12 Fun Leadership Activities and Games for Adults & Students (2024)

If you are providing management training, these 14 fun leadership activities and leadership games are great for use in your workshops and sessions. Whether you are teaching existing leaders, new managers, or students studying business studies, the activities can help to make the training you provide more engaging and more fun.

Benefits of Using Activities & Games for Leadership Training

Leadership skills can sometimes be difficult to teach because there can be a steep learning curve for the participants involved in the learning.

Breaking up leadership training to make it more enjoyable is thus more vital than ever because getting a high level of engagement is essential in training.

The good news is that activities and games can really help us to engage the participants as a trainer.

Fun Leadership Activities Examples

1. The Reverse Brainstorm

Number of Participants: 6 or more participants.

Time Needed: 25 minutes.

Intention: In leadership training, one skill that is great to teach is problem-solving and this activity flips brainstorming on its head and requires problem-solving skills to work through it.

How to Run the Activity: As the training facilitator, think of a problem or goal beforehand for the team to solve for this training activity.

The thing to solve could, for example, be to ask “How can we make our team more inclusive?” (or any issue/problem that relates to your audience (i.e. something related to their industry).

Next, instead of asking them to brainstorm in the normal way, i.e. all giving ideas and looking for a batch of solutions, in this activity, we require the participants to think of ideas for how they could make the problem worse!

In other words, they need to ask themselves, “How can we make the team less inclusive and make people in the team feel more excluded?”

Ask participants to write down their ideas, or alternatively, they can call out their ideas and you can write them on a whiteboard.

The participants should now take each of the negative ideas and reverse them by creating positive solutions.

For example, if one of the ideas was, “Only invite the people in the office who are there in person to meetings” the reverse might be, “Make sure that all employees including those who work remotely, are included in the monthly team meetings.”

2. Speed Leadership

Number of Participants Needed: 2 or more as we will put participants into pairs.

Time Needed: 20 minutes.

Intention: This is one of those fun leadership games that participants tend to enjoy doing, especially so because it’s a fast-paced game that keeps them on their toes. This activity encourages participants to give concise but meaningful answers and responses.

How to Run the Activity: Just before the activity starts, set up a space with chairs arranged in two lines, with participants facing each other.

Now explain to the participants that they will have 3 minutes to discuss a leadership topic with the person sitting across from them.

Examples of questions you could have them discuss are ones such as:

• What is the most difficult decision you’ve ever made as a leader or manager?
• What is the most amazing lesson you have learned as a manager?
• From your experience to date, what is the most effective way you have found to engage your team?

Once the 3 minutes is over, the participants will rotate to a new partner (the easiest way is to ask everyone in one of the lines to move one chair to the right and the person on the end moves to the start of the line).

Keep doing this for 5 rounds so that each person has had five x 3-minute rounds.

After the 15 minutes in total are over, have a class discussion by asking each person to share, with the rest of the class, any key insights or stories they heard from their partners that resonated with them.

3. The Silent Debate

Number of Participants: 4 or more.

Time Needed: 15 to 25 minutes.

Intention: In leadership, good non-verbal communication skills can be extremely useful including when we use active listening skills. In this activity, our potential and existing leaders get the chance to practice the art of communicating without using any verbal dialogue for what is often one of the most memorable leadership activities.

How to Run the Activity: Much like you will need to in the customer service activities ideas, you will need to pre-prepare some topics that participants can debate for the activity.

In this case, though we need some leadership-related topics such as:

• “Is it better for a leader to be feared or loved?”
• “Should leaders always lead by example?”

I suggest having a little bag with 10 to 20 slips of paper in it with a leadership topic written on each.

For the activity itself, divide participants into pairs and then ask one person from each pair to pull out a slip of paper with a topic on it.

Now ask the participants to engage in a debate with their partner without speaking verbally at all.

They must use written notes or hand gestures to communicate, debate, and to get across their points of view.

