Yoga is an excellent addition to a corporate retreat, even if yoga isn't a regular part of your team's routine at the office. I am writing this on a train en route to a location in upstate New York, where the software developers of a tech company are participating in a team building retreat. As the office yoga teacher, I was invited to teach on this retreat. Although experiencing a yoga class is a different experience from a trust exercise or a ropes course, it gives people a chance to get in touch with their individual strengths. In turn, this creates strength within the team.
Yoga builds confidence. Participating in a yoga class gives a team a challenge they experience together. Everyone is participating in the same poses, but each individual's experience is unique. One must rely on individual strength and mental clarity to successfully participate in yoga. At the end of the class, all participants have experienced a common challenge.
It's exciting at the end of an office yoga class when I hear participants discussing techniques and challenges in various yoga poses. In addition, there are fun and challenging partner yoga poses that can be taught during team building classes. There is potential to have the same team building benefits of trust exercises without going through the motions of an official trust building games.
Are you planning a corporate retreat? Think about adding yoga to your offerings. Call local yoga studios to find a yoga teacher, or look into hiring a teacher from an office yoga company who specializes in corporate groups. Your participants will benefit from the physical and mental benefits of yoga, as well as come together as a team.