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mentally-in-northern-italy · 4 years ago

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Raising the Stakes — Oliver Wood x reader

***not my GIF***

Summary: you are the newly appointed Slytherin captain, ambitious to win at least one match after your two previous losses. But when the stakes are raised, you seem to be playing for more than just to clear your name as a “failed” captain.

Word Count: ~3.4K

A/N: OH MY GOSH! I’m so sorry, I know I “announced” that I would be writing my first fic a while ago, but to be honest, I was so overwhelmed with everything else that I had to keep putting it off. Anyway, this fic is super duper long, because I totally got carried away while writing, I’m so sorry! It’s a lengthy one, but if you give this a read, I’d be so grateful! Feedback is more than welcome, as I’ve never really done this before. Thank you, and I hope you enjoy!! :)

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The day before a Quidditch game was always tough for you. And, rightfully so, seeing as the pressure that was put on you every single time was incredibly overwhelming. See, this year was not a good year for Slytherins when it came to Quidditch. When Marcus Flint was temporarily suspended from his position as Quidditch Captain due to very distasteful, (what many would refer to as... foul) play, they needed someone who could fill his shoes, and fast.

You just had to be the one who got the short end of the stick.

Being Quidditch Captain came with many benefits, of course -- anyone could see that. You were able to order around everyone on the team, especially the people who you didn’t get along with too well, decide the times for practices to fit your schedule best and if the match resulted in a victory, get all the credit for the marvellous match.

Except every seemingly perfect thing has its flaws, after all. Flint’s shoes as Captain were hard to fill. Many people at Hogwarts may tell you that he is the most disgusting, obnoxious, and arrogant person around… and they wouldn’t be wrong. But what many people cleverly omit is that he is a brilliant Quidditch player -- when he doesn’t resort to cheating. The Slytherin Quidditch team, under his strong guidance, was practically unbeatable. They were doing better than they’ve done in years. Needless to say, when they won match after match, the team’s thrilling victories were all attributed to the fact that they had someone as masterful and godly as Flint as their Captain.

You, however, had a different approach as Captain. While you weren’t an angel, you certainly weren’t Flint. Your approach to leadership may be considered too laid-back for some, but you never wanted to be as overbearing as Flint.

Unfortunately, this approach wasn’t exactly successful. The Slytherin team had now broken their winning streak, and lost two games ever since you were appointed Captain. Naturally, they blamed these losses on your failed leadership.

The first game that was played with you appointed as the new Slytherin Captain was against Hufflepuff. Hufflepuff had a strong team, their plays were tactful and their brilliant seeker, Cedric, almost always managed to pull through and catch the snitch. However, and one can blame it on the fact that this was because you were simply a Slytherin, you and the rest of your team had severely underestimated the sunshine-coloured team. Call it overconfidence or just sheer misfortune, you and your team had not trained nearly hard enough and the match was over extremely quickly, and all the plays that you had devised, hunched over in the common room, all went to waste.

This was a devastating loss for Slytherin, as it had broken their streak. People whispered about you whenever you walked by them in the halls, spreading gossip and judgement because of your failed leadership.

But true to the verdant-coloured house’s core values, they stayed loyal to you. Many excused your failure by simply taking into account the fact that it was your first match as Captain, after all. The second one will be better… right?

Wrong.

For your second match, you took the opposite approach. You trained hard, and made sure that everyone else trained hard as well.

Oliver, the Gryffindor team’s beloved Captain, took notice of how often the Quidditch team was booked under your name. And he would never give up on an opportunity to tease you.

Oliver and yourself, had a complicated relationship. You were never exactly friends… no, that was definitely not the right word. You two had a few classes together, but barely ever talked off the Quidditch pitch. You thought he was incredibly infuriating with his smug smile plastered on his face 24/7 and his thick Scottish accent. But even you, couldn’t deny that he was attractive. He thought you were… well, this bit was a bit more complicated.

He didn’t like you, but he couldn’t possibly hate you. He had always thought you were incredibly pretty and the way you always raised your hand in class was adorable. He loved how out-spoken you were… that is, until you picked up a Quidditch broom.

You could still remember your first match like it was yesterday. You had done a spectacular job as a chaser, scoring not five but six goals against Oliver. And when the Slytherin seeker finally caught the snitch, your team had consequently won that match. You were ecstatic, meanwhile Oliver had decided that it was his new-found goal to beat you. After the match, he had come up to you and told you that you had played horribly. Taken aback a bit, you gave him no response, but only smiled at him coolly. Your smile perfectly disguised your new-found resentment of the Gryffindor, who instead of congratulating you, had just insulted you.

