7 Fun Communication Games That

Increase Understanding

Clear communication is crucial for success in any job,

especially for interaction-driven positions like support and
sales.

Communication skills don’t come naturally to most employees,

however, they can be difficult to train. Books and lectures only get you
so far, but like most learned skills, practice makes perfect.

The single biggest problem in

communication is the illusion that it has
taken place.
George Bernard Shaw

Communication games are a fun way for employees to learn helpful

methods through team interaction. Here are seven games you and
your workers can play to improve your communication skills.

Card Pieces

Card Pieces helps build negotiation skills and empathy, which are key
components of effective communication.
 What you’ll need:

 Nine or more people

 Playing cards cut into triangles (to make your pieces, cut the cards
diagonally and then diagonally again)

 Envelopes

 Private room

How to play:

Separate groups of three or four people into at least three teams.

Each team will receive an envelope of mixed cut up playing cards.
The teams then have 8 to 10 minutes to barter and trade pieces in
order to complete their cards. The team with the most completed
cards wins.

This game works well because it helps people hone their negotiation
skills to achieve the most successful outcomes. It also helps with
 accepting loss and figuring out what could have been improved to
achieve the desired outcome.

After the game, talk to your teams about what worked or failed. Did
they use empathy to see things from another person’s perspective?
This helps them tailor their communication more effectively. Were they
actively listening to one another? Not everyone expresses themselves
the same, so being able to adjust and understand another’s
communication style is key.

Blindfold Game

Blindfold Game builds trust, listening and instructional skills.

What you’ll need:

 Four or more people

 Blindfolds

 Private room or recreational area

 Various “obstacles” such as boxes, chairs or books

How to play:

Construct an obstacle course with your various items. Divide your

players into teams of two. Tie a blindfold on one member and have
them stand at the “start” of the obstacle course. The second member
must then guide the blindfolded member through the course by calling
out directions.

This game encourages cooperation, successful teamwork and trust,

which is crucial for effective communication. When there is a lack of
trust, it builds suspicion and prevents buy-in.

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Clarity in giving instructions is a must for effective customer service,

especially in technical fields. When customers have a difficult time
understanding technical directions, it’s tempting to use more words to
explain, which just further confuses customers. Brevity and careful
word selection is key for better communication.

Building Blocks

Building Blocks builds descriptive and instructional skills, as well as

teamwork.

What you’ll need:

 Four or more people

 Blocks or stackable figures

 A table

How to play:

Assemble a team of at least four people, and give them two identical
sets of building blocks. Assign one person in the team as a director,
one as a builder, one as a runner and the remaining members as
observers.

Stand the director and builder on opposite sides of the room facing
away from each other. Have the director build a unique structure from
the building blocks and give directions to the runner who will relay
them to the builder. The builder will then use the directions to create a
structure identical to that of the director within 10 minutes. After each
round, discuss the exercise with the team.
 Task division in teams helps with efficient completion of projects.
However, cooperation, effective communication and trust are key
prerequisites for it. Building Blocks helps foster these important parts
of teamwork.

If you have a larger team, split them into separate teams to see who
completes it best. If you have a smaller group, the director can give
directions to the builder without a runner.

Crazy Comic

Crazy Comic is from the book 104 Activities that Build by Alanna
Jones and encourages teamwork, standardization and coordination.

What you’ll need:

 Three or more people

 Pencils

 Paper

How to play:

Depending on how many team members you have, divide them

evenly into groups. Each group will create their own comic strip.

Each person is responsible for drawing one frame of the strip, so the
comic’s length is based on how many people are in each group (for
 example, three people make a three-frame comic). Assign a set
amount of time for each team to discuss what the comic will be about,
what each person will draw, and so on.

The team will begin drawing at the exact same time without any
interaction, so everything must be discussed in detail beforehand. The
team is also not allowed to see what the other members are drawing.
When time is up, have the teams gather to look at and discuss their
comics.

The most effective teams organize themselves with minimal help from
leaders. This is an excellent game for teams to practice vision
cohesion across components.

This game also works well with teams separated across offices or
working remotely. They can work verbally over the phone or Skype to
create the comic.

Four at a Time

Four at a Time is great for teaching non-verbal communication and

teamwork.

What you’ll need:

 Five or more people

 Private room
How to play:

Have all participants sit in a circle. When the game begins, no more or
less than four people must be standing at a time, and the four can
only stand for 10 seconds before they must sit down and be
immediately replaced by someone else. All communication about who
will stand or sit must be non-verbal. The goal is to keep the game
going as long as possible.

Non-verbal communication is essential in a group sales environment.

Team members should be able to discreetly help each other while
keeping a customer engaged.

This game can be played almost everywhere and works best in large
groups. The larger the group, the better the non-verbal
communication must be.

6
 Get It Together

Get It Together builds focus and encourages teamwork.

What you’ll need:

 Four or more people

 Blindfolds

 Colored tape

 Assortment of small items

How to play:

Divide players into two-person teams and blindfold one member. Use
the tape to create a circle in the middle of the room and place various
items within it. Based on directions given by their partner, the
blindfolded member must retrieve specific items from the circle. The
partner giving instructions may not enter the circle.

