No matter how small or large your virtual team is, there’s bound to be common interests across teams and departments. Take a poll to see where people’s passions lie and encourage individuals to connect. Here are a few examples of remote team building activities to support your employees’ unique interests. The physical act of laughing is no joke according to Dr. Robin Dunbar, who conducted a series of experiments to determine the specific role of relaxed social laughter on an individual’s well being. Scientists know that the act of laughing releases endorphins into the brain that provide feelings of happiness and a heightened sense of well-being, but its exact scientific and social benefits have been hard to determine.
Sharing logins across households now triggers verification prompts, viewing locks, and in some regions, an “extra member” fee. The good news is you don’t actually need to share an account at all — there are two legitimate ways to watch Netflix together remotely that don’t break the rules and still feel like sitting on the same couch. Skype works similarly but lets you invite up to 50 people to your video chat, and like Zoom and Hangouts, it even lets you screen share. Free to download, Microsoft has changed its settings since the start of the pandemic so you no longer need to open an account to use Skype. Over time, these lighthearted exchanges become part of the couple’s shared narrative, which influences how they think of the relationship and decide whether it’s a source of joy or strain in their life. When laughter is a recurring presence, it can positively shape the overall emotional climate of the relationship, making it feel lighter and more enjoyable to be in.
Algoe suggests that relationship partners may want to find opportunities to laugh together in order to boost closeness, especially before having difficult or conflict-prone conversations. Likewise, she speculates that shared laughter could be incorporated into staff meetings to make people feel more on the same page and, thereby, become more productive. Sometimes people just want to sit back, relax and enjoy the virtual show. Here are a few remote team building activities to engage employees through music, art and other forms of virtual entertainment.
Your development team’s been hyping about a new project they’re about to roll out, but who works on what? When you’re in the weeds on your own work, it can be challenging to know how everyone else contributes to the success of your company. oliviabennett7.wordpress.com/2026/09/09/asiavibe-review-3-features-that-changed-my-mind/ Host a chat where a specific team shares exactly what they do and how each individual’s job varies. It’s important to embrace the nuances that come with remote work, while also trying to spark conversation among people across teams. “As the names of Americans murdered on September 11th are read aloud at Ground Zero, AOC and Mamdani are laughing and smiling together,” Rep. Wesley Hunt, R-Texas, wrote on X.
Or the one where a guide dresses up as a plague doctor and walks through the streets of Prague, commenting on various landmarks relevant to the 17th- and 18th-century plagues. Mamdani had already faced opposition from some victims’ families ahead of the ceremony. A petition urging him to stay away from Ground Zero gathered more than 110,000 signatures, though Mamdani attended and remained for the ceremony. “The fact that they were laughing together at a very important part of the ceremony was inappropriate.” “They hate you. They hate your country. They enjoy your misery. We cannot allow these people to have power.” The Pittsburgh Republican Committee suggested on X that the sight was one of the reasons 9/11 victims families didn’t want the mayor there, while former Los Angeles mayoral candidate Spencer Pratt also sounded off.
The moment unfolded as mourners read aloud the names of those killed in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and the 1993 World Trade Center bombing during ceremonies marking the 25th anniversary of 9/11. “I think it’s terrible,” Trump said when asked about the video of the two Democrats. “The camera just caught her greeting him hello. Multiple other politicians were laughing and joking behind me. Republicans and Democrats.” Teleparty if you both already pay for Netflix and want native quality.
At another, their CEO is doing virtual “drive-bys” via Slack calls to check in on a personal level. You can still foster these candid interactions without a physical office. The Pudding is a digital publication that explains ideas debated in culture with visual essays. In this next chart you can go deeper to see not only the market share of each laugh, but the ratio of lower to uppercase usage. Whatever the practical implications, Algoe believes her findings further the research on laughter, showing that social context is important for evaluating its effects.
Take a lunch break to watch your favorite show with teammates, so everyone’s in the loop on the latest episode. Like the above, but with alcohol, this activity allows virtual teams to sip their way through a flight of wines together on a group video chat, learning to pick out tasting and aroma notes in the process. Typically, they are led by an instructor who explains each wine’s unique flavor profile and include wine kits mailed to each participant.
Screen sharing through WatchTogether if you want the lowest-friction version that works for any group, any service and anyone with just a link. Devices outside that location are flagged after a few uses, and you’ll start seeing the “Whose watching?” verification screen demanding a code sent to the household’s primary email. Play mad-libs or write a story together by crowdsourcing input from your team and piecing together a hilarious end-product that can be used on social media, or simply circulated internally for some laughs. Encourage your team to be as creative (even outlandish) as possible and just see where the journey takes them. Speaking of fun at work—what could be more good-humoured than poking fun at yourselves? The next time before you dial in to a conference call, try distributing bingo cards to your team and seeing who completes a row or diagonal first.
People often come together in the real world over food and drink, so why not use that tactic in the virtual realm as well? Whether it’s by arranging opportunities to share culinary experiences or setting up time for colleagues to have a chat over coffee and beer, inviting people to the virtual table can create positive, unifying experiences. Below are a few options for virtual team building activities that involve eating and drinking. Whether you have a handful of remote workers or a completely virtual team, it’s important for every company to encourage cross-team collaboration and relationship building. However, if individuals aren’t working directly with one another, it can be difficult to find time to make an introduction let alone continue to build working relationships. It doesn’t just bring people closer in the moment, but also plays a role in how partners evaluate the relationship as a whole.
The former Content Director at Parenting, parenting.com and several other brands, Ana Connery is a writer and content strategist whose work appears in USA Today, Reader’s Digest, Real Simple, Cafe Mom/The Stir, Momtastic, and others. Jackbox Games requires a paid subscription, but you only need a single company account for everyone to join in on the fun. Some of our favourite games include Fibbage, Drawful, and You Don’t Know Jack—they’re entertaining, educational, and downright silly all at once. In these difficult times, we’ve made a number of our coronavirus articles free for all readers. To get all of HBR’s content delivered to your inbox, sign up for the Daily Alert newsletter. If you find yourself using humor to cover up pain, sadness, anger, fear, or trauma, you are depriving yourself of the chance to process and work through tough emotions.
Here are some ideas to encourage virtual team members to engage with one another via messaging. To combat loneliness among remote workers, companies have turned to virtual team building activities as a way to connect employees working from home. Here are 52 virtual team building activities to bring your team together, no matter where your members are located. In close relationships, it’s not just the big and romantic gestures that matter. The small moments, the ones that are often overlooked or taken for granted, have the power to quietly strengthen your bond.
