Fact or Shiznit - Don't Get Caught Telling a Lie!

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How Much Would It Cost?

(Photo from Tax Credits)
"How Much Would it Cost?" is an icebreaker game that is great for getting to know people. It involves asking questions that begin with "For $1000 would you xyz?"

Xyz can be anything, clean or dirty, depending on what the participants are willing to discuss. For example, I ask "For $1000, would you lick the seat of a toilet bowl?"

If the person asked says no, then I could ask "For $10,000, would you lick the seat of a toilet bowl?" The person can then say no again or say yes.

Every subsequent question can involve an increase in the hypothetical amount paid until the person being asked says yes. If the question is too boring or doesn't go anywhere, participants are allowed to switch up the question.

The game is fun in that if somebody says "yes" right away to lick a toilet bowl seat (or whatever you decide to ask) for $1000, you can also ask questions in which you lower the dollar amount, just to see how willing the participant would be to do an unfavorable activity.

People who participate it in the game are allowed to start off with whatever question they want, but naturally they might not ask an extremely offensive question right away.

With each subsequent question, the questions and answers will become more interesting and entertaining for a group of people who didn't have a lot of prior rapport.

One variation of this game would be "How Much Would it Cost Golf Style" Where people keep track of the dollar amount that they'd honestly be willing to perform an action for. The game goes around the group for three rounds.

Whoever ends up with the least amount of money required to do ridiculous behaviors wins (similar to the scoring methods of golf). I've used this game in my new job and I find that it helped me build rapport and share chuckles with my new coworkers. It also helped me learn my coworkers' moral boundaries.

It's a Bird! It's a Plane! It's a... Tablecloth?!

(Photo from foam)
This is a great game to help show how people think and to get a glimpse into someone else's personality. It's very simple and easy because all you need is a tablecloth!

Once you have your tablecloth, just set it on the floor. All of the members of your class, gathering, party, etc. just need to gather around the tablecloth in a large circle. People will then volunteer to go first.

The way this icebreaker works is that a person will start out by saying their name, as well as any other information you’d like to include (where they’re from, hobbies, interesting things… up to you!) and then pick up the tablecloth and make something out of it by folding or wadding it.

Since a tablecloth is easily manipulated, it can literally become anything! Some people will make a paper airplane to show how crafty they are, for instance, or it could be something funny because it looks nothing like what they claim it is.

You can add a bonus to the game by having them make something that’s related to their interests or what they do for a living. This can be continued throughout the circle at random or it can be played going down the line to ensure that no one is skipped.

For extra fun, you add a memory aspect to the game by having each person repeat who the people are who went before him or her as well as whatever they made out of the tablecloth. This will help everyone learn each other’s names by associating a certain image with them, and due to the creative aspect of the game, it will usually reveal some aspect of his or her persona.

You can also make a rule saying that no two people can create the same thing with the tablecloth. This is a fun, inexpensive, simple icebreaker that can really be entertaining and refreshingly different for an icebreaker game.

It’s also great for people of all ages! When I played this, it was hilarious! My friend (Who I made from this game, by the way) said "My name is Louise, I'm from Seattle, and this is... Fifty Shades of Grey!" I said "My name is Jason, I'm from Santa Monica, and this is... Wyoming" and didn't fold the tablecloth at all.

Our book club had so much fun playing this game and it was a great way for us to get to know one another.

Let the Mixing Begin!

by Auntie Cathie
(Chicago Illinois)

(Photo from Zeljko Joksimovic)
When large gatherings of strangers gather for meetings or parties, a brief icebreaker will get the networking started. In the more formal meeting situation the simplest thing will get a group up and moving while they get to know each other better.

After people have been sitting and attentive in their own little groups, ask the group to line up in alphabetical order by their first names. Maybe even having a small recognition for the people with the most popular name.

Many other line ups are quite possible: alphabetize by the last name, the sum of the number of letters in the person's name, or simpler with less mixing is a line from tallest to shortest.

The goal of icebreakers is to get individuals talking and interacting. The four cornered room is a way to sort people as well. Label the corners North, South, East and West before telling the participants to use the words of the address to move to the corner.

The center of the room could be reserved for those without a direction in their address. Each group could come up with a slogan for their group and so the ice breaker ends with each chanting their slogan as a group.

Other groups of four that would work as well are the four seasons, or four types of music, you get the idea. For smaller more intimate groups different possibilities emerge. Depending on the theme of the gathering, the organizer can pass out a survey sheet to be completed and shared.

The survey maker who knows all the people well can design one question unique to each person. It can be simple things like, Who has blue eyes? Who has the most sisters? Who likes the One Direction? Who babysits for twins?

When the individual has completed the survey they will have spent some time talking to each attendee, and all will have surely pointed each other helpfully during the activity. More sophisticated questions my get more interesting answers.

All party goers will easily feel included if these ice breakers allow each guest to get the attention that no host alone could supply.

Two Truths and a Lie

by Tom Kamimski
(Salt Lake City/UT/USA)

(Photo from Johnwaltmann | Wikimedia Commons)
This game is a perfect ice breaker for groups of all ages. The same amount of fun can be achieved whether it is a group of 5 year olds or a group of executives. I learned this ice breaker when I completed my Lean Six Sigma training and we were speaking about groups that did not know one another.