“Training hard, I see,” he said as he jogged over now, to you one evening after a particularly lengthy training session. You were bent over, trying to properly place all the balls in their rightful places in the box.

You looked up to glance at him before turning your head back downwards, paying no attention to him.

“You know, Ravenclaws aren’t particularly skilled when it comes to Quidditch,” he said casually as he took in how attractive you still looked, even when you were drenched in sweat.

“Thank you for your input, Wood,” you said sarcastically, not even bothering to look up.

“No problem,” he smiled at you smugly as you began to stand up, “I think you can beat them. Good luck.”

“Why would you want me to win?” You questioned with narrowed eyes. This was not like Oliver.

“Because no matter what happens in the match tomorrow,” he drawled as he leaned in slightly, “Gryffindor will still beat you.”

There it was.

You groaned and shoved him lightly and started to walk off. You could hear him chuckling under his breath as he watched your receding figure.

But when it came down to it, in the middle of the match, most of your team had begun to realize that there was no way they were going to come out of this victorious if they followed your plays. Malfoy, ever so resourceful, pulled the rest of the team aside and advised them to completely abandon the plays that you once again had worked hard for and try offensive.

This lack of unity within your team inevitably led to another loss.

And your house was not happy.

___________________

So, here you were, eating your breakfast in the Great Hall with extremely shaky hands. You could not afford to lose the match tomorrow. There was no way you could let that happen. That would surely end your Quidditch career before it even started, and the whispering in the halls would not come to a stop. You tried to run through the Quidditch plays once again in your head, to ensure you had them down for the practice tonight when Malfoy swaggered in and took a seat beside you.

“We better not lose again, [Y/L/N],” he grunted as he reached over to grab the jam, “you’ve failed us enough.”

“Shut up, Malfoy,” you snapped at him after rolling your eyes so far back into your head that it hurt a little, “maybe if you played well and followed my plays that I spend HOURS creating, we would do better.”

“Whatever,” he muttered under his breath as he took a bite, “Flint was better.”

With a groan you decided that you had had enough food to eat. You felt as though if you ate anymore, you would surely have to rush to the girls’ lavatory and throw up. You stood up and started to head towards the exit of the Great Hall, not having any particular idea what exactly it was that you were heading towards.

All you knew is that you had to win.

____________________

“[Y/L/N],” called two familiar voices from somewhere behind you.

You had been walking, on your way to the common room, to try to have a final look at the Quidditch plays when you heard the seemingly identical voices.

You turned around to see the Weasley twins, with Oliver, standing in the hallway, discussing something hurriedly. Oliver’s back had been turned to you, but it wasn’t hard to recognize his very distinct broad shoulders that Quidditch had blessed him with.

Oliver turned around and met your gaze, before looking back at the twins confusedly.

“Um, yes?” you said, reluctantly as you walked closer to them.

The twins had a toothy grin stuck on their face which, you decided, was not a good sign. This meant that they were up to something. Oliver continued to look between the two twins and, occasionally you, with a dumb-founded look.

“Ready for the match tomorrow?” one of the red-headed twins asked in a teasing matter.

“Yes, actually, I am,” you said rather defensively. You crossed your arms to try to look more intimidating but this clearly failed as the other twin started to snicker.

“You know, Oli here thinks so too,” the other one started to say as he clapped Oliver’s shoulder, “he’s a little scared about tomorrow. Doesn’t think we can beat you.”

You raised your eyebrows at this. Well, this was a new development. You looked at Oliver for confirmation.

“What? N--” he exclaimed at the twins before the twin to his right shushed him and cut him off.

“Georgie and I think it would be rather fun to raise the stakes, don’t you think?” Fred said quickly before Oliver could interrupt him again, “Motivate him a little, perhaps?”

Oliver had gone back to looking lost.

You didn’t say anything to this but George must have picked up some sort interest in your gaze.

“Tell you what, [Y/N], you win tomorrow and Oli boy here,” he says as he claps Oliver’s shoulders again, making him slightly wince in pain, “owes you a favour.”

Oliver opens his mouth to say something but is once again, cut off.

“Anything you want.” Fred said.

“Whenever you want.” George finished.

You opened your mouth to reply but you were unable to find the right words. Of course, you wanted this. You could make Oliver give over all his booked quidditch pitch hours, you could make him carry your books, do your homework---

“Hello?” George said as he jokingly waved a hand in front of your face.