Allow the pairs 5 minutes to have their silent debate.

Then have the participants pair up with a different person to have a new debate with their new partner.

You can decide how many 5 minutes debates they should have.

Then have a full class chat about how the activity went and what the challenges and experiences they had were like.

What did they learn about communication and leadership, particularly in terms of using gestures and body language?

4. Inspirational Leadership Stories Sharing

Number of Participants: 5 or more participants.

Time Needed: 30 minutes.

Purpose: Whilst not what you might think of as a game or activity perhaps, the inspirational leadership stories-sharing exercise is one I highly recommend as it is arguably the most memorable and impactful.

Whilst we can learn some extremely handy skills through the other activities on this list, hearing the successes and lessons from one’s peers can be very powerful.

How to Run the Activity: If you work in the same company as the participants, ask them beforehand to think about a time they have led others (it can be at work or outside of work) and overcome a challenge of some kind. What did they learn from the experience?

If needed, ask them in the class itself to think of their example. If they struggle to think of anything then they can use a situation they witnessed or experienced from someone who managed them.

Note: It can be worth having a handout with examples of ideas on it, to help the participants think of their own examples.

To start the activity itself, ask each participant, one at a time, to share their story and allow up to 5 minutes per person (or 3 minutes if a large group).

If needed, you can split the class into two or three sub-groups if you have a large class.

After each story, allow a couple of minutes for others to ask questions and for any feedback from the rest of the group.

5. The “Pecha Kucha” Leadership Talk

Number of Participants: 4 or more participants.

Time Needed: 6 minutes per presentation (plus time for group discussion).

Intention: The core of this leadership activity is to help participants think more creatively and to be able to think quickly under pressure.

How to Run the Activity: This is an activity that works best if you are providing a series of lessons or sessions to the same group, as it does require them to prepare materials.

Each participant will need to create 12 PowerPoint slides with each slide will automatically advance every 30 seconds. This gives the presenter a total of 6 minutes to deliver their talk.

(FYI – the original Pecha Kucha method is 20 seconds for 20 seconds each).

The impact of the slides automatically advancing every 30 seconds means that the presenter has to be to the point, and present the slides with clarity and fluently.

The presentation of 12 slides needs to be about a leadership-related topic.

If need be, you can set a lesson aside for creating the PowerPoint presentation so that you can guide and help them.

Each participant will present their 6-minute leadership talk with their automatic slides.

After each presentation, the class can give constructive feedback on the presentation.

6. Shark Tank Leadership Edition

In terms of fun leadership training activities, this is another one of my favorites and I think you’ll find it interesting too.

Number of Participants: Minimum of 6 participants (in the activity you will put people into teams of 3 or 4 and also have a panel of 3 Sharks).

Time Needed: 45 minutes.

Intention: This is a leadership exercise that is aimed at helping participants develop leadership, innovation, and strategic thinking skills.

The activity is based on the UK program ‘Dragons Den’, which is known as ‘Shark Tank’ in the U.S.

How to Run the Activity: Start by dividing participants into teams of 3 or 4 and ask each team to come up with a creative, interesting, innovative solution to a common workplace or leadership challenge.

Some examples might be to come up with ideas related to increasing employee engagement, better ways to integrate team members who work remotely, or new ways to improve customer service.

Give teams 20 minutes to prepare their “pitch” for the Sharks.

The pitch should focus on how their idea will improve leadership and benefit the organization and should include:

• the issue they want to solve
• the benefits of the solution

After the 20 minutes is up, each team will present their idea to the Sharks i.e. facing the sharks, with up to 5 minutes given for each presentation.

The sharks then get to question the presenters to ask probing and other questions to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the idea.

At the end of all presentations, the sharks will choose the winner.

7. Leadership “Would You Rather?”

Number of Participants: 4 or more participants.

Time Needed: 25 minutes.

Purpose: This is one of those fun leadership activities for adults that goes down really well in a training session. It gets participants thinking about leadership-related questions and issues and is good fun.

