Time is a finite resource. In the fast-paced business world, how your team manages it can be the difference between meeting goals and falling behind. While traditional time management techniques can feel like a chore, healthy competition and creativity can change everything. Team building games are a fantastic way to develop these crucial skills in a fun and low-pressure environment.
How to Gamify Time Management
So, how to gamify time management? It’s about turning a necessary but often tedious task into a challenge with clear rules, goals, and rewards. Reframing time management as a game can increase team engagement and boost productivity. The goal isn’t just to complete a task, but to do it efficiently, as a cohesive unit. This approach encourages teamwork, sharpens focus, and transforms the pressure of deadlines into a motivating force.
The 60-Seconds Game for Time Management
One of the simplest yet most effective high-energy activities for adults is the 60-second game for time management.
How to Play:
- Divide your team into pairs or small groups.
- Each person closes their eyes.
- The goal is to time a perfect 60-second period.
- Once they believe a minute has passed, they shout “stop!” and open their eyes.
- The person or team closest to the 60-second mark wins.
This simple activity highlights our perception of time and encourages participants to focus on an internal clock, a crucial skill for effective self-management and meeting deadlines.
The $86,400 Time Management Activity
This classic activity is a powerful metaphor that reframes our relationship with time. The $86,400 time management activity aims to illustrate that time is a non-renewable resource, just like money.
The Concept: Imagine you have a bank account that gets a daily deposit of $86,400 every morning. You can spend it however you like, but whatever is not used by midnight is gone forever. This is exactly how time works. We all get 86,400 seconds each day. The question is, how are we spending it?
Team Application:
- Ask your team to list their daily work tasks.
- Assign a “cost” in seconds to each task (e.g., an email = 100 seconds, a meeting = 3,600 seconds).
- Have each team or individual “budget” their daily deposit of 86,400 seconds, prioritizing tasks that provide the highest return on investment.
This activity is a great way to start a conversation about task prioritization, reducing time-wasters, and focusing on high-impact work.
Applying the 7-8-9 Rule to Your Team’s Productivity
While not a formal, universally recognized rule, we can create a simple framework to help your team stay focused and on track. The 7-8-9 rule for time management is a fun way to approach your day’s work.
- 7 (High-Impact): Focus the first 70% of your productive time on high-impact tasks that directly contribute to your team’s most important goals.
- 8 (Collaborate): Spend 8% of your day collaborating with your teammates to solve problems and share ideas. This ensures you’re not working in a silo.
- 9 (Growth): Dedicate the remaining 9% to professional growth, whether learning a new skill or completing a small personal task to recharge your batteries.
This rule encourages teams to be strategic and dedicate time to what truly matters.
Making a Song to Manage Your Time
At Kidbilly Music, we’ve seen firsthand how a creative activity like songwriting can bring all these time management concepts to life. Writing a song requires your team to work together under a tight deadline to create a finished product. It demands collaboration, prioritization, and efficient use of every minute. It’s a fun and unique way to get your team to work as one and feel a profound sense of accomplishment, all while implicitly mastering the art of time management.