When you hear “team building,” most people brace themselves for awkward trust falls and forced fun.
But what if the key to real chemistry wasn’t in a ropes course, but in a bowl of homemade guacamole?
Cori Coffman, who knows a thing or two about what makes teams click, cuts straight to it:
“Real team chemistry shows up when people feel comfortable enough with each other to contribute, challenge ideas, and celebrate each other when they win.”
That comfort doesn’t come from sitting through another slideshow about company values. It comes from shared human experiences—the kind that off-site meetings are designed to spark.
Especially the kind that involve laughing, collaborating, and maybe just a little friendly trash talk.
Cori sat down with her teammate, Reagan Goldberg, to discuss.
Why Winter Offsites Work Wonders
Trust Falls Are Out. Guac-Offs Are In.
Team chemistry can’t be microwaved, but it sure can be slow-cooked. Enter indoor team-building activities, which are especially crucial when the weather outside is frightful and the office air is full of fluorescent fatigue.
Reagan lays out six go-to options that consistently work:
- Corporate Olympics
- Build-a-Bike for charity
- Indoor scavenger hunts
- Culinary challenges (like a chili cook-off or the now-iconic guacamole competition)
- Cocktail or mocktail throwdowns
- Dueling pianos or murder mystery games
These aren’t just time-fillers. They’re chemistry boosters.
“Groups get very into the challenges,” says Reagan. “It brings out a good competitiveness and helps them bond. They get to work with people they maybe haven’t met or talked to before.”
That’s the secret sauce: novelty plus collaboration equals connection.
Learn more about team building at Stonewall Resort >>
The Best Team Building Doesn’t Feel Like Team Building
If you have to say it’s a team-building activity, you’ve probably already lost them.
The best ones sneak up on people. They think they’re just painting or cooking or solving a mystery, and suddenly they’re laughing with someone from accounting they’ve never spoken to.
“By adding shared experiences and a little friendly competition,” Cori notes, “attendees can strengthen relationships and build genuine connections—without it feeling like a formal team building session that everybody hates.”
It’s not about icebreakers.
It’s about inside jokes that only happen when you roll up your sleeves and do something together.
Painting, Pitching, and Birdhouses: Offsite Legends
Some of the most memorable moments at offsite events happen when teams take the wheel.
Like the group that hosted a paint-and-sip night and gave out two prizes: one for the best painting, and one for the absolute worst.
“That was quite funny to see,” Reagan recalls.
Or the team that wanted to give back and ended up building birdhouses for hiking trails at the resort, proof that impact and bonding can go hand in hand.
And then, of course, there’s the guacamole competition.
“People get really into it,” Reagan says. “Part of the judging is the sales pitch—how they present the product. Some are hilarious, others surprisingly serious. But the creativity is always there.”
Want Better Teams? Give Them Better Winter Off-Site Experiences
If you’re a meeting planner or team lead trying to strengthen bonds without resorting to cheesy icebreakers, take this to heart: people bond over shared effort, surprise, and laughter, not through mandatory mingling.
And if your team has a wacky idea that’s not on the menu?
“We are definitely willing to work with you and make your vision come to life,” says Cori. That’s how great stories (and sometimes great birdhouses) get made.
Winter Off-Sites CAN Be Amazing
You don’t need an escape room or keynote speaker to build trust.
Sometimes, all it takes is a guac-off, a chili trophy, or a poorly painted canvas to spark the kind of connection that actually lasts.
Because at the end of the day, great teams aren’t just built on goals.
They’re built on guac and the guts to have a little fun.