“Uh, yes! I mean, yes. Yes, that sounds good, I guess.” You said as you tuned back into the conversation.

“I--” Oliver started.

“But what if you win?” you ask suddenly as the realization dawns on you. You were not about to add onto your humiliation of losing three consecutive Quidditch matches by becoming Oliver’s personal servant as well.

“Glad you asked, dearest [Y/N],” Fred smirked as if this is exactly what he was waiting for.

“If we win, you and Wood go on a date,” George said with a big smile, “that’s it.”

“A pretty great deal if you ask me,” Fred added in quickly.

Oliver’s expression contorted into absolute shock as his cheeks started to redden the faintest shade of pink. He opened his mouth to yell at the twins but was unable to. Something compelled him to shut up and turn to you, desperate to see what you thought of this. A small part of him hoped that you would agree.

This clever plea presented by the twins had taken you back by surprise, to say the least. On a date? With Oliver? Didn’t he hate you, and you him? You almost wanted to laugh at what a ridiculous idea this was, and you almost did, before you saw that Oliver was watching you with his eyebrows furrowed. Did he want this? Did he not? It seemed pretty harmless, right? Plus, if you declined, wouldn’t that show that you were nervous and unsure about the match?

“Fine. You have a deal.” you said assertively and reached out your hand to shake Oliver’s.

Now, Oliver wasn’t a bright student, but he wasn’t dull either. But at this moment, his brain had completely stopped working as he stared at you, taking in your eyes that twinkled and your perfect lips that looked so soft---

His thoughts were rudely interrupted by Fred’s aggressive approach to bringing his attention back to this conversation; he shoved Oliver, almost causing him to fall over.

“Wha--? Oh, yes. Yes. Date,” he stammered, trying to find the right words, “I mean--, no, not a date. Dea--Deal. Yes.”

He extended out his incredibly sweaty hand to take your noticeably smaller hand in his and gave a firm shake. He smiled at you and you returned it hesitantly before you turned back around to walk away.

What a weird night this has been.

______________________

The match had started nearly ten minutes ago and Oliver had not taken his eyes off you once. It did work in his favour a bit, as you were a chaser, so it didn’t look out of the ordinary at all. But Fred and George caught on quickly and exchanged knowing looks, smirking slightly.

The match, dare you say it, was going extremely well. The other chasers had already scored multiple goals and this offensive-style play was proving to be very effective.

But your head was not in the game. Not at all.

The way that Oliver was flying on his broom, strategically blocking goals and giving a victorious smile each time to the crowd was proving to be particularly distracting. And it may just be your brain playing tricks, but you could’ve sworn you saw him watching you a few times, too.

It was somewhat of a revelation last night. This morning, you saw Oliver in a completely different light. Your mind even tried to convince you that maybe it wouldn’t be that bad if your team lost again. You quickly mentally slapped yourself to get rid of this thought. You had to win.

______________

The match went on for a while after, and it came incredibly close to being a victory for Gryffindor.

But it wasn’t.

Many people blamed it on Oliver’s lazy and distracted gameplay, and many on your brilliant one.

You exclaimed loudly and smiled broadly as Malfoy caught the snitch, and the stands erupted into applause and cheer.

You hopped off your broom and went to congratulate Malfoy and your other teammates, all the while the stands clapped and screamed. It sounded like music to your ears. You were so incredibly happy that your hard work had paid off and you had broken the losing streak.

Your smile faltered, however, as you saw how defeated Oliver looked. This was a major bruise to his ego. He was not used to losing. But you couldn’t help but think that maybe, just maybe, he looked that disappointed because he would be unable to go on that date. If you were being honest, part of you was also disappointed for the same reason.

_________________

You were sat in the library, trying to focus on your Charms homework but that was proving to be quite… impossible.

Oliver was sat two tables ahead of you, and while his back was turned, you still felt yourself feeling a little flustered.

You had been gazing shyly at the back of Oliver’s head when a sudden tap to your shoulder scared you half to death.

“Hellooo [Y/L/N],” said the slightly taller twin, which you now were able to tell was Fred.

“For Merlin’s sake,” you exclaimed with hand to your chest, “you can’t scare me like that, Fred!” You whirled around to see Fred standing behind you with his infectious smile on his face and George, standing beside him in an identical manner.

“Sorry.”

“What do you want?” You questioned dryly, picking your quill back up again, pretending to get invested in work.

“Congratulations on your win, [Y/L/N],” George said pleasantly as he patted your shoulder, “you played well. It's a shame though, isn’t it, Freddie?”

