Team Building: Spring Training for Best Teamwork Results

Every spring, baseball teams in America start training for the summer season. They all go through spring training every year to produce the best team results even though they already know each other and know how to play. It boosts their performance and teamwork. It also helps integrate new members onto the team.

I have never used sports analogies before in my articles and sessions on team building and people-skills (also known as soft skills).

Yet this spring it creates a timely and very clear image for workplace teamwork.


Team Building Training By:RW Photobug

Although the economy is supposedly recovering, corporate teams are still seeing layoffs and team members are dealing with the resulting changes.

It has unsettled them and they need help. Isn’t it time to boost your team’s spirit, performance, and teamwork?

Spring train your teams with these team building exercises:


  1. Respect. Simple human respect for each others’ talents and differences reinvigorates a team’s spirit. So run the respect around the table before a meeting as a spring training team building exercise! People are different. Respect and celebrate the differences to bring a tired team back to life.
  2. Honesty not brutality. After a long winter or a tough year, everyone can use a breath of fresh spring air. The pet peeve exercise breathes new life into every team. Team members honestly state one pet peeve (an action or statement – not a person) that others should not do or say around them. You will be amazed at the far reaching results of this little spring training exercise.
  3. Legends in the making. Legendary performance comes from turning pressure, challenges, and tough times into opportunities to learn and achieve. But you have to stop briefly and realize just how far you’ve come! Have your teams list everything they have accomplished in the last year or two so they can see how legendary their performance has been through the difficulties. Use that spirit to spring them forward.
  4. Fun and humor. Humor that highlights the absurdities of life can refuel the human spirit. A little homework on the Web can find chuckles for everyone to share. Avoid humor that makes fun of any particular group of people. It can offend. Choose jokes or scenarios that every human would find funny.


Kate Nasser, The People-Skills Coach, has delivered transformational team building sessions to corporations across many industries for 21 years. Her energy and experience activate teamwork and service improvements in the toughest situations. See this site for info & customer testimonials. Masters in Organizational Psychology.

6 Responses to “Team Building: Spring Training for Best Teamwork Results”

  1. Kimb Manson says:

    Great article Kate!
    And yet another FRESH way to look at running your business. Wish this kind of thinking was around when I was in the hospitality business. Makes me want a team!

  2. Audrey Williams says:

    These exercises are powerful in getting the team together. My favourite would be “RESPECT”; it boosts your worth as you value others’ talents and differences. This will quickly bring the team together with calm.

  3. Great Post Kate. Really like your statement that “Legendary performance comes from turning pressure, challenges, and tough times into opportunities to learn and achieve.” I have seen this happen time and time again.

  4. As a sports nut, I loved this article, Kate! Great job!!! All four “bases” are important for the success of the team. I appreciate that you added “humor” to the list, including being respectful of others by not offending any one with what you interject! Here’s to living your legend!

  5. Thank you for sharing practical fun exercises to build cohesion among team members that focuses on positive action steps!

    It is great to connect with you on your blog and on twitter.

    Maureen

  6. Buck says:

    I learned a lot of information from this piece and will definitely keep it in my RSS. Thanks for the effort you took to expand upon this topic so thoroughly. I look forward to future posts.

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