Matt Pasquinel: You describe some of the "team-building" exercises you've attended as "outstanding." I have no doubt that you found them to be so. I'm just saying that some people there will almost certainly have found them to be utterly painful--and pointless.What does "team-building" even mean, in the context of the workplace? When I go to work, I collaborate effectively with the people around me--with politeness, collegiality, professionalism, good manners, and openness to other ideas. I don't need "exercises" to be learn how to do that. Indeed, I've found them to always have precisely the opposite of the intended effect: If there's one thing that's going to make me quite intensely dislike the people I work with, it's making me engage in some contrived "team-building" activity with them.Give me something real, valuable, and authentic to do, with smart, decent, well-intentioned people. Believe me, we'll perform well as a team without having to do "exercises" beforehand.

Matt Pasquinel: You describe some of the "team-building" exercises you've attended as "outstanding." I have no doubt that you found them to be so. I'm just saying that some people there will almost certainly have found them to be utterly painful--and pointless.What does "team-building" even mean, in the context of the workplace? When I go to work, I collaborate effectively with the people around me--with politeness, collegiality, professionalism, good manners, and openness to other ideas. I don't need "exercises" to be learn how to do that. Indeed, I've found them to always have precisely the opposite of the intended effect: If there's one thing that's going to make me quite intensely dislike the people I work with, it's making me engage in some contrived "team-building" activity with them.Give me something real, valuable, and authentic to do, with smart, decent, well-intentioned people. Believe me, we'll perform well as a team without having to do "exercises" beforehand.

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