Work Conversation Starters can be an important tool for breaking the ice amongst team members, sparking interesting conversations, and generally just making the workplace a more enjoyable and productive environment. Here are twenty ideas to get the party started:
1. What inspired you to pursue a career in your field? This is a great question to gain insight into somebody’s motivations and what got them into their field of work.
2. What has been the most rewarding thing you have achieved in your job? This can lead to an interesting story about somebody’s successes and why they found it to be so rewarding.
3. What’s the best advice you’ve ever received? Through this conversation starter, individuals can discuss good advice they have received and may even find out something they hadn’t thought of previously.
4. What do you do to stay motivated? Everybody will have different methods of motivation, so it’s interesting to explore others’ techniques.
5. What are some of the most important skills you think everyone should have? This can lead to an interesting conversation debating different opinions on what makes a successful employee.
6. What is a unique project/task you have worked on? People working in the same field can often have different projects, so it’s always fun to compare notes and find out what other people have done.
7. What are the biggest challenges in your job? This is a great way for team members to support each other with the various challenges they face.
8. What has been the most difficult thing to learn in your career? Through this conversation starter, individuals can discuss the various skills and knowledge that took the most effort to learn.
9. What do you think sets your team apart from other teams? This is a great way to ascertain a team’s unique identity and encourage pride in their accomplishments.
10. What is something your team could do to improve? Everybody will have their own ideas of how to make a team better, and talking through those can often lead to great results.
11. What has been a recent accomplishment you are proud of? This is a great way to build team spirit and recognize each others’ accomplishments.
12. What do you think makes a good leader? This conversation starter can help to identify what each individual values in a good boss.
13. What was the most difficult decision you ever had to make in your job? This can lead to a discussion about the challenges of difficult decisions, and how to balance personal opinion and the opinion of others.
14. How do you work best on a team or alone? Through this conversation starter, individuals can discuss the various ways that people work which may lead to discovering new ways of working together.
15. What was the best feedback you ever received? This can be an encouraging discussion about feeling appreciated for the work we do.
16. How have you seen your team improve over time? Through this conversation starter, individuals can discuss the various improvements that have been made to the team.
17. What kind of hobbies are you interested in? This is a great way to get to know each other outside of the workplace, and potentially learn more about one another’s passions.
18. What do you think the strengths and weaknesses of your team are? Through this conversation starter, the team can discuss how to build on their strengths and address any weaknesses they may have.
19. What do you think would be a good addition to the team? This conversation starter can help to identify what kind of skills the team may be missing, and can therefore lead to potential job openings.
20. What do you think makes a great workplace atmosphere? Through this conversation starter, individuals can discuss their thoughts on what makes the workplace a more enjoyable environment for everyone.