Since it was a classroom setting and we did not know one another, so we used this as our ice breaker. The first step is to break everyone into groups of two. Once in groups each team receives a large piece of paper and draws a line down the middle.

Each person writes their name on one side of the paper then numbers their section one to three. Each person writes two truths about them and one lie. After each team member filled out their section they try to guess what their partners lie is.

While they are doing this there is a lot of small talk and a connection is being made without the participants even realizing it. Things they have in common are being realized that otherwise would not have been spoken about.

For example when I did this, my partner and I realized we both played college hockey. After that was discovered we found out we actually played against one another thus creating an instant strong bond and friendship occurring.

The ice has now been broken between the two individuals and now it is time to break the ice with the group. After each team is done the partners will present the others two truths and a lie to the group.

There is a lot of open participation and people will come out of their shells trying to figure them lie out. This breaks away from the social norms of a group setting and turns it into a game, thus creating a catalyst for people to open up.

Once this is completed the whole group will have background on each person and there will be plenty of laughs along the way. Which is key to building trust in a group setting. Now everyone will be more relaxed and comfortable around one another moving forward and the group can function more successfully moving forward.

Spill Your Guts

(Photo from Teresa Ling)
This game requires at least three people, though it is easier and more fun with more participants. Everyone lies down in on the floor in a circle. Every person puts their head on someone's stomach as to create a circular chain.

Everyone should be able to feel the breathing of the person they are laying on via the rise and fall of their stomach and so on. Then someone starts by introducing themselves and telling their favorite bad joke or embarrassing story.

Giggling usually ensues but it's important not to completely lose it, or else the entire chain will be affected, everyone will have trouble breathing, and no one will be able to hear the story or joke.

This game is tremendously unifying both physically and emotionally, as people get to know each other's less proud moments and laugh with each other about uncomfortable moments in the past.

The chain continues and everyone introduces themselves and has to share at least one joke or story, though more than one is welcome, as long as everyone is still capable of inhaling and listening.

This game requires people to be present, aware, and honest. I have played similar games to this one at various sleepovers, camps, and conferences in Washington DC, but my version combines the best aspects of icebreakers: laughing, physical contact, and getting to know strangers on a more relatable human level rather than their favorite color or type of food.

The name of this game is Spill Your Guts, referring to both the sharing of intimate information with strangers and the game's goal, to not completely lose it while laughing and cause the entire chain to become a giggling mess. That is not to say that people should not laugh during this game, but it is important to be a good listener in order to get to know people better.

Fishbowl Game

by Noreen Kyle
(Billings Montana )

(Photo from Rosie Connell)
The fishbowl game is a great party game for people to relax and get to know each other! All you need is a fishbowl (or mixing bowl, sack, or a hat, you get the idea) some scrap paper, a timer, and pens or pencils.

Everyone should write down 3 words or short phrases, fold their paper in half, and put them in the fishbowl. Split the group roughly in half by counting off into two groups, alternating one and two, and let the game begin!

The game consists of three separate phases. The timer should be started, and the first person should remove a slip of paper. They need to get their team to guess the word. They can say anything they want, but they can't use any part of the word or phrase, or begin to spell it out.

As many words as their team can guess before 30 seconds ends are how many points they score. After 30 seconds, pass the bowl to the next player, who is on the opposite team. Repeat, until all the clues have been guessed, and tally up the teams score.

Put all the clues back in the bowl. Next, repeat the process, but by playing charades! After you have tallied the team’s scores, put the clues back in the bowl one more time. In the final round, the player can say one word and that's it!

Their team has to guess the word based on the one clue. Fishbowl is a great game, and really gets people relaxed, laughing, shouting, and having fun. It's really fun to find out who wrote what words at the end of the game!

Adult Drinking Game - Three Facts

by Joel Schumaucher
( U.S./Texas/Austin)

(Photo from butterbits)
Three facts In an adult setting a fun way to loosen everyone up, especially if there a good number of people who don’t know each other is the have people write three interesting facts about themselves on three separate pieces of paper.

Next you would mix all of this up in a bowl or had then pass them out equally among everyone in attendance. Next each person gets three shot glasses, which they place in front of themselves.

The cups are filled with and alcoholic beverage, not too much, no more than a shot. Then going around the room in a predetermined order the first person reads one of their slips of paper aloud.

The object is to try and guess the person it is about. If they guess correctly the person who wrote the fact has to down one of their drinks. If the person guesses wrong they have to down one of their own drinks.

Play continues until all slips of paper have been read. If you run out of drinks before you read all of your facts then you pass your remaining facts to the person closest to you of your choosing and they will play them for you.

If at the end there are multiple people left in the game it doesn’doesn't much matter because this was more for ice breaking purposes rather than declaring a winner.

The object is to more or less find ways to strike up conversations. Alcoholic beverages can also be substituted for other foods or beverages. The game can easily be adapted for kid’s parties by giving each child three inflated balloons and a safety pin.

If they guess their fact correctly then the child who wrote it would have to pop one of their balloons, if they guess wrong then they would have to pop one of their own balloons.