Before getting into the nitty gritty of a meeting, fostering a creative environment is key to balanced employee-employer relationships, especially during onboarding.
These 101 icebreaker questions for work are designed to initiate group discussions and allow members to get to know each other in an inclusive atmosphere.
I’ve organized these questions into categories that suit different situations, such as team building questions, "would you rather" icebreaker questions, and even questions for resident Potter Heads!
You really can’t go wrong with choosing good icebreaker questions. Here are the categories:
- Funny Icebreaker Questions
- Wholesome Icebreaker Questions
- Would You Rather Icebreaker Questions
- Diving Deep Icebreaker Questions
- This vs. That Icebreaker Questions
- Team Building Icebreaker Questions
- Business-Driven Icebreaker Questions
- Harry Potter Icebreaker Questions
- Debatable Icebreaker Questions
- Remote Icebreaker Questions
- Random Icebreaker Questions
Let's get into it!
101 Icebreaker Questions For Work
Funny Icebreaker Questions
If your company's goal is to foster a fun and relaxed atmosphere, then starting with a funny icebreaker question could be a great idea. These icebreaker questions are designed to let your employees’ personalities shine. Expect some laughs, good times, and maybe some running jokes at future team meetings.
- Which celebrity would you like to stand in an amusement park line with?
- Who was your first celebrity crush?
- Where you when (use a random date generator to pick a date)
- Which historical time period would you like to live in and why?
- What's your favorite song with [insert word] in the title?
- Which reality TV show would you like to be cast in?
- What is your favorite Christmas movie, and why?
- Which comedian do you relate to the most?
- Describe the worst date you’ve ever been on.
- Who were you in high school?
- What would your last meal be?
- What is the strangest thing that has ever happened to you?
- What's the first thing you will do when you go home today?
Wholesome Icebreaker Questions
These icebreaker questions connect a bit deeper with a group without getting too revealing or personal. Break the ice and share fun and interesting facts about each person while sparking light discussion.
- What’s your first childhood memory?
- What was your first pet if you had one?
- Where did you go on your first vacation?
- What was your favorite subject in school?
- What is your favorite sport and team?
- Do you have any unusual hobbies?
- What is your preferred mode of transportation?
- What was your favorite holiday and why?
- What is your favorite ice cream flavor and way to eat it?
- What is your favorite thing about coming to work?
- What's your favorite dessert?
- What's your favorite vegetable?
- What's a gadget you were slow to adopt but now feel you can't live without?
- What on your bucket list do you hope to achieve in the next year or two?
- What are your top 3 favorite movies?
"Would You Rather" Icebreaker Questions
These icebreaker questions give the group two options to choose from. They’ll have to justify their choice of course, and the riveting discussion can start from there!
- Would you rather wait in a waiting room or at a bus stop?
- Would you take the blue pill or the red pill?
- Would you rather go on a beach break or a city break?
- Would you rather never be able to lie again or have hiccups for the rest of your life?
- Would you rather be able to see the future or read minds?
- Would you rather write the next great American novel or record the next #1 single?
- Would you rather be able to breathe underwater or walk on water?
- Would you rather be famous for your entire life for something you hate to do or finally be recognized at age 81 for something you love to do?
- Would you rather be good at sports or good at art?
Diving Deep IceBreaker Questions
These personal icebreaker questions are great for small groups or groups who already know each other. They go deeper and can even get a bit emotional.
- Do you always say what you mean? Why or why not?
- What activity makes you feel like you’re totally “in the zone”?
- What is something you’ve done that you previously thought was impossible?
- What piece of advice would you give your younger self?
- Who is your hero or biggest influence?
- What is something that most people don’t know about you?
- What happens after you die?
- If you could instantly change one thing about your life, what would it be?
- If money didn’t exist, what would you be doing?
- What would be the title of your Ted Talk?
This vs. That Icebreaker Questions
If you’re really looking to fire the embers, these short snippets will surely cause a buzz amongst group members.
Each person or team member chooses the thing they prefer from two polarizing options.
Topics include sports, traveling and of course, food icebreaker questions. You will definitely get people talking, debating, and forming extensive monologues over each question!
- Thin crust or thick crust?
- London or Paris?
- Cookies or muffins?
- Peanut butter or Nutella?
- The subway or the bus?
- The red pill or the blue pill?
- Spaghetti bolognese or macaroni and cheese?
- The ocean or the mountains?
- American football or European football?
- Christmas or Halloween?
Team Building Icebreaker Questions
If you are serious about building functional teams, and want to engage in more team building activities, then consider throwing an icebreaker into the ring.
These team building questions will connect team members in a meaningful and productive way, encouraging collaboration and team bonding during meetings and at work.
- Share the best advice you’ve ever been given.
- How do you unwind after work?
- Are you introverted or extroverted? And how does it impact your work life?
