7 signs that treasure hunts build teams

Posted on: 03/01/2020

It`s that no-mans land of the first week back at work in the New Year.It doesn`t feel quite right though and you have to quickly re-establish your goals for the year ahead. Thankfully, after a  couple of days it`s already the sanctuary of the weekend for many. I sympathise with those of you who work at the weekend though as I have done many of those myself. I found sometimes that the `weekend team`  often got on better as a group even though they were less experienced than the regulars during the week.This got me thinking as to what makes a great teambuilding event for everyone and how we at Black Cat Treasure Hunts can encourage the office manager to get in touch (info@blackcattreasurehunts.co.uk or 07445818996 if you were wondering!) to discuss a booking.
The month by month reviews of the year, or this year the review of the decade, have all happened so instead I will pick 7 instances from recent events to illustrate great teambuilding by companies who chose Black Cat Treasure Hunts for their bespoke hunt.

1. Getting into the spirit. It`s always a good sign that a team have the ability to stick together by choosing the same company for their teambuilding. A particular booking in December came back after a 5 year gap though and I wondered in advance how it would go as I was due to attend the event. I should not have worried. I had asked them for info with themes relating to Russia,The Year of the Rat (2020) and Friday 13th. I was greeted with participants wearing Ushanka`s (those big furry, Russian hats) and others adorned in green,gold and blue (the rat`s preferred colours apparently). Within 5 mins the teams were filming themselves walking under ladders without anything terrible happening. There was no looking back..
2. Bring your own originality.Back in the Spring a largish company had 9 teams of 10 and decided they would like a murder/mystery theme.I devised a story based on clues around Brighton, which had been split into 5 Zones. Each team was led by their own `suspect` and the winning team was the one who not only worked out the correct murderer, but re-told the story as close to mine. To say there was hilarity attached to some of the stories and supposed motives of the suspects was an understatement. Definitely a stronger team by the end of the night!
3. Pick your teams without bias or according to seniority. Having a relaxed feel right at the start of the day/event is important and making sure that there is no fixing of teams or pressure to appoint your boss as the team leader can help. One of the Brighton events picked teams according to the flavours of Brighton Rock they picked out of a box!
4. Allow for discovery and new cultures. Possibly the most entertaining teambuilding event of the year included 16 Russians. The treasure hunts were translated into Russian (for the Moscow office) and the route covered the broadest cross section of the City possible. The Game of Thrones style fancy dress attracted a lot of attention too.
5. The participants are the stars of the show. Black Cat likes to personalise a teambuilding hunt by including info and photos of the participants. This may involve letting me know past achievements not related to work or quirks that no-one has yet been told about! This info is worked into the questions and challenges and creates a lot of fun. Knowing more about your co-workers is an obvious route to teambuilding.
6. Blame Black Cat if you don`t win. Team solidity is maintained even if you trail in last by putting the blame on the person who marked the challenges.Black Cat is always happy, for a small fee, to turn up and act as independent judge (well..he is not adverse to the odd bribe or two!) the marking stage is the scene of much banter and teambuilding.
7. Prizes,pride and something for everyone. Black Cat Treasure Hunts prides itself on setting questions and challenges that are appropriate for the group and cover a wide range of interests. The prizes are amusing rather than expensive which means that everyone`s pride is in tact by the end of the day and the feeling of experiencing an unusual and enjoyable event has strengthened that team bond. After all ...at a December event the Xmas penguin for the runners up was deemed a better prize than the plastic,yet gold coloured trophy for the winners and was donated to a team member with a new born baby! 

So..make the most of that first week back and get in touch to book an event with Black Cat Treasure Hunts that your whole team can look forward to.
info@blackcattreasurehunts.co.uk