The thought of working for a company who would consider dropping me into the countryside for team building activities makes me want to scream. I know it's the fashion now, and it seems anti-social to object to them, but I would rather be left alone for a night in a haunted house than participate. Don't we see enough of our colleagues thru the week without spending all week-end with them? I have certainly had bosses from whom I badly needed a break,  otherwise I would have strangled them.

I can't be the only one who hates these things. No one dares say they don't want to do it. Instead, they whoop and they cheer at the latest canoeing down the treacherous rapids team building activities the boss has suggested. They can't make you go, but they might pass you over for promotion. You'll get a reputation as a loner. You're not a team player. You're not one of us, and that plucky Simon from Sales has volunteered to be equipment monitor.

What do these events achieve anyway? People used to be perfectly capable of building global corporations without team building activities. I don't see that anyone suffered thru the lack of them. There isn't just pressure to succeed at work, to meet those deadlines and achieve those targets. Now, we all are forced together to be a happy band of brothers. We have to show Simon, who we know is a creep, that we trust him by being the first to cross the rope bridge he's kindly constructed. Do we risk falling to our death or suffer the look of smug satisfaction on Simon's face if we refuse?

When I worked in a  marketing office, I was an efficient and conscientious member of the staff. I felt valued by my supervisor and my colleagues. We all got along pretty well, with only minor conflicts from time to time. This was before the days of team building activities. The only bonding we did was going to the local bar on a Friday night. We had a laugh and went home to our loved ones. It was enough social contact for one week. We were expected to do our jobs and do them well, and unless somebody was weeping into the water cooler, our psychological state wasn't really a concern. Despite this lack of team building activities, the company was extremely profitable and everyone took a personal pride in this.

In this innocent, simpler time, I was not expected to forge a river, run around in a war game or cook a three course meal for my colleagues in a blindfold. Remarkably, I survived to be a well rounded person. Team building activities may be ok for some I guess, but I prefer to do my bonding with a gin and tonic in my hand in a nice, cozy saloon.