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Team-building

Team-building is key to business success – let Gauteng open the door to adventure…

Leading investor guru Tom Murcko believes the key to success in business is “market research, prioritisation, consistent articulation of vision and team building.”

Of these, the one that offers the most latitude to corporates in terms of innovation is team building. It’s why so many organisations are seeing the value in sending their staff off together to have fun while learning the art of working as a cohesive unit.

Those who regularly make use of team building say the investment in giving staff some downtime pays dividends in terms of increased productivity, improved relationships, better communication, and growth in self-esteem.

A decade ago team building might have been a misnomer for a weekend of partying with the guys, but today it forms an important element of corporate thinking where the focus is becoming more people-orientated.

Gauteng abounds with team building opportunities – from adrenalin-fuelled extreme sports to the delicate art of chocolatiering – all of which can be tailored to suit companies of all sizes. Read on to find the perfect fit for you and your workmates…

If sunshine and wide-open spaces frighten you, dip into a culinary adventure par excellence where a love of good food and team cookups can be enjoyed over an extended lunch break or in the evenings.

If any of Africa’s beasts understand teamwork, it has to be the lion. This two-hour lion-based team building venture explores the parallel social behaviour evident in humans and predators, and includes a visual lecture and live lion display.

Sometimes combined with the lion team building is a day of archery games where you set your eye on a communal goal and learn how to hit your target every time.

There’s always something fast and furious on offer in Gauteng and hurtling around a track at speed in a go-kart is a company favourite. Fit your slick tyres and make like Schumie…

Let the beat of Africa touch your soul as you indulge in a drumming session with the rhythm gurus. Feel the drumbeats resonate as each member of the circle adds to the mix – awesome stuff!

But not as awesome as chocolatiering – the art of making confectionery from chocolate by moulding, sculpting and painting. A sweet tooth is mandatory.

There’s a range of more traditional outdoor teamster activities designed to bring out your competitive edge: set your sights on laser clay pigeon shooting or get your goggles on for a colourful paintball session.How about igniting your inner fire with the esoteric art of traditional American Indian fire walking? Discover the secrets of the mind and how fire walking can be successfully used to remove internal barriers that inhibit performance.

Fancy yourself as a super-sleuth? Grab your deerstalker, magnifying glass and a bunch of clues and head for your mystery murder dinner. Each player takes on the role of a suspect, but be warned… the murder must be solved before the evening’s out!

If you’ve been an armchair critic of the television series The Amazing Race , put your communication skills, strategic planning and teamwork to the test in a race against the clock.

From amazing races to amazing mazes… make it an evening of enjoyment to find your way around a moonlit maze followed by sundowners and a superb dinner at a nearby top-class eatery?

For some good, old-fashioned fun and fitness, get to grips with obstacles like the crazy ladder and jungle swing that try your coordination, while negotiating a 4x4 track of axle-twisting obstacles takes all your skill behind the wheel. Rumour has it that it’s not always the guys that win!

It’s always a good idea to get a new perspective on life, so try this while harnessed to a 320m steel cable as you fly over the King's Kloof on a zip-line connected to an overhead cable?

Ballooning is one of the best ways to enjoy the incredible South African scenery, and if you’ve a head for heights, a hot-air balloon ride is a great treat.

Stepping into a pair of gumboots at Gold Reef City for a traditional miners’ gumboot dancing session might not transform you into Michael Flatley, but it’s guaranteed to break barriers and result in heaps of fun and laughter.

Fancy yourself as a modern-day Robinson Crusoe? Survivor is the team building option for you. Marooned on an uninhabited island with no food, no water and no friends, experience first-hand how strangers join forces to become the tribe that wins the Survivor challenge.

Put a host of different skills to the test by mixing big events like 4x4 trails, quad bike relays, archery, laser clay and paintball, with a potjiekos cookout competition in a team event.

Get in touch with your inner angler aboard a luxury cruiser, indulge in spa treatments along the banks of the Vaal River, have a bash at karaoke, or choose fishing and birding cruises, a wine-tasting luncheon, human foosball, yard of ale races, raft races, pillow fights on poles or treasure hunts with a musical twist.

Adrenalin-fuelled fun with quad biking, white-water rafting, wall climbing and abseiling is definitely for those who prefer to live life in the fast lane. Warning: May become addictive!

With a series of guided trails on a 650ha game farm, this is eco-friendly quad biking with a difference, or you could quad bike Soweto-style.
 
Fear Factor – love it or hate it – you know you want to give it a try. Human fear sets up a “fight or flight” response that allows us to focus our energies on dealing with the threat. In this version competitors navigate their way through a series of frightful activities and obstacles.

Master the art of the cocktail by shaking up classic and contemporary concoctions such as the Singapore Sling, Moscow Mule, British Bramble and many more. Or, if hard tack is not your cup of tea, create some sizzling fresh fruit smoothies and decorate them with exotic fruit garnishes.

Still in the beverage department, try your hand at becoming an expert wine blender. Kick off with a wine tasting and then blend your own trademark tipple. There are prizes for the best result, plus a wine and food-pairing lunch.

When you’ve mastered sand boarding or snow boarding, speeds of up to 80kmh are within reach for maximum thrill.

Experience high speeds and great thrills on boat rides with tube wakeboarding at the Orlando Towers Dam in Soweto. Sign up now for a water-filled thrill or a chilled sundowner cruise – or both!

Likened to snowboarding in the street, free boarding is a growing extreme activity that finds its niche along with street luge, butt-boarding and sand boarding on the iconic mine dumps of Gauteng.

Take an opportunity to get back to your true roots in the Cradle of Humankind World Heritage region where abseiling, caving, rock climbing, mountaineering and kloofing provide hours of excitement and enjoyment.

Whatever your choice of activity, team building in Gauteng is best enjoyed with those with whom you spend the most time – your colleagues!