What would you do on a cold, cloudy, end-of-September, weekend? Snuggle into your favorite blanket with a cup of ginger tea and a great book? Netflix & chill with your soulmate? Beer with friends? Not if you are one of the team members at DAC.digital because the usual stuff is probably not enough for you.
Going into the wild!
And one day, you find yourself sitting in a wet kayak after 3 hours of paddling, feeling the first drops of cold rain on your cheeks, and asking yourself a question: “Does this team-building make any sense?”.
It seems like it does. A study conducted by scientists from the University of Central Florida revealed that team building improves team outcomes. Researchers analyzed dozens of papers to find out what are the benefits of team building and found out the most substantial influence on team outcomes had activities involving goal-setting and role-clarification.
Not convinced yet? Several studies have shown that spending time outdoors, especially in green spaces, lowers stress and blood pressure, and heart rate. It is also good for mental health and your mood. Also, a new study published in the International Journal of Environmental Health Research shows that spending just 20 minutes in a park improves overall well-being. Imagine then what four and a half hours in a kayak may do to you.
We made it! Time for a damage report.
Becoming better surgeons
Surprisingly, the team did not have enough of each other after the kayaking adventure and set up a LAN party a week later. So here we were, a dozen of developers (and some business devs) gathered in front of their screens to save the planet from… Oh, wait… they just spent several hours shooting each other in FPS and soccer online games. However, what seems like an unproductive waste of time is a proven way to maintain relationships with teammates and the opportunity to improve some learning abilities, problem-solving, and communication skills.
The research conducted during one of the largest LAN Parties in Malaysia says gamers participating in LAN party experience (and hopefully enjoy) many social interactions. The atmosphere enhanced with chats between players, music, food, etc. brings additional value to the experience of online video gaming itself.
There is also research saying that playing FPS games significantly reduces levels of errors for laparoscopic surgeons. Hopefully, the same applies to coders.
Our Chief Operating Officer couldn’t arrive at the LAN party, but she wanted to check how we behave… Nothing is happening… keep on scrolling.
Developers improving their problem-solving skills.
Our Head of Communications didn’t like the cables in the picture. We cleaned the office for her.
We are continuously looking for new ideas and inspirations for our team building activities. Heard about something spectacular? Do share!
