Rituals take many forms, from IDEO’s Tea Time and R/GA’s Storytelling time to sales teams ringing bells and gongs when they close a deal.

A recent Harvard Business School study, Work group rituals enhance the meaning of work, demonstrated the power of rituals for every business team.

1. Rituals strengthen bonds and create the shared sense that work is more meaningful.
Research showed that performing a group bonding activity led to a 16% increase in how meaningful employees judged their work to be.

2. Team members who engage in rituals show better “organizational citizenship.”
They are willing to go the extra mile for the company or a colleague.

3. Even people who resist rituals benefit from them.
Though they may think that a specific ritual is “ridiculous”, it can over time mean something to them, and then they feel differently about their coworkers and their work.

How to create team rituals? 

Rituals don’t have to be linked to a specific business outcome. According to the study, you can pick any activity that has the following three features:

1. Physical

Include some specific words or actions or involve a physical object or task.

2. Psychological

Represent your team’s values, exemplify tradition and sacredness.

3. Communal

Involve multiple participants doing the ritual together at the same time.

Create a Ritual for Your Team

Every team has an opportunity to take advantage of the benefits of rituals and create a workplace that is better for everyone. 

Teamraderie “Design a Team Ritual” experience with Glenn Fajardo can help your team:

Glenn Fajardo is the co-author of “Rituals for Virtual Meetings: Creative Ways to Engage People and Strengthen Relationships” and a fellow at the Stanford University School of Design. In this 45-minute virtual experience, Glenn will join your team to explain ritual and help you create your OWN rituals to improve YOUR workplace.