- If you have one, what is your mission or cause?
- What can people come to you for help or advice on?
- Share a life hack that has helped you in the past.
- What is a topic you’d like to get more into?
- What is a strategy you use to help you focus better?
- Who on the team would you like to trade jobs with for one day?
- What do you consider to be good work culture?
Business-Driven Icebreaker Questions
Asking business-driven questions helps members of the group define their goals and get to know the work flow of their coworker team. Here are the best icebreaker questions that get into the core of business topics:
- What achievement are you most proud of so far in your career or work life?
- Do you prefer working on a team or individually and why?
- What is a small thing you do every day that makes a big impact on your work day?
- How do you maintain work-life balance?
- If you weren’t doing this job, what would you be doing?
- Who is your most significant influence when it comes to motivation and productivity?
- What was your first impression of this company and what would you change about it?
- What is your best job interview advice?
- What has been your favorite job?
- What was the most challenging conflict you had to deal with in the workplace?
Harry Potter Icebreaker Questions
Harry Potter is one of the most popular franchises in the world, with Potter Heads hailing from all parts of the globe. You'll likely have at least a few Harry Potter fans in your group who will appreciate these questions. Here are some fun icebreaker questions on all things HP!
- What is your Hogwarts House?
- Which Hogwarts teacher would you have as your mentor and why?
- Which HP character are you most like and why?
- Are you a Harry, Ron, or Hermione?
- What wizarding skill would you be best at?
- What would be your position in Quidditch?
- Where would you go in Hogsmeade Village?
- What material is inside your wand?
- Who is more evil, Umbridge or Voldemort and why?
- Are you more like Malfoy or HP?
Debatable Icebreaker Questions
If you have more time, these debate-driven icebreaker questions will ignite intellectual discussions amongst your group. Debates are healthy in the workplace and encourage critical thinking, looking elsewhere for ideas, and collaborating with others.
Just FYI, these icebreaker questions are not for the person who is faint at heart, so tread lightly and have a wholesome backup icebreaker if it gets too heated. Here are the best icebreaker questions for intellectual debates:
- Animals should not be eaten.
- Does God exist?
- Is homework necessary?
- Should mobile devices be banned at work?
- Should cloning be illegal?
- Is AI a threat to human intelligence?
- Is the world doing enough to solve global warming?
- Is crypto a good investment?
- Is hypnosis a legitimate healing modality?
- Are social media algorithms ethical?
Remote Icebreaker Questions
The few precious moments you have in group meetings are often used to go over briefings and answer pressing questions.
When managing remote teams, virtual icebreakers are a great way to throw something in unexpectedly, waking up virtual team members’ senses, and getting them ready for a productive work day.
Here are the best icebreaker questions designed specifically for a virtual team meeting on platforms like Zoom or Microsoft Teams.
- Show us one item that’s on your desk and tell us where you got it from.
- Do you prefer remote work to in-office work? Why or why not?
- Are you most productive in the morning or at night?
- What is one tech gadget you cannot live without?
- How do you maintain work-life balance as a remote worker?
- What do you like to eat or drink while working?
- Do you have any hobbies you do online? If so, what are they?
- Where is the craziest place you’ve worked remotely?
- Show us an item from your room and tell us its backstory.
- What is your favorite song or TV show right now?
BONUS Random Icebreaker Questions
If you want to get a little silly, these questions are the best icebreaker questions that will stretch your imagination and challenge inhibitions.
There’s no guessing what your colleagues will answer, you may be surprised! Check out these super strange icebreaker questions:
- If aliens landed in front of our office right now, what would you do?
- Which animal would you say you look like the most?
- Which person in the group would you guess is a secret agent?
- What would you do if the world was about to end in 24 hours?
- What would you do if you saw a penguin walking down the street?
- If you met Tony Robbins in an elevator what question would you ask?
- Have you ever seen a ghost? If so, what happened?
- There's a bag with 100 balls in it. 99 of them are red and 1 is blue. For every red ball you draw, you get $100k. If you draw the blue ball, you will die within 24 hours. Do you draw any balls? If so, how many do you take out before you stop?
- Which character from the Friends TV show do you think you are most like?
- What would you do if you were on the Titanic as it was sinking?
- What is something unconventional about you that not many people know about?
What Else Do I Need To Know About Icebreaker Questions?
A great icebreaker question makes employees feel comfortable and creates a safe environment for people to express their opinions and ideas. They're also useful before team building activities and to welcome new hires.
For the little time it takes, the results and benefits of icebreaker questions can be seen in meetings, during regular work hours, and during project work periods.
For further inspiration on bringing more fun into the workplace, check out these fun employee recognition ideas and our podcast on how to bring creativity and fun to remote teams.
You can also check out some great team building podcasts that will challenge you to think differently about how you approach team building.
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