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Every page and article on Benjamin Peace Hoffman in one place, organized by topic.

Best Posts

My most-read posts, the ones people keep sharing and coming back to. They cover a lot of ground, from building cityHUNT to learning how to be a present dad, to sitting with solitude and actually liking it. Voyage Baltimore interviewed me about my journey with cityHUNT. That conversation covered more territory than I expected and turned into one of my favorite pieces on this site.

Voyage Baltimore: Conversations with Ben Hoffman : Ben Hoffman talked with Voyage Baltimore about how cityHUNT grew from a NYU dorm room scavenger hunt into a team-building company in 250-plus cities.
The Founder Fatherhood Files: Being a Present Dad : Ben Hoffman reflects on building cityHUNT while raising son Ziggy, who earned a full scholarship to Georgia State, and what being a present parent means.
Creating Transformative Experiences with cityHunt : Inspired by flow theory, Ben Hoffman built cityHUNT around playfulness, connection, and flow to bring joyful, meaningful experiences into corporate life.
Solitude vs. Loneliness: Lessons from My Awakening : Ben Hoffman spent most of his life afraid of being alone. A 2019 yoga festival in Costa Rica, attended by accident, became the catalyst that changed him.
From cityHUNT to Soul Searching: My Entrepreneurial Journey : Ben Hoffman traces cityHUNT from a NYU project with Polaroid cameras through 25 years of growth, always prioritizing user experience over outside funding.
cityHUNT : Founded in 2001 as a pub crawl scavenger hunt, cityHUNT grew through gamification and positive psychology into a company targeting one million lives.
The Today Show : A Today Show producer tapped cityHUNT to design a scavenger hunt around Rockefeller Center for Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager after maternity leave.

cityHUNT

Everything cityHUNT. The philosophy behind it, the team dynamics research that backs it up, and the stories from actually running this company for years. If you want to understand what I do and why I care about it, start here. "The Philosophy of Presence" kicked off a big year for us at cityHUNT. That post gets into why being present matters more than any team building exercise you'll ever do.

Thank You Nashville : For cityHUNT 25th anniversary, Ben Hoffman ran a free scavenger hunt for Nashville service industry workers in East Nashville with $1,000 in prizes.
AI Won't Replace What cityHUNT Does : Ben Hoffman argues AI should remove busy work so people can focus on genuine human connection, the one thing cityHUNT has been building for 25 years.
Team Disconnected? Try This : When teams feel stuck, Ben Hoffman recommends changing the environment, giving people a shared challenge, and building in laughter so everyone wins.
The Philosophy of Presence : Ben Hoffman shares his philosophy for cityHUNT year 25: use AI to remove cognitive weight, then invest that freed attention in real-world human connection.
Why Team Engagement Drives Profitability : Companies with engaged teams see 21 percent higher profitability. Ben Hoffman explains why trust and genuine connection, not programs, produce that result.
The Team Bonding Myth Explained : Ben Hoffman challenges the belief that team bonding happens naturally. Without intentional effort, most teams drift despite casual chats and standups.
How a Battle Bots Competition Taught Me Everything About Teamwork : A client asked cityHUNT to run a Battle Bots fundraiser for the Boys and Girls Club. The team sourced parts nationwide, driven entirely by shared purpose.
Shared Experiences Build Better Teams : Teams with strong informal bonds are 3x more committed under pressure. Ben Hoffman explains how cityHUNT shared experiences function as trust accelerators.
The Silent Culture Killer Nobody Talks About : Nearly 70 percent of employees feel disconnected at work. Ben Hoffman explains why meetings cannot fix this and what shared experiences accomplish instead.
Why “Cool” Neighborhoods Make the Best cityHUNT Adventures : The qualities that make a neighborhood cool, street life, community spirit, local businesses, are exactly what makes them ideal for a cityHUNT adventure.
Winning : Studies confirm bronze medalists are happier than silver medalists. Ben Hoffman explains how this shapes cityHUNT's approach to celebrating every player.
cityHUNT: The New Medicine That Doesn't Come from a Pharmacy : Social prescribing mirrors what cityHUNT has done for 24 years: using movement, play, and shared experience as medicine against isolation and burnout.
How cityHUNT Builds Unforgettable Team Adventures : After 24 years exploring every team-building format, Ben Hoffman explains why scavenger hunts remain the most rewarding path to genuine human connection.
Creating Transformative Experiences with cityHunt : Inspired by flow theory, Ben Hoffman built cityHUNT around playfulness, connection, and flow to bring joyful, meaningful experiences into corporate life.
cityHUNT : Founded in 2001 as a pub crawl scavenger hunt, cityHUNT grew through gamification and positive psychology into a company targeting one million lives.
The Today Show : A Today Show producer tapped cityHUNT to design a scavenger hunt around Rockefeller Center for Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager after maternity leave.

Founder Fatherhood Files

I'm a founder and a father, and these posts are about doing both at the same time. The wins, the guilt, the Japan trip, and the strange new chapter that starts when your kid leaves for college. My son is in college now, living the city life he always wanted. "My New Role" is about figuring out who I am as a dad when the daily stuff goes away. It's a different kind of challenge.

Founder Fatherhood Files: The Daughter Dance We Built Ourselves : Ben Hoffman helped organize a community daddy-daughter dance when nothing existed nearby, making it open to any girl and any adult she chose to bring.
The Founder Fatherhood Files: My New Role : With his son in college, Ben Hoffman reflects on shifting from problem-solver to supportive listener, work he describes as his own personal growth.
The Founder Fatherhood Files: Our Japan Trip : Ben Hoffman told son Ziggy: plan the Japan trip yourself. Using Kevin Kelly travel writing as a guide, Ziggy delivered. What followed redefined them both.
The Founder Fatherhood Files: Being a Present Dad : Ben Hoffman reflects on building cityHUNT while raising son Ziggy, who earned a full scholarship to Georgia State, and what being a present parent means.

General

Posts that don't fit neatly into one box. A mix of observations, ideas, and pieces Benjamin wanted to put out there.

The Wand and the Window : Testing Universal Studios Harry Potter wand hunt, Ben Hoffman found the real magic was parents and kids collaborating at each stop, not the technology.
My Outdoor Office : Ben Hoffman runs client calls and writing sessions from a hilltop bench in his 2,000-acre Georgia community using a 5G hotspot and a portable battery.
How I Learned to Use Technology to Take Care of My Body (Without Letting It Take Over) : After years of biohacking then going low-tech, Ben Hoffman found middle ground: health tracking via a Garmin without surrendering his presence to the data.
Rebuild Momentum Through Connection : Teams lose momentum not from skill gaps but from fading connection. Ben Hoffman explains how cityHUNT shared experiences restore collaboration and trust.

Personal Growth

Lessons about becoming a better person, learned the hard way. Losing my best friend Otto, reