140 This-or-That Questions for Business Teams

Even though many businesses have moved to a remote or hybrid workforce, companies still have access to a wide range of fun and innovative ways to encourage connections in the workplace. These connections provide your company with significant value and help employees stay more engaged while they’re at work. At first glance, this might not seem like a big deal to you. However, companies that are highly engaged are 21% more profitable. Not only that, but engagement helps enhance the experience for employees while also improving their productivity.

Ensuring your team members are engaged with one another and enjoy working with each other should be a top priority for you. Whether that’s by planning quarterly happy hours or revamping your brainstorm sessions to be more interactive, there is always something you can do to bring your employee engagement to the next level. However, just because you planned a great virtual event doesn’t mean your work is finished there.

Sometimes employees require an extra push to connect and engage with others, whether that’s because it’s their first day at a new job or they don’t get too much face time with one another because they all work from home. One effective way to do this is by planning easy icebreaker games, like this-or-that questions.

Let’s take a closer look at what this game is and how it can complement your current engagement tactics in the workplace.

What are this-or-that questions?

This-or-that is an icebreaker game during which team members are presented with two questions. The participants then choose which of the two options they prefer. These questions can be company-related, funny, ridiculous, and everything in between! There are no rules (except maybe keep it PG). You’ll be surprised at how easy these questions ignite conversations between employees. The right questions are sure to make them laugh, disagree, and be more open with their team members.

Are they effective icebreakers?

Yes! When it comes to icebreakers, it’s best to not overcomplicate things. With this-or-that questions, the game is self-explanatory. You can jump straight into the game and don’t need to explain anything to anyone. These small games can positively impact the virtual experience and help team members to bond with one another.

How you can use them in the workplace

This-or-that is a simple, to-the-point game that’s easy to use with other icebreakers or team-building activities. Sometimes, all you need is an easy-to-play game that helps loosen up the team and get everyone familiar with each other. Whether it’s because you’re trying to engage a group of new hires or you’re asking them to all attend an 8 a.m. meeting, we all need an extra push to be social with others!

Here are a few ways you can use these questions.

New hire orientations

The first few days at any new job can be stressful and overwhelming. Not only that, but even the most extreme extroverts are often shy because they don’t know anyone just yet. As an employer, it’s your job to provide them with the best experience possible by facilitating conversations and pushing them to engage with others. The this-or-that game can be an easy icebreaker to get individuals to warm up to one another. We recommend starting the event with a few of these questions or using them throughout the orientation to encourage engagement.

Icebreakers for virtual experiences

There are a lot of different virtual experiences that can benefit from a quick and easy icebreaker, like this-or-that. Whether it’s a midweek happy hour or you’re having a company-wide all-hands meeting, icebreakers can easily complement any virtual experience and help get the conversations started. We recommend using this-or-that questions as an icebreaker before your event starts to help get everyone familiar with one another.

Brainstorming sessions

Brainstorming sessions require high levels of creativity that can be hard to force out of employees right away. This-or-that questions can help get the creative juices flowing and encourage your team members to think creatively. Plus, you can be strategic with the type of questions you ask. Consider sticking with funny questions to get them laughing with one another or go through something specific to your industry. Maybe you compare creative designs, marketing concepts, or sales tactics. Have some fun with them!

Breakout sessions

No matter the reason for a breakout session, it can be hard to jump into engaging in such a small group. Before starting the breakout session, you can send your employees a list of this-or-that questions they can run through to get familiar with one another before jumping straight into discussing something work-related.

All-hands meetings

Who says company-wide meetings need to be all work and no play? If you jump straight into business, it can be hard to keep your team members’ attention throughout the entire meeting. Instead, consider dropping a few this-or-that questions in the chatbox and having everyone respond in the chat. You’ll be surprised at how this icebreaker can get everyone engaged so quickly.

140 this-or-that questions to get you started:

