In 2020, the way we work has been transformed. Instead of commuting to the office each day, many are now working remotely. While this helps keep us safe, it also presents certain challenges.

Firstly, our teams have had to adapt their homes to try and create an efficient work environment. For some, this has been easy, but for others, especially working moms, avoiding

domestic distractions, is easier said than done.

Others adapted well to remote working, at the start, but possibly their productivity is now going down, and you feel they’re less engaged. Remote working can lead to

a feeling of social isolation and loneliness, so you need to take action. As a leader, you’ll want to keep your team motivated and full of positive energy.

Here are some fun ideas to get you thinking and to strengthen the connections between the whole team.

Keep to your previous meeting schedule. For example, if you started each day with a short team briefing, continue virtually. Start the meeting with some casual talk,

and ask every team member to contribute. Begin with a light exercise that’s personal but not intrusive: ask each person to describe one thing that’s made them

smile in the last 24 hours or one thing that’s made them happy. Change the question slightly each day, to keep the element of surprise. When the business is concluded, don’t exit the call, check-in with one or two of your team each day and find out what’s on their minds.

What about starting a team exercise class to encourage everyone to move and stay healthy? There’s nothing like a short burst of movement to get the energy flowing.

Either hire a trainer to conduct some virtual sessions or ask your team members if they’d like to share their personal fitness regimes with the group and lead a session.

From salsa, to yoga to a burst of HIIT, let everyone work according to their level and take a few minutes to burn off any stress.

If you feel the team are getting ‘stuck’ inside and the ideas aren’t flowing, get them outside. Set an unexpected thinking challenge, such as a (socially- compliant)

​scavenger hunt. Let them work in small teams to decide who’s responsible for each item. Give a time limit and make it clear that there’ll be additional points for creativity. A

cityhunt like this can really get your team working as a team again.

Let each person share a photo of something in their living space. with you. To start each team meeting, pick one of the photos to share with the group. Let them guess

who the object belongs to, then let the owner explain why it’s important to him or her. Likewise, if children or pets wander into view at times, no stress, enjoy the interaction.

Offering challenges and rewards is a great way to introduce a sense of engagement and fun, especially if you mix up the teams to maximize the interaction. Choose

games which require each member to contribute. Also consider whether you can engage your whole team in a work-related challenge with another team, to foster the sense of working towards a common

goal. Make sure that successes are celebrated enthusiastically and end each challenge on a high note. Give a token reward, but make sure the winners feel triumphant. made

a positive difference.