick a personal object from their home and tell the story behind it. That way, not only you can have some quality bonding time but also get to know each other and see what you might have in common. 

PowerPoint Day

This can be anticipated by an Happy Hour, obviously, but if you’re looking to do a fun activity that is somehow related to work, you can always go for a PowerPoint. Yes. I said what I said: a PowerPoint. There’s a trend going around where everyone makes a presentation on a random subject. The idea is looking extremely professional and talking about something that will make others crack a laugh or get them completely hooked. 

Bingo!

Okay, an oldie but goldie also works. Why not a Bingo session? Afterall, you don’t have to be retired to enjoy such a classic and you can adapt it to your work reality. How fun would it be to have a ‘*insert company’s name’ Online Meeting Bingo’? Here’s a suggestion: 

Which activity would you suggest to your colleagues to keep the lockdown blues away?

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