Two-Minute Meeting Games: 20 Openers That Don't Waste Time
The first two minutes of a meeting decide whether anyone speaks in the next forty. A tiny opener does the job - the mistake is making it bigger than that.
Everything here fits in two minutes for a team of up to ten, and most of it works on a call.
Cards for the people you work with
Leaving cards, thank you cards and retirement cards, blank inside, drawn and printed by us in the UK. Big enough for the whole office to sign.
Whose Gonna Make The Brews Now? Leaving Card
£3.87
Good Luck For Your New Life in Dubai Card
£3.87
Police Officer Retirement Card (Less Time For Murder)
£3.87
Good Luck In New York Moving Away Card
£3.87
Good Luck Down Under Moving to Australia Good Luck Card
£3.87
Kick Back Funny Capybara Retirement Card
£3.87
One word each
- One word for how the week's going.
- One word for what you want out of this meeting.
- Weather report: sunny, cloudy, stormy. That's your whole answer.
- Red, amber, green on your workload. It surfaces problems faster than any status report.
- One thing you've finished since we last met.
One question rounds
- Best thing you ate this week.
- What are you watching, reading or listening to?
- Something small that went right.
- One thing you learned this week, work or not.
- Who deserves a thank you this week and why - the best two minutes you'll spend in any meeting.
Quick games
- This or that: two options in the chat, everyone types their pick.
- Guess the number - how many emails in your inbox right now, nearest wins.
- The countdown: name five things in a category before ten seconds are up, going round.
- Emoji of the day, no explanation.
- Desk object show and tell, twenty seconds each.
Doing this well
- Same opener for a month, then change it. Familiar is faster.
- Go last yourself so you're not setting an intimidating standard.
- Skip it in the meetings that genuinely don't need it - a fifteen-minute stand-up doesn't.
- Never make it compulsory. 'Pass' is a complete answer.
Shop thank you and leaving cards
How to write it so it lands
- Keep the same opener for a month.
- Go last, not first.
- 'Pass' is always an allowed answer.
Where to shop next
- Work team building games
- Icebreaker games for a new team
- Remote and virtual team games
- Games for an away day or conference
- Games for a leaving do or retirement party
- Games for a work BBQ or family fun day
- Work quiz rounds (non-Christmas)
- Training day games adults won't hate
- Office games HR won't object to
- Office Christmas party games
- Board games hub
- Quiz questions and rounds
- Free feel good tools
- Shop leaving and thank you cards
- Planning the party? Birthday party ideas
- How to make a balloon arch
- Photo booth prop ideas
- Thank you cards guide
- Pin badges
- All guides
Frequently asked questions
What is a good quick icebreaker to start a meeting?
One word for how your week is going, going round the room. It takes under two minutes for a team of ten, everyone contributes, and nobody has to think of anything clever.
How do you start a meeting positively?
Ask who deserves a thank you this week and why. It takes two minutes, it changes the tone of the whole meeting, and people remember being named.
Should every meeting have an icebreaker?
No. A short stand-up or a one-item decision meeting doesn't need one. Use them for recurring team meetings, anything with new people, and any meeting where you need quiet people to speak.
What quick games work on a video call?
This-or-that answered in the chat, emoji of the day, a twenty-second desk object show and tell, and a red-amber-green workload check. All work with cameras off.
Do you sell team building kits or games?
No - we make greeting cards, art prints and pin badges in the UK. Every game here runs with what's already in the room, and the only products on this page are our own cards.