Around the World

Choose this exercise

Purpose: Re-energize the room through physical movement and quick partner duels.

Use it when: Use during an afternoon lull or between intense working sessions when participants need rapid physical movement and brief, lighthearted interactions.

Skip it when: Skip when the room lacks open floor space for walking between zones, or when the group needs quiet focus rather than noisy competition.

Group arrangement: Parallel pairs shifting across 4 marked room stations

Timing: Based on Playmeo 2-minute active round, expanded to 10 minutes to include briefing, setup, two short rounds, and debrief.

Materials and tools

• 4 sheets of paper with printed city names (for example: Tokyo, Nairobi, London, Santiago)
• Painter tape or masking tape to mark stations on the floor or wall
• 1 digital countdown timer or stopwatch visible to facilitator

Before participants arrive

1. Tape 4 city signs in four separate areas of the room in a clear circular or square circuit.
2. Ensure walking paths between stations are free of tripping hazards.

Say this to open

We are going to play a rapid movement game called Around the World. Four cities are marked around the room. Pick one city to start. In each city, you will play quick rounds of Rock-Paper-Scissors with someone there. If you win, you advance clockwise to the next city. If you do not win, stay and challenge someone else. Track how many full circuits you complete.

How to run it

1. Set up stations and demo 2 minutes

   Explain the 4 stations marked around the room: Tokyo, Nairobi, London, and Santiago. Review the clockwise path. Demonstrate a standard Rock-Paper-Scissors duel: players tap fists three times and show Rock, Paper, or Scissors on the count of three. Rock beats Scissors, Scissors beats Paper, Paper beats Rock. Ties replay immediately. Remind participants that winning advances them one station clockwise; losing or waiting keeps them at their current station to play someone new.

2. Run round one 3 minutes

   Direct everyone to walk to the city they would most like to visit. Once stationed, start a 2-minute countdown timer. Participants immediately pair up and play Rock-Paper-Scissors. Winners jog or walk quickly clockwise to the next station and challenge someone waiting there. If an odd player is left alone at a station, they wait briefly for the next arrival or do an air-duel with someone across the zone. Call 'Stop' at 2 minutes. Ask participants to remember their completed lap count.

3. Run round two with quick variation 3 minutes

   Reset participants across the four stations so numbers are roughly balanced. Announce a second 2-minute heat where participants try to beat their round-one lap count. Start the timer. Players duel and rotate clockwise. Call 'Time' at 2 minutes.

4. Debrief and transition 2 minutes

   Gather the full room standing or seated. Ask 1 or 2 reflection questions, taking 2 or 3 quick volunteer responses before moving into the next work session.

Debrief questions

• What strategy helped you move quickly between stations?
• How did the pace of the room shift between the start of round one and the end of round two?

Finished output: Completed physical movement break with individual self-counted laps.

Remote

This physical room-rotation game requires an open floor plan and cannot be replicated online without becoming an entirely different method. For a remote team energizer, play a screen-based Rock-Paper-Scissors ladder tournament instead: everyone turns video cameras on, pairs face off in spotlight or breakout pairs, and winners advance to a central main-room championship bracket while eliminated players cheer.

Hybrid

Hybrid delivery is not recommended as a single merged game because physical transit between stations cannot include offsite participants fairly. Run the in-person game for onsite participants while remote participants play a camera-based Rock-Paper-Scissors tournament in their virtual meeting room with a co-facilitator.

Access and participation choices

• Participants with limited mobility may move at an easy walking pace or serve as station arbiters who judge ties and stamp lap cards.
• Anyone may choose to observe, manage the countdown clock, or track lap scores from the side without explanation.

If the session gets stuck

One station accumulates most of the players while another station empties out.

Remind players that games must start immediately upon arrival. If no partner is available, players may immediately challenge the next incoming runner.

An odd number of participants leaves someone stuck waiting at a station.

Instruct the waiting player to duel the loser of an ongoing match as soon as their hand finishes, with zero wait time.

Terms used here

• Your Add: A hand game referenced in source materials where players flash fingers simultaneously to reach a target sum; Rock-Paper-Scissors serves as the standard accessible alternative.