“Yes, it really is, Georgie.” Fred said, crossing his arms, faking sadness.

You turned around to face them, your eyebrows furrowed, “What? What is?”

“Oh, just Oliver,” George sighed.

“What about him?”

“You know, after the match…” Fred added.

“What?” you said again, curiously. You desperately wanted to know. What were they talking about? Was Oliver alright? Was he mad at you?

“Oh, you know…” George sighed, again, faking disappointment.

“Fred, George, will you please just get on with it?”

“Well, y’know,” Fred said but stopped again.

“Merlin’s beard, you two are infuriating!” you whisper-shouted, “what is it?!”

“Hmm, you seem to care about Oli boy a lot,” George said thoughtfully, with a hand to his chin, “I wonder why that is, eh?”

“Please just get to the point,” you huffed, annoyed at yourself for feeling butterflies at the mention of this ridiculous idea. You were glad your hair was covering your cheeks or else they would surely be able to see you blushing.

“He’s quite disappointed he wasn’t able to go on that date with you,” Fred said smugly, “He was crying about it.”

“Oh, shut up,” you said, turning back to your work. They were only pulling your leg, you could tell.

“Ok, ok, maybe he wasn’t crying,” Fred rushed to tell you, “but he might as well have been.”

“Yeah, right,” you rolled your eyes.

“We aren’t lying, you know,” George rushed to Fred’s aid, “why would we ever do that?”

You snorted quietly under your breath.

“Alright, alright, all jokes aside, we saw you staring at him,” Fred told you, as he sat down beside you, “it’s obvious you like him.”

“And, it must be your lucky day, because he likes you too,” George added, taking a seat on your other side.

“So just ask him out.”

“It’s as simple as that.”

“We’re bloody geniuses, Georgie.”

“We bloody are, aren’t we?”

You were watching this scene unfold in absolute horror. Your cheeks were as red as a tomato and your stomach had dropped. People knew? They knew you liked him? Did you even like him? Did he even like you?

“I don’t know what you two are talking about,” you started, trying to compose the storm raging within you, “I don’t like him, you two are mad.”

“You have a favour, lying around in case you forgot,” George said, wiggling his eyebrows at you, “use it.”

The truth was, you had forgotten. You did have a favour overdue. The excitement of the win had made you forget that you could make Oliver do whatever you wanted.

“I will not do that! Are you two insane?” you exclaimed again. This idea was mad.

“Come on,” Fred whined, “it’s not like he can reject you. Which, if you ask me, he wouldn’t do anyway because he’s so bloody in love with you.”

“No! Absolutely not. There is a reason I’m not a Gryffindor, you know.” you protested.

“Hey! Oliver! Wood!” George shouted, much to Madame Pince’s dismay. She gave him a mean look and carried on reading. You looked at him in shock and harshly whacked him in the shoulder, to which he responded by snickering. What was he doing?

Oliver turned around and looked at you three before furrowing his eyebrows again. He got up from his spot and walked over to your table, while you gave George a murderous look.

“Hi.” he said, quietly, looking only at you.

“Hi,” you muttered back, a little breathless. Merlin, why were you behaving like this? You hated it.

“[Y/N] here, has something to say,” Fred said suggestively, as he stood up from his seat.

“Have fun, you two,” George said as he, too, stood up and walked away with Fred, leaving you and Oliver feeling incredibly awkward.

“So…” he tried to say casually but he was much too nervous to be in your presence.

“Uhh, I--, I wanted to call in that favour you owe me,” you said, thinking quickly before this becomes even more weird.

“Right,” he said gloomily, once again reminded of his loss.

“I…” unable to think of anything, you uttered the first things that came into your head as you glanced down at your incomplete homework, “I need you to tutor me.”

“Tutor you?”

“Yes.”

“Okay.”

“At the Three Broomsticks.” you added, not really sure why.

“Oh?”

“Yes.”

“Alright.” he nodded, looking a little surprised at your odd request.

Before you knew it, you were uttering the three words of confirmation that made both of your hearts leap simultaneously, “It’s a date.”

Oliver raised his eyebrows, unsure of what to say. A date? You cringed at yourself for even thinking of saying that.

“A date?” he asked, still surprised, but his tone suggested it was pleasant surprise more than anything.

“Uh, yes.”

“Alright.”

“Yes.”

“I’ll pick you up at 11? Next Saturday?” his heart was beating a hundred times per second but it was evident that the Gryffindor courage had kicked in.

“Yes. I’d like that,” you managed to get out.

“Alright, it’s a date.”

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inqshead · 6 years ago

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no vacancy.

did you know that bees tend to shit a lot? oh man i laughed so hard when one of those honeymakers landed on olive’s head and did what it needed to do. it was a fun day. the land seemed so much more intense since the water sooked into the dry earth and trees and changed their colors visibly. it smelled like heaven, which contains the smell of wet air and beeswax; for today. we tasted fresh honey and walked a lot, learned new stuff and ate cake. i felt like not eating at all, but i couldn’t think of any excuse since i couldn’t just go ahead and say ‘eyyy, my eating disorder still affects me alot although i am already through the worst, so i am so incredibly sorry but i just cannot eat the cake you put all your effort in’. after all i felt proud, eating, gaining coinfidence doing it and making the people around me happy. i felt good enough to even look forward to the party. when we said goodbye and agreed to meet tomorrow again for dinner (which included hiking beforehands) on a mountain and under a sky full of stars, i asked olive if he was going to go to the party. he denied, because he wanted to use his time alone to just have a few minutes for himself and maybe a call with his girlfriend. i found out that they even had a seperated bar in the basement where the elder ones could party for themselves. my parents were excited. me too. when we arrived ‘home’ there was a mess. many many cool and also fancy or extraordinary people ran around and decorated the rest. i could hear oldfashioned music playing and traveled through times into the past century. i didn’t see any familiar person except tryah who wore a funny hat and glasses that were starshaped. oh my i had to laugh really hard. and that was also when i realized how confident i was compared to the day before. there was nothing to worry about, i had everything under my control; and even if not: i felt like i was able to fix anything. and oh goodness that felt good. i said goodbye to my family and walked into my room, fell on my bed and i was too exhausted for just staying awake. but when i heard the hard beats shaking everything's existence i fell into a rush. i didn't even have swimming clothes (since it was a pool party i probably could’ve needed them), but i chose to wear my denim levis and decided against the white shirt (what if i fell into water. oh gods.) it wasn't that hot anymore and also late but i wanted to wear a shirt and eventually i took the yellow one which had 'fresh anti youth' written on it. then i ran back to my family's room in which i found a gaming olive and showered. when i came back outside olive was gone. i turned the lights off and walked outside, while turning around and closing the door only wearing a towel snugged around my waiste. i wasn't expecting anyone out here right now since basically everyone was out partying but when someone shouted my name i immediately screamed and ran into the door nose forwards. ,,Ow!'', i shouted back. dammit that hurted. holding my nose i turned to the person i expected olive to be. i started swearing in my language and stopped when i realized that this was sara. oh man i had been sure it was a male voice, but it was clearly sara's high pitched language. i started screaming again and bummed against the door with my back. again. she started screaming as well, giving me a very confused look. when we stopped, we started laughing. ,,the heck?’‘, she asked under her breath. ,,sorry’‘, i responded out of context. she wove aside. when we calmed down our breaths both of us suddenly realized that i was barely wearing anything. my face turned as red as the strawberries i ate earlier that day. she looked down the hallway, eyes widened. ,,oh my...’‘ ,,ummmm, did you intend to talk about something or did you just want to scare me?’‘, i broke down the embarrassing silence. ,,haaha’‘, she laughed, ,,let’s get you some clothes first and then talk.’‘ i nodded. after a few seconds went by she went on. ,,ty, you need to move for that.’‘ ,,ooh, i’m sorry. was lost in my thoughts.’‘ i started walking, she followed and mumbled something about being interested what kind of thoughts. after i got dressed in the said pants and the shirt, i sat on the bed. the open window let the fresh air in. the sun was about to sink down behind the end of the world in maybe two or three hours and sara shivered when the lively song changed to a slow love jam. she didn’t want to sit down and just stood in the middle of the room, awkwardly. she started biting her red lips. ,,i actually wanted to apologise for earlier. nojus was really angry, like, i’ve never seen him so serious before. he’s not the type to take anything personal and, i have to add this, i don’t usually do this. you just seemed really cute and kinda lost, so i thought, hey, maybe we could have a drink and talk or something. it’s not like one has many different friends here.’‘ she interlaced her fingers and kept her eyes on the ground. honestly i was astonished. that crazy cool person just apologised for nothing and looked so sad. this felt like a joke. like, she thought i was cute and wanted to accompany me. i repeat, me. what was happening?! the stars must’ve mixed somthing up. i must’ve looked really dumbfounded, and again, i forgot to answer, coz she laughed (but it sounded sad) and turned towards the door. ,,it’s okay, i usually do dumb things, i guess i should be used to it right now. see ya.’‘ she was about to close the door behind her when i finally came to my senses. ,,wait!’‘ i ran to her and caught her hand. she seemed surprised and really tired as well. ,,let’s go together to the party. i’d like to have a drink with such a beautiful girl.’‘ i even managed to wink without turning into a tomato, but when she started laughing i couldn’t hold it in any longer. i was such a fail at flirting. and again, 24 hours ago i wouldn’t have dared to do something like this. social anxiety felt like a joke. we interlaced our fingers and jumped through the heartfully decorated hallways like little kids. it was loud but everything gave me the intense feeling of being able to hear a butterfly clapping its wings. ,,you’re lucky, i’m not into guys’‘, was her response when an elderly couple started whispering as soon as they saw us. i laughed like a weirdo. ,,and i know you ain’t into females either.’‘ oooh what?? was that so obvious?? i started sweating in places i didn’t know one could sweat. i needed to vanish. immediately. if she knew everyone knew. oh gods. my life had been wasted. i was about to search the next bridge to jump down. coming out with something i wasn’t a hundred percent sure of just wasn’t an option. ,,ty? it’s alright, i won’t tell anyone and i’m sure no one knows. i wasn’t sure either, just wanted to test you.’‘ she winked at me and i died a thousand other deaths. couldn’t even dare to look at her. ,,come on kid. we have a party to throw’‘, with those words we started walking again (didn’t even realize we had stopped,, dumb me) or rather she pulled me forwards and giggled like a chicken. maybe it was good to start with a base. a love that wouldn’t concrete to entirety and include infinite and unconditional love on a more touchy basis, but something like an honest friend, someone that would take care of my secrets and be like a hideout, a hideout i always needed, because the outside world, this whole society mess thing was just getting too much. i felt like such a love was actually important; whereas i hadn't seen it when it was right there. ,,-tiberius come on, are you asleep?’‘ sara waved her bronzed hand in front of my face and looked really worried. i blinked a few times until i was back in this reality. i could hear the music playing very loudly and the gold light colored the trees and the flowers and all the beautiful scents into a romantic scenery. the people, i believed, must have been behind another huge building which made me think of a gym or something similar to that. ,,sorry, i’m okay.’‘ she didn’t really believe me and i decided to hug her (she felt like a warm soft pillow fyi) when a laughing nojus suddenly appeared right behind her- a guy’s arm around his shoulder. that dude was hella tall and muscular, not my type but probably considered sexy. nojus seemed to be comfortable. when he saw us his huge smile faded into nothing, which cut my heart bleeding and he got angry. someone said fuck, but i wasn’t sure wether it was nojus or sara, coz the whole loud atmosphere made me dizzy and the next thing i can remember is my legs giving up and my heart falling onto someone fragile but strong.

chapter eight end.

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cameronwjones · 6 years ago

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20 Internal Meeting Ideas

Looking to spice up your internal company meetings? See how companies are using charities, push-ups, basketball, fines and awards to make their meetings more fun and productive.

Creative staff meetings can make all the difference for leaders and attendees alike. This type of meeting might happen on a regular or as-need basis. They exclusively serve as a time for company staff to get together and pitch, brainstorm, or check in on certain pertinent developments within the organization. Here are some great examples of creative staff meeting ideas from high-performing companies. But first, a quick definition:

What is an internal meeting?

Internal meetings are used to touch base with members of the same organization on issues big and small. Most people don’t always associate enjoyment with this event type, but there’s no reason why you can’t plan a fun staff meeting with high levels of event engagement.

Internal Meeting Ideas

1. Get back in touch with your inner child.

Who said coloring is just for kids? Plum Organics is an excellent example of how corporate event ideas can include an element of fun in any internal meeting. They choose a day of the week to include this activity - usually Thursdays - and host what have come to be known as creative brainstorming sessions. Their staff talks, colors, and decompresses together before finishing the week strong.

So far, their unique approach to internal meetings has been a major component in their successful new product development efforts. Engaging with employees while stimulating their minds in a whole new way can promote out of the box thinking.

Source: Plum Organics

2. Make them drop and give you 50.

It’s rare to hear about companies implementing and benefiting from military tactics in their event strategy, but that’s exactly what Buddytruk did when they started this highly effective internal meeting tactic. They decided that keeping meetings on track and on time was so important to their productivity that if they were forced to extend beyond the scheduled time, the last person speaking would have to do 50 push ups.

The physical challenge was a funny gag that inevitably led to team bonding.

Source: Buddytruk

3. Have a standing room only policy.

Also a fan of running meetings on time, Just Fearless used another physical approach to holding attendees accountable; whenever meetings run long, the chairs are taken away and everyone is forced to stand until it ends. One of the biggest challenges of internal meetings is remaining focused and on topic.

Having the looming pressure of potentially seeing the chair moved from under you puts things into perspective. The rule applies both in the office and at public venues as well.

Source: Just Fearless

4. Make long-winded employees pay up.

Tripping.com plans to make their staff put their money where their mouths are at internal meetings by using a “swear jar”-like approach to their scheduling. At the start of every meeting they set a stopwatch for 30 minutes. If the meeting extends beyond the 30 minutes, whoever called the meeting is responsible for putting $5 into their team beer jar.

Fun rewards mixed with a little friendly public humiliation typically make for a productive internal meeting atmosphere.

Source: Glassdoor

5. Use friendly reminder tools.

Technology like event software plays a big role in B2B event marketing and could be the key to keeping everyone on time to your next internal meeting. O3 World uses third party software to coordinate conference room preparation and staff meeting reminders. The app can read employee calendars and let’s them know when to start wrapping up before the next scheduled event.

Even if you choose to manually send reminders via email or messaging, a little nudge now and again might actually keep your meeting schedule on track long term. Just one of many meeting secrets to be gleaned from multi-touch event marketing.

That’s a wrap on @CodedayPhilly. The students learned that their presentations are just as important as their #code. Thanks to everyone who supported this event, it was a fun 24 hours! pic.twitter.com/O7hFr9JLI4

— O3 World (@o3world) November 12, 2017

6. Donate to charity every time the meeting gets interrupted.

Keller-Williams Realty has a strict policy for phones being silenced or off during internal staff meetings. To support this, they developed a rule where attendees whose phones rang during meetings were made to donate to the company’s charity. Not only did it cut down on disruption during the event, it also helped give back to the community at large.

Including a flexible pay-what-you-can option helps make this a feasible option for any company interested in tying together productivity with on-brand social causes.

Source: The Muse

7. Make the Global Office Local.

Bizzabo has offices in both New York City and Tel Aviv. While smaller meetings regularly occur between the two offices, a large all-hands meeting is held every two weeks. Projectors, throwable mics and a jam-packed agenda help make the global local. Plus, during these meetings Bizzaboers get to give and receive recognition alongside their overseas counterparts.

Whether your company is spread out across the world or just a region, all-hands meetings can be very effective for creating a cohesive global culture.

Source: Bizzabo

8. Keep employees on topic.

Brivo knows that internal meetings are often plagued with repeat ideas, spinning off topic, and long tangents that fail to move the conversation forward. To remedy this issue, they decided to use a visual tool. Whenever someone begins rehashing a point that was already made, another team member holds up their “No Rehash” ping pong paddle. Attendees are empowered to bring greater energy and focus to their discussions while also finding ways to help break each other’s bad habits.

Source: Brivo LinkedIn

9. Shoot some hoops.

It makes sense that a gaming company would use a game to influence the success of their internal meetings. GeneraGames knows that physical activity is a great way to both access to parts of the mind we don’t use while seated at a desk and give a daily work routine a much needed breather. They find the quick games of basketball help them think more creatively while adding an element of play to the process.

Whether you have direct access to a professional court or use a door hanger nets, it’s possible to incorporate this sporty element into any internal meeting setting.

Source: Genera Games

10. Get personal.

True to their brand, LivePerson makes sure to add in a more human aspect to what could turn into yet another boring company event. To do so, they begin each internal meeting with a specific question. Usually the topic is chosen to help break down walls and provoke deep, meaningful conversations between staff members. This technique helps employees bond, strengthen their empathy muscles, and get into a collaborative mode by seeing things from one another’s perspective.

Source: LivePerson

11. Start at a weird time.

TINYpulse is not a fan of doing their meetings on the hour or at the half hour. Instead, they choose unusual start times (like 8:48am) so employees can remember when they’re supposed to arrive. The extra effort required to register and remember such an odd number in their otherwise uniform schedule helps people stay on track. As an added bonus, it also serves as a little memory game for participants.

