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Bigger and Better

Every team starts with one small object and one mission: trade up for something bigger, better, or more creative before the clock runs out. The paper clip is never the point — the pitch is.

90–120 min4–50 peopleAverageSmall object
By Jon Zajac · Founder & Chief Icebreaker · Last updated February 19, 2024

What is Bigger and Better?

Bigger and Better sends teams out with one small object — a paper clip, a rubber band, whatever's on hand — and a single mission: trade it for something bigger, better, or more creative than what they started with. Teams travel together, trade only what they're currently holding, and race the clock back to a meeting spot for judging on size, value, and creativity.

It works because the stakes escalate on their own. A paper clip is an easy first ask; the fifth trade, once a team is holding something worth actually keeping, is a real negotiation with a stranger who owes them nothing. The story of how a team got from clip to something absurd is the whole debrief.

Skip it for a group that can't leave the building, or a room younger than college-aged — the activity needs real space to roam and strangers willing to trade, which rules out sealed conference rooms and most K-12 settings. For a shorter, lower-stakes take on the same trading instinct, What Can You Buy covers similar ground in less time.

The rules

  1. Each team starts with one small object — a paper clip is the classic pick.
  2. Trade up. Swap only for something bigger, better, or more creative than what you're holding.
  3. Teams travel and negotiate together — no splitting up.
  4. Trade only the item currently in your hand. No side offers, no outside help.
  5. Miss the deadline and your team is out of the judging.
  6. Final items are judged on size, value, and creativity. The organizer's call is final.

Before you start

  • Group size: 4–50 participants, in teams of 3–6. Bigger groups just mean more teams — the trading dynamic stays the same either way.
  • One small object per team. Paper clips, pens, buttons — anything low-value works as the starting trade piece.
  • Decide the time limit up front. Budget 90 to 120 minutes total, and say the cutoff out loud before teams leave the room.
  • Pick a meeting spot and announce it. Teams need to know exactly where and when to reconvene for judging — say it once, clearly, before they scatter.
  • Built for adults. Recommended for ages 18 and up — corporate offsites and college groups are the sweet spot.

How to run it

  1. Split into teams 2–3 min

    Break the group into teams of 3–6, each ready to travel and negotiate together.

  2. Hand out the starting object 1 min

    Give every team the same small object — a paper clip is the classic pick — and make clear it's their only trade currency.

  3. Set the rules and the clock 2–3 min

    State it once: trade up using only what you're currently holding. No side offers, no splitting up, no outside help.

  4. Name the meeting spot 1 min

    Tell every team exactly where and when to reconvene. Teams that miss the deadline are out of the judging.

  5. Send teams out to trade 70–90 min

    Release the group and let them negotiate their way up the ladder — the best moments happen off script.

  6. Judge the haul 10–15 min

    Gather everyone at the meeting spot and score each team's final item on size, value, and creativity.

← a paper clip in, something ridiculous out.

Facilitator tips

Offer more than one starting objectPaper clips, buttons, coins — a menu of options lets people trade with what they've got access to, not just what they can afford.
Judge weird over expensiveSay it upfront: creativity beats price tag. That framing keeps a team with no cash competitive with a team that raided the supply closet.
Add a wildcard category"Most collaborative" or "best use of nothing" gives every team a shot at winning something, not just the team that traded up to a kayak.
Set the boundaries before anyone leaves the roomSafety limits, the time cutoff, and what counts as a legit trade — say all three out loud before teams scatter, not after someone's already negotiating down the block.

Why it works

Negotiation, not a shopping tripThe only currency is the object in your hand — no cash, no bargaining chips beyond your current trade. That constraint forces real negotiation instead of just buying up.
The pitch is the icebreakerEvery trade means explaining why your paper clip — or your toaster — deserves an upgrade, to a stranger who owes the team nothing. That's a cold pitch, repeated for the length of the activity.
The judging round is a highlight reelTeams defend their final item's size, value, and creativity in front of everyone — the same specific-storytelling energy as show-and-tell, minus the classroom stakes.
HELLO, MY NAME ISJon

"I love watching a team turn a single paper clip into an actual negotiation. The item barely matters — it's the pitch that gets people talking to total strangers, trading their way up one favor at a time. By the judging round, everyone's laughing at what they ended up with."

Jon Zajac · Founder & Chief Icebreaker

Reflection questions

For teams that want the debrief after the trading stops — these turn the activity into an actual conversation.

  1. What strategies did you use during the trading process?Surfaces which techniques actually worked, and which teams stumbled into a good approach by accident.
  2. How did your team decide which trades to accept or reject?Gets at the decision-making and any conflict-resolution that happened along the way.
  3. What was the most challenging part of the activity, and why?Identifies friction points a facilitator can smooth out next time.
  4. How did your team's item evolve over the course of the activity?Traces the creative and problem-solving thinking behind the final trade.
  5. What was your favorite moment, and why?Lets the group relive the best exchange while it's still fresh.
  6. How did trading together build camaraderie on your team?Names the collaboration value out loud instead of leaving it implied.
  7. What from this activity applies to real-life situations?Turns the trading game into a conversation about negotiation and resourcefulness on the job.

If this fits, so will these

Activity

A Better Place

Each player names one thing they'd do for a better place, then the next player repeats the whole chain before adding their own.

Activity

The Bests

Teams send up a player before they know the challenge, betting on hidden talents across a run of oddball one-on-one contests.

Activity

Best Skills Showdown

Teams send one player at a time into a string of mini-games and each round's winner banks a point for their team. No team can win unless every single member has competed at least once.

Activity

What Can You Buy

Each team gets a small cash budget and a countdown clock, then heads to a real store for the best haul they can defend to the judges.

Jon Zajac

Founder & Chief Icebreaker

I started IcebreakerSpot because I believe strong connections are the foundation of successful teams. This site exists to make it easy to find and share the icebreakers and team-building activities that build trust, spark collaboration, and help groups do great things together.

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