How to Run the Activity: As the training coordinator you will need to prepare a bunch of “Would you rather” questions ready for the session.

The questions need to be written such that they offer participants two difficult to choose from options. Let me give you a couple of examples:

• Would you rather lead a team with high technical skills but low motivation, or a highly motivated team with fewer technical skills?
• Would you rather make a tough decision alone with limited information, or consult your team and risk a delayed decision?
• Would you rather give immediate, constructive feedback in public, or wait to provide more detailed feedback privately?
• Would you rather take on a high-stakes project with a high potential for failure, or multiple smaller, lower-risk projects with guaranteed success?

Ask one question aloud to the whole class and then give them 5 minutes to chat about the two options with each other.

Then allocate one side of the room for one side for one of the question options, and the other side of the room for the other option.

Now ask participants to walk to whichever side of the room matches their chosen option.

Then randomly ask one or two people from each side to explain why they chose the option that they did.

Now give participants the choice of if they wish to change sides having heard other people’s thoughts.

Run this process for 2, 3, or 4 “Would you rather” scenarios.

8. Debate the Great Leader

Number of Participants: 6 or more participants.

Time Needed: 30 minutes.

Intention: This is a handy leadership activity for helping participants develop critical thinking skills to consider different perspectives on popular leadership topics.

How to Run the Activity: As the preparation for this activity, decide on the topic you will ask the participants to debate. To help though, here are some example ideas:

• “Is a leader born or made?”
• “Should leaders prioritize results or people?”
• “Is emotional intelligence more important than technical skills for leadership?”

To get the activity itself started on the day, divide participants into two teams and then assign each of the two teams to debate one side of the debate.

For example, Team ‘A’ would have to argue that leaders are born, while Team ‘B’ would be tasked with arguing that leaders are made.

So whichever side of the debate they are allocated, they have to defend that side of the argument.

Give teams 10 minutes to prepare their case as a team (including to have replies and responses to counter any arguments they will face from the other side).

Next, the debate itself will take place, starting with a 3-minute speech from each side, to start their initial case. The teams will then spend the next 20 minutes debating the question.

After the debate ends, let the class as a whole, discuss how the debate went and anything they learned, especially in terms of how they used creative thinking to try and push their side of the debate.

9. Values Prioritization

Number of Participants Needed: 5 or more participants.

Time Needed: 25 minutes.

Intention: This is one of the best leadership activities for helping participants identify and reflect on their personal leadership values.

How to Run the Activity: As preparation for this activity, make a list of leadership values such as: honesty, empathy, innovation, accountability, collaboration, integrity, and more terms.

Place the participants into pairs or small groups and then hand each group a copy of the list and ask participants to rank their top 3 leadership values from the list.

Encourage the groups to discuss the leadership values and to consider each deeply before deciding which ones to place in order as their top three.

Allo 15 minutes for the values order discussion and then ask one person from each group to read their top 3 list and brief reasons for their choices, to the rest of the class.

As each person reads their list, give 3 points for the top choice, 2 for the second, and for the third choice, and tot up the scores on a whiteboard for each leadership value.

If you wish to, you can have a brief full class discussion about the overall top three and get the thoughts of the class.

10. Leadership Crisis Simulation

Number of Participants: 6 or more participants.

Time Needed: 45 minutes.

Intention: Decision-making and problem-solving are valuable skills as a manager or leader and this exercise helps participants work on both these skills areas.

How to Run the Activity: You will need to have a couple of scenarios written down that participants use in this exercise. Some examples are:

• “A key project fails unexpectedly just before a major deadline.”
• “A high-performing team member suddenly leaves the organization.”
• “A cybersecurity breach threatens the company’s reputation.”

Split the participants into groups of 4 or 5 people and hand each team a description of the crisis that they will use. You will need to include important information that they need such as budget constraints, time limits, key players, etc).