1. Mild or spicy?
2. Takeout or eat out?
3. Board games or video games?
4. Nonfiction or fiction?
5. Fall or summer?
6. Country life or city life?
7. Beach or mountains?
8. Apples or bananas?
9. Monday meetings or Thursday meetings?
10. Pizza or pasta?
11. Morning bird or night owl?
12. Football or baseball?
13. A weekend in or a weekend out?
14. Snowboarding or surfing?
15. Happy hour or lunch?
16. Work hard or play hard?
17. Beer or wine?
18. Camping or glamping?
19. Work from home or work from a coffee shop?
20. Work by yourself or work with others?
21. Pancakes or waffles?
22. Ice cream in a cup or a cone?
23. Instagram or Twitter?
24. Meetings all day one day or spread out between days?
25. Real book or e-reader?
26. Cold weather or warm weather?
27. Rain or snow?
28. Reading or writing?
29. Sweet or savory?
30. TV series or movie?
31. Email or call?
32. Water or soda?
33. Whiskey or tequila?
34. Pizza or burger?
35. Breakfast or dinner?
36. Career or family?
37. Cat or dog?
38. Knowledge or wealth?
39. Have the power to fly or the power to be invisible?
40. Deaf or blind?
41. Intelligence or attraction?
42. Cardio or strength?
43. Spend your day outside or inside?
44. Lemon or lime?
45. Slack chats or work emails?
46. Homebody or always on the go?
47. Phone calls or video calls?
48. Road trip or a week in New York City?
49. Call or text?
50. Slack message or Zoom meeting?
51. Work from home or work in the office?
52. Backpack through Europe or tropical beach vacation?
53. Thanksgiving or Christmas?
54. Mixed drink or beer?
55. Brewery or winery?
56. Hip hop or rock ‘n’ roll?
57. Music festival or camping trip?
58. Tuesdays or Thursdays?
59. Hang out by the pool or hang out by the fire?
60. Live in Hawaii or New York City?
61. Introvert or extrovert?
62. Teamwork or work on it by yourself?
63. Live through a zombie apocalypse or an alien invasion?
64. Your 20s or your 30s?
65. Attend a baseball game or football game?
66. Soup or salad?
67. Have multiple three-day weekends throughout the year or two-week getaway?
68. Work from home with your significant other or a friend?
69. Apple or Microsoft?
70. Start work before 9 a.m. or after 9 a.m.?
71. Scooter or bike?
72. Spend your Sundays at home or out with friends?
73. Tacos or burritos?
74. Cheese and wine or chocolate and wine?
75. Documentary or romantic comedy?
76. House or apartment?
77. Trivia or bingo?
78. Swim in the ocean or a lake?
79. Big home or cozy home?
80. Hike or run?
81. Go to the gym before or after work?
82. Morning routine or nighttime routine?
83. Chinese or Thai food?
84. Spain or Italy?
85. Hybrid or electric?
86. Big or small dog?
87. Mexican or Italian?
88. Go to a zoo or an aquarium?
89. Fly or drive?
90. Work four 10-hour days or five eight-hour days?
91. Chocolate or caramel?
92. Batman or Superman?
93. Books or movies?
94. One-on-one or department meetings?
95. Work in a coworking space or from a cubical?
96. Large or small company?
97. Write with pen or type on a computer?
98. Coffee or tea?
99. Slack or Teams?
100. Work in Los Angeles or New York?
101. Coke or Pepsi?
102. Motorcycle or bicycle?
103. Business casual or casual?
104. Sweatpants or jeans?
105. Long or short hair?
106. Have 10 kids or no kids?
107. Cheese or chocolate?
108. Education or experience?
109. Summer or winter vacation?
110. Travel to Mexico or Europe?
111. Sleep with your windows closed or open?
112. Sleep in or wake up early?
113. Backyard of front yard?
114. Give a presentation in person or on Zoom?
115. Have a sales meeting virtually or in person?
116. Watch a movie at home or in a movie theater?
117. Fruits or vegetables?
118. French fries or onion rings?
119. Bike ride or hike?
120. Clean the dishes or do the laundry?
121. Videos or photos?
122. Board or video game?
123. Spend time in a group or one-on-one?
124. Work from a desk or the kitchen table?
125. Clean or messy desk?
126. Write notes on a notepad or in a Word document?
127. Salary or hourly?
128. Management or a team member?
129. Lunch or dessert?
130. Sweet or savory?
131. Holiday party or company retreat?
132. Hamburger or hot dog?
133. Pinterest or Facebook?
134. Visual or verbal learning?
135. Paint or draw?
136. Day at the park or beach?
137. Lie out at the pool or on the sand?
138. Work in a big or small team?
139. Red or blue?
140. Twitter or Instagram?

These are just a few questions to help you get started! Don’t be afraid to personalize these questions to fit your team members’ needs or look for questions that are specific to your industry. You can always print this list out or bookmark this page and come to it later when you need some inspiration. The list can be never-ending. There is always something that you can add to the list to improve the experience for your employees.

Once you’re set on incorporating this-or-that questions into your team-building exercises or virtual orientations, you’ll notice team members are much more likely to connect and engage with one another. Sometimes, all we need is a small push to engage and socialize. By providing them with the resources they need to connect on something that isn’t work-related, you can foster connections and help them build friendships in the workplace.

Don’t think this is the right icebreaker for your team? We’re here to help you find one that’s sure to break the ice. At Elevent, we are here to help you find the best virtual solution for your company, whether that’s virtual orientations, happy hour events, or something in between.

If you’re looking for team-building virtual experiences, make sure you take a look at our list of virtual events. From wine tastings to scavenger hunts, we have a wide range of events that are sure to spark your interest. The best part: When you work with us, you don’t need to worry about anything. We handle everything from conception to execution so you can focus on other things or join the fun.

We hope this list of this-or-that questions helps you successfully plan your next icebreaker and provide you with endless engaging opportunities!

Originally published at Mar 9 2022, 2:27:10 PM. Updated on May 4 2024.