Your team needs recess

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Your team needs recess 〰️

Your people are burnt out, and it’s costing you more than you think.

Workshops, off-sites, and team experiences using play science— designed to help teams reset, reconnect, and actually want to show up again.

Something's off and you know it.

The culture used to be a selling point. Now team events feel forced and nobody really wants to go. Meetings are flat. People are physically present but somewhere else entirely.

Burnout doesn't always look like a breakdown. Sometimes it just looks like a really tired, really checked-out team.

And it's costing you. 44% of U.S. workers reported feeling burned out last year — and burnout costs employers between $4,000 and $21,000 per person, per year in lost productivity and turnover. For a team of 1,000, that's up to $5 million annually. (Sources: Entrepreneur, Fast Company)

The good news? We can fix it.

This is where play comes in.

Play is one of the most underused tools in the workplace. It reduces stress, restores focus, and rebuilds the kind of team connection that burnout quietly destroys.

And we’re not talking about swing sets and sandcastles; we’re talking about collaborative challenges, creative prompts, and playful missions that will actually restore engagement and remind your team what it feels like to actually be present, laughing, and alive at work.

Playstate brings these facilitated experiences into your workplace — workshops, team off-sites, and custom events grounded in play science and behavioral research, designed to create real shifts in how your team feels and works together.

This is the kind of experience your team will remember. It's the kind they'll actually talk about on Monday.

How we work together.

Every experience is fully customized with your team in mind. Here's where most people start:

The Workshop

Two hours, straight to your office. Perfect for team meetings, lunch-and-learns, quarterly resets, or any time you need to shake the energy loose without blowing up the whole day.

The Half-Day

When you need more than a quick jolt. We go deeper into the work, create more space for real connection, and give your team room to actually exhale. Can be hosted at your location or offsite.

The Full Off-Site

A fully custom day or multi-day experience designed around where your team is and where you want them to go. This is the immersive version — the one that creates before-and-after moments.

A peek inside a workshop.

Introduction | The Power of Play

A brief dive into why play matters — the science behind it, and an intro to each play personality type.

Warm-Up | Get Grounded

Gentle movement and breathing to help participants leave their day at the door and actually show up present.

Icebreaker | Building Connection

Names, games, and just enough weirdness to break the ice and get people out of their heads.

Play Stations | Explore Your Play Style

Participants rotate through stations to discover their play personality and try on a few others.

Collaboration | Collective Creativity

A group project that taps into teamwork, creativity, and the kind of collective energy you can't manufacture in a meeting.

Closing Circle | Reflect & Integrate

Individual takeaways, gratitude, and a clear path for bringing this into everyday work life.

Every workshop is customized to your team — this is just one way a session can unfold.

Why Playstate

I spent over a decade in public relations — including building my own firm working with founders — before shifting fully into coaching. That path gave me something a lot of facilitators don't have: I actually understand how businesses work, what's at stake for leaders, and why the "culture stuff" is always the first thing to get deprioritized.

My approach is grounded in play science, neuroscience, behavioral research, and certifications from Yale and Harvard in happiness and human flourishing. My degrees in Communications and Sociology shaped how I think about human connection, team dynamics, and the systemic patterns that keep burnout in place.

Experiencing burnout myself reshaped how I think about energy, performance, and what it actually means to show up. It's the foundation of everything I teach.

What teams are saying…

“Playstate unlocked a new kind of creativity for us. The playful prompts and exercises sparked ideas we wouldn't have found in a typical brainstorm. It was energizing, human and exactly what we needed to reconnect as a team.”

— MF, Director of People & Culture

"I didn't realize how much we needed this until we really got into it. We left feeling more connected, energized, and with real tools we could use in our work and personal lives."

— BD, Chief of Staff

"This was so playful yet empowering! Christina understood that talking about 'play' can sound silly, and she embraces that while truly showing others the power that playfulness holds."

— AS, Strategy Principal

Frequently Asked Questions

  • Burnout costs companies an estimated $322 billion globally in turnover and lost productivity each year. Investing in your team's energy and connection isn't a nice-to-have — it's a retention and performance strategy. Most teams report feeling more connected, more creative, and more motivated after even a single session.

  • Fair question. Play can sound silly until you're in it. These experiences are designed to meet people where they are — no one is forced to do anything, and the format is built to feel engaging, not awkward. The skeptics are usually the ones who end up most surprised.

  • Most team building is designed to be fun for a few hours and forgotten by Friday. This is different because it's grounded in actual science — play research, neuroscience, and behavioral methodology — and because it's facilitated by someone who has spent years studying what genuinely restores people. The goal isn't a good time. It's a real shift.

  • Every engagement starts with a consultation to understand your team's culture, goals, and what you're actually dealing with. Nothing is off the shelf.

  • Based in Colorado, available to travel, and yes — virtual sessions are available too. Sessions work for teams of all sizes — reach out and we'll figure out the right format together.

  • One session creates a real shift. For teams who want to go deeper, ongoing engagements and follow-up workshops are available. The tools your team learns aren't just for the day — they're designed to carry forward.

Let’s build something together.

Complete the contact form and I’ll be in touch! Can’t wait to hear more about you and your team.