Active listening exercises for the workplace (5 examples)

Active listening is a great skill to integrate into your next team-building session, and in today’s video, I’m sharing five exercises you can do with your group to put them to the test.

0:00 Intro
0:29 Categories
1:24 Blind Maze
2:05 Mirror Image Drawing
2:51 Red Light, Green Light
3:37 TV On, Sound Off

Our first exercise is called ‘Categories.’ You may have heard of it before, but this version has been adapted to focus on building active listening skills!

To play, find a space where you can gather as a group. Designate one person to kick off the game as the “Category Caller.” Next, compile a list of work-related categories, such as “Types of Project Management Software” or “Company Department Names”—whatever suits your workplace!

The Category Caller will choose a category from the list and announce it to the group, along with an item that fits that category. For instance, they might say “Types of Project Management Software” followed by “Trello.” The game continues clockwise from the Category Caller, with each player getting ten seconds to call out another item in the category.

If someone repeats an item or fails to think of one, they’re out! It’s a fun test of quick thinking and memory.

Our second exercise is called ‘Blind Maze,’ a game where good communication is the key to success!

Have your colleagues gather around a whiteboard with a maze drawn on it. Choose one team member to be blindfolded and give them the whiteboard marker.

Colleagues must then take on the role of the guides, giving verbal instructions to help the blindfolded player navigate the maze without crossing its borders.

For the guides, the challenge is to provide clear, concise instructions. For their blindfolded team member, it's all about active listening and following directions.

After you’ve completed one round, switch up the roles and try again with a new maze!

Next up, we have ‘Mirror Image Drawing.’

Have everyone partner up, with one partner being the “Interpreter” and the other being the “Instructor.”

The Instructor’s job is to describe an image or a scene. The goal is to be creative but abstract enough that there’s room for the Interpreter to use their own judgment.

Both players will draw the image at the same time, but the Interpreter must not see the Instructor’s drawing, they can only listen. Once the Instructor is finished describing the scene, the partners will reveal their drawings.

You want the images to be as similar as possible! Finish the exercise with a discussion on the challenges and effectiveness of communication before swapping roles and trying again!

Our fourth activity is the classic childhood game, “Red Light, Green Light.”

To play, assemble your team in a space where there is plenty of room to move and choose one person to be the Leader.

The Leader must stand at the opposite end of the room and face away from the rest of the team.

Players will then start moving towards the leader, but when the leader shouts, “Red light!” and turns around, everyone has to freeze. If anyone is caught moving, they’re out!

Play resumes when the leader turns back around and shouts, “Green light!”

The first player to successfully make it all the way to the leader without getting caught moving wins and becomes the new leader! After you’re finished, take some time to discuss the importance of careful listening with your team.

Our final game today is ‘TV On, Sound Off’—an engaging game that sharpens observation and interpretation skills.

Have your colleagues gather in a space where you can show a movie or a video of your choice. Turn the sound and subtitles off so that your team can rely only on visual cues.

As you begin to watch, have each participant guess what the characters are saying and what’s happening in the plot. Once everyone has guessed, play the scene back and see what actually transpired! It’s a great lesson in the importance of nonverbal cues, and it's guaranteed to generate some good laughs along the way as well!

And that’s it for today’s video! If you enjoyed these exercises, please consider subscribing to our channel. Your support helps us continue to make more videos, just like this one. See you soon!