To get the activity started, allow the teams 20 minutes to discuss and come up with a plan of action.

They should consider:

• the first immediate steps they will take
• how they will communicate everything to others
• the long-term recovery plan
• how they will avoid this in the future and/or what they can do in the future to protect themselves

Next, each team will present their crisis management plan to the rest of the class, with an explanation of their reasons for their choices.

The rest of the class can then challenge and ask probing questions to challenge the robustness (or not) of their plan.

Note: During the activity when teams are presenting their plan, as the training facilitator you might want to write down any keywords that come up, on a whiteboard i.e. terms such as ‘adaptability‘, calm under pressure, strategic thinking, etc).

At the end of all the presentations, you might wish to have a quick class discussion based on the key terms that came up and that you have written on the whiteboard.

11. Hot Seat Leadership

Number of Participants: 6 more more participants.

Time Needed: 25 minutes.

Intention: A good leader needs to be good under pressure, able to make quick decisions and use emotional intelligence to make good decisions and this activity builds on these necessary skills.

How to Run the Activity: Prepare a list of quick, challenging leadership scenarios or dilemmas.

They need to be realistic but designed such that they create a bit of tension, forcing the participant in the “hot seat” to make quick decisions. For example:

• “One of your top performers just quit unexpectedly. What is the first thing you will do?”
• “You’ve been told to implement a major change that your team dislikes and opposes. How do you handle it?”
• “A project deadline has been cut in half. How do you reorganize priorities?”

Select one participant to sit in the “hot seat”, to act as the leader who must respond to the first scenario (you will rotate the hot seat role to give multiple participants a chance to answer different scenarios).

As the training facilitator, present the first leadership scenario to the hot seat participant, and then allow them 2 minutes to think and respond with their decision or course of action.

After their response, the rest of the group can challenge them with follow-up questions, or ask for clarification, adding to the pressure, much like a leader might face in a real situation.

Once the hot seat participant has finished their answer, the group should discuss the strengths and weaknesses of the approach given in the answer.

The group can also discuss alternative solutions to the leadership challenge, providing multiple perspectives on handling the same situation.

Continue the activity by rotating participants into the hot seat, giving each person a new leadership scenario.

12. “Chain of Command” Communication Game

Number of Participants Needed: 6 participants or more.

Time Needed: 30 minutes.

PIntention: In terms of leadership skills, clear and effective communication is extremely important and this is especially so when you need to relay complex information to various employees and other people on different levels. This is one of those fun leadership activities that employees enjoy doing.

How to Run the Activity: This activity does take a little bit more preparation than some other activities but is a good activity.

You need to prepare a set of instructions that involves multiple steps, one example being:

1. Step 1: You have 3 sheets of A4 paper. Fold each sheet in half lengthwise.
2. Step 2: Roll one of the folded sheets into a tight cylinder. Secure it with tape along the edge.
3. Step 3: Take the second sheet and fold it in half again, this time along the width. Place it horizontally on top of the cylinder to form the base of your tower.
4. Step 4: Roll the third sheet into a slightly looser cylinder and balance it on top of the flat sheet.
5. Step 5: Once the tower is assembled, it must stand for at least 10 seconds without falling.

The instructions need to be detailed enough such that it is difficult but not impossible to repeat the information to someone else.

Now ask participants to form a line and then hand the person at one end of the line a printout with the steps listed on them for that person to read (only this person is allowed to see the full instructions).

Next, the first person who read the instructions/steps must communicate the instructions verbally to the next person in line. Each participant only hears the message once and cannot ask for it to be repeated.

The message is passed down the line until it reaches the final person, who is responsible for completing the task or writing down the final version of the instructions.

Compare the final instructions or task result with the original set. Discuss where breakdowns in communication occurred and why the message may have changed.

As a class, have a discussion on how clear communication is vital in leadership, especially when passing on important information to people at different levels (ie senior managers and entry-level employees, etc).