Source: Glassdoor

12. Merge team-building with refreshments on breaks.

For especially long meetings, IACC makes sure to keep breaks both rejuvenating and focused with variety of tasks and games that require team collaboration. They’ve tried solving puzzles, performing short skits, interviewing each other about their childhood dreams, and everything in between. This breaks up the pace of what could otherwise be a series of presentations or reports and brings in a refreshing and productive alternative. Games plus food, what’s not to love?

Source: IACC

13. Create a unique ritual.

Poll Everywhere has an interesting idea for starting or ending internal meetings. They have what they call a “moment of Zen”. During this moment they take time, as a group, to learn something new or reflect on their day. Oftentimes meeting leaders will share an inspiring quote or a fun news tidbit. Sometimes team members will highlight interesting notes from the work of other colleagues during the week.

Whatever it is, they share and discuss with another. By zooming out of their immediate business, the team is able to bond over bigger picture ideas. This relationship building tactic helps build stronger collaboration over time.

Source: Poll Everywhere Blog

14. Add a speaker series.

Johnson & Johnson makes internal meetings educational with their very own mock Ted Talk series. Employees have the chance to present short lectures on topics they are passionate about. Since the brand is dedicated to innovation, creating an environment in which employees feel free to share their ideas continues to strengthen that endeavor. The program has become so popular that they’ve expanded it through a digital library all employees have access to.

Source: Johnson & Johnson

15. Ask employees what they would like to do.

Sometimes a very practical survey is all it takes to upgrade your internal meeting strategy. At Pandora, employees are encouraged to form groups over their shared interests (cold-brew, anyone?). If they reach the minimum number of participants, Pandora funds their group endeavors. You can easily apply this philosophy to internal meetings by polling attendees and sorting out common areas they can bond over. Keep these similarities in mind when choosing a venue or activity.

Source: Pandora

16. Share and set personal goals.

DigitalOcean keeps their meetings all business except for one very important moment. At the conclusion of each internal rendezvous, the staff is welcome to update their publicly shared spreadsheet of personal goals for the week. These goals could be related or unrelated to whatever the meeting was about. This exercise helped employees continue to learn from each other even after they left the conference room. They even eventually started adding short summaries of lessons they learned with each goal so others could benefit from the wisdom.

Source: DigitalOcean

17. Appoint a decision-maker.

Google knows how important data it is to keep meetings concise and to the point. Which is why they make sure to always have someone taking notes and, more importantly, someone making decisions at every meeting. The decision-maker has final say on every issue and makes it their job to keep meetings focused and productive.

The team gets to vote on the decision-maker ahead of time so that the process remains diplomatic. They also make it a point to eliminate as many meetings as possible by solving issues via email. Decision-makers are also empowered to cancel unnecessary meetings by communicating with all parties involved beforehand.

Source: Google Careers

18. Work in some ice breakers.

HeadBox is a big fan of ice breakers because, old-fashioned or not, they just plain work. In order to start meetings with the right energy, leaders at HeadBox initiate a game or activity that gets people up and moving. Most of the time the mechanics of the game help attendees naturally get to know on another better. And for large meetings, they’ll even split the crowd up into smaller groups for a little friendly competition.

Source: HeadBox

19. Use small, tangible incentives.

Everyone loves free stuff. Whether it’s a little swag, a special lunch or a small gift card, there are an unlimited number of ways to provide attendees with participation incentives. At their internal meetings, Insect Shield Repellent Technology hosts weekly and monthly brainstorms and makes sure to award anyone who comes up with ideas the company chooses to move forward with. It’s a way of showing employees their gratitude for their performance and talents but it’s also a highly effective way to break up a routine meeting agenda.

Source: Insect Shield Facebook

20. Include participants, not spectators.

Some employees are more vocal than others. And while there aren’t always opportunities for curating your guest list like you would with in any account-based event marketing strategy, there might be the opportunity to focus on bringing in attendees who have something unique to add to the conversation. Apple does exactly that. They keep their meeting lists small but purposeful, with outspoken attendees being top priority additions to keep ideas flowing and the conversation moving forward in new ways.

Source: Apple

Key Takeaways: Your Internal Meetings

Meetings are a great opportunity to flex your planner muscles in new and creative ways. Keep these top tips in mind when coordinating your next internal event:

Take advantage of event marketing tools and visual reminders to keep everyone on time.

Add a personal touch through ice breakers or thoughtful details.

Play around with ways to start and end on time.

Find unusual ways to keep everyone on task.

Transform or change at least one major event element.

No matter what you choose to include, meetings are a great way to continue bringing people together and pushing them towards their highest potential.

from Cameron Jones Updates https://blog.bizzabo.com/internal-meeting-ideas

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