The game becomes complicated and challenging as more and more

two-person teams join the fray. When it becomes virtually impossible
for teams to communicate and navigate, or once all the objects have
been retrieved, the game ends.

Building focus helps team members concentrate on the person they’re

communicating with despite potential distractions. Try switching the
roles within each team after every round so the members can learn
more about their own and other’s behavior in challenging situations.

This game works best in large groups since it increases the game
difficulty. The more chaos by the end, the better!
 7

Misunderstanding

The game Misunderstanding helps drive creative communication.

What you’ll need:

 Two or more people

 Chairs

 Various objects

How to play:

Have two people sit back-to-back. Person A has an object and must
describe it (without explicitly saying what the object is) to person B.
Person B must then draw it based on person A’s description.

This game is effective for finding new ways to communicate around

barriers. It also helps build problem-solving skills and effective
communication strategies.

For larger groups, make it a competition by deciding which team

created the most accurate drawing in a set amount of time.

From communication games to better

understanding
Practicing communication should be an ongoing part of your personal
and professional development. Games are a fun, interactive way to
hone important skills for effective communication. Not only does it
improve your team’s ability to express themselves clearly and actively
listen, but it boosts morale and brings your team closer together.
TIPS FOR BETTER COMMUNICATION

At some time or another every soccer coach is likely to bemoan their team’s struggle to
communicate both on and off the field. One way an effective coach can address this struggle is to try
to identify the personality of their team, the “environmental” factors that influence that personality
and then to map out a strategy to improve the skill of team communication.

To a large extent most teams, regardless of their competitive level, are social groups.

The group may rely on one or two powerful individuals who are very vocal, can lead, to good or bad
outcomes, and who overpower the majority with their presence. Or the group may be one that has a
collection of individuals all trying to establish “roles” within the group and, as such, no single voice,
or indeed any voice, really comes to the forefront. Or the group comes collectively from another
social environment, such as the same school, and socially cannot “shut up”, but fail to communicate
in a performance setting for fear of damaging friendships.

Some of the “environmental” factors that can externally impact a group’s dynamic could be, among
others;

• Sideline behavior by coaches or fans

• The pressure of the competitive level
• The attitude of the opposition
• Various parenting inputs
• Fatigue
• Educational experiences of the players

So the coach has to see how the team actually communicates and has to assess why that maybe the
case. At this point the coach can then employ some general and ultimately specifically contextual
strategies to improve effective team communication.

1. Empowerment

Players have to plainly feel that they are encouraged to communicate and that they are free to do so
within reasonable guidelines, e.g. appropriate language, etc. Just as we want the players to have the
ability to see a variety of choices in the game and then decide what to do so they need to feel able to
make choices and decisions when it comes to communication.

2. Implementation of specific training activities

There are many training games that place a specific challenge on the player’s communication skills
and to be successful in require them to be vocal. Possession games that employ three teams, with
two working together against one and then switching up as the ball is turned over is a good example
of a game the players need to talk in. See the attached game that is highly recommended if the
coach is willing to be patient and really challenge the players.

3. Use of captains or leadership groups

For both on and off field purposes identifying individuals who are effective communicators within
the group and have the respect of the group is a skill for a coach. Some coaches prefer to use a
single captain, others will share the role. Also using off field “captains” for each class within a college
or HS team can share the load of communication and foster understanding and dialogue that may be
carried over to the field.

4. Self-awareness of the coach

A natural response to a team struggling to communicate is to do it for them. In the short term this
can be effective, but long term it is not teaching the players to communicate and it is a role for the
coach at odds with evaluating and assessing performance. A coach should be conscious when they
are “supplementing” the communication that the team needs to be making and to do so only for the
long term development of the players.

5. Self-awareness of the fans

Be it a youth or high school environment or even in college the coach can find ways to share with
parents and fans the types of support they hope to see. Parent and fan support that lapses into
giving direct instruction is distracting for players and often at odds with the coach’s direction. Also
anytime the sideline behavior is more of a spectacle than the game itself is not going to help players
flourish physically and cognitively in the game.

6. Fostering an environment where all players and staff have value

The environment in a healthy team should always be fair, though not necessarily equal. A four year
starter and captain in a HS has earned some consideration that perhaps a frosh on the team has not.
Still the coach must be sure to express the value of everyone in the group and to value their
contribution. Along with empowerment this expression of value is likely to encourage players to be
comfortable expressing themselves.

7. Creating a unique team vocabulary

Much as a team has certain tactics and strategies and approaches to set plays it practices and holds
unique to the group so can be the case for a vocabulary. For example with the 6 and under players
with a good set up story, “peanut butter” could mean spread out. For a HS team “locking in” an
opponent will mean to deny an opponent getting out their final third, but the actual execution will
be unique to the team. If the coach and players establish these key words or phrases it can greatly
assist communication and understanding.

Certainly a team that is not effectively communicating on and/or the field can frustrate a coach. It
often can become an excuse for a coach when performances lack. Rather than excuse though the
coach should find the reason for the weakness understand it and train to address it. Good luck in
training and games this season.