13. Ethical Decision-Making Scenarios

Number of Participants: 6 or more participants.

Time Needed: 25 minutes.

Intention: This leadership activity is useful for helping participants develop their ethical reasoning and decision-making skills, with the chance to reflect on how their values and principles guide their actions in challenging and difficult workplace situations.

How to Run the Activity: You will need to pre-prepare some ethical leadership scenarios for use in this activity. To give some examples to help you:

• “Your company is due to lay off a quarter of your workforce very soon. Do you notify the employees early on so that they have time to prepare, or do you wait until the last minute to avoid panic?”
• “One of your most important clients offers you a bribe in exchange for a contract. The deal would be massive for your company, but accepting it is illegal.”

Now start the activity by dividing the participants into groups of 4 and then hand them one ethical dilemma on a sheet of paper (or digitally).

Next, give the groups 10 minutes to discuss the scenario and to decide on a decision regarding how they would handle it as leaders.

As a class, you will then ask each group to present their dilemma and to tell the class their decision and their reasons for the decision.

14. Time Traveler Leadership

Number of Participants: 5 or more participants.

Time Needed: 30 minutes.

Intention: This leadership exercise is concerned with long-term thinking and how leadership decisions and strategies impact the future. This is perhaps a little more serious than the other fun leadership activities but this is a very reflective and thought-provoking exercise and one worth considering.

How to Run the Activity: Ask participants to think about where they see themselves and their company 5 or 10 years in the future and provide them some prompts to guide their reflections, such as:

• What is their legacy as a leader?
• How will the decisions you make today shape your organization in 10 years?
• What new challenges do you foresee over the next 10 years (i.e. because of technology for example)?

They should also consider how they want to be remembered by their team, what kind of culture they aim to create, and the long-term goals they hope to achieve.

Allow the participants 15 minutes to write down their responses to the prompts.

After the 15 minutes is over, run a class discussion, with each person explaining their vision to the rest of the class.

To further develop this activity if you wish to make it a 60-minute activity, you can then add on a class discussion about future visions by asking them questions such as:

• What trends do they anticipate happening over the next 10 years and how will this affect their leadership style?
• How can we start preparing for these future challenges today as leaders or leaders of the future?

Why Leadership Training is Crucial

1. Leadership is a Skill, Not a Trait

Many people mistake leadership as something people are born with, but this could not be further from the truth.

While it might be true that the likes of Richard Branson and Elon Musk were born were electric minds and were destined one might say, for great things, the vast majority of other good leaders are from those who have honed their skills and perfected the art of leadership over many years.

Great leadership, in the words, is a skill that can be developed and refined with the right training, opportunities, and if we have the desire to be involved in a leadership role.

Effective leadership is largely a learned behavior, perfected through training and developing skills in communication, decision-making, emotional intelligence, and strategic thinking.

Leadership training is extremely useful because it provides you with the tools and skills needed to develop and build great leadership skills.

2. Good Leadership Impacts a Company on Many Levels

If you follow a football (soccer) team such as Liverpool FC, from England, you might have seen how Jurgen Klopp when he managed the club, involved everyone in the club in how he managed.

He involved not only the players but the tea lady, the kit man, the sales staff, the match day staff, and everyone who works for the club because leadership impacts EVERYONE in an organization. The result was numerous trophies and a well-run club.

Leadership impacts all levels of an organization, impacting team performance, morale, and overall productivity.

A good leader can inspire and motivate their team and instill a culture of trust, collaboration, and innovation.

The opposite? Poor leadership can lead to low morale, high employee turnover, and a less-than-ideal level of productivity.

So what role does leadership training play in all of this?

Leadership training is invaluable for helping to develop the type of leaders your organization deserves; the type of leaders who will inspire, be inclusive, motivate, and help employee engagement.

Leadership Training Materials

if you found these fun leadership activities helpful (I hope you find at least one or two that you like) then you might also find the leadership training and teaching materials that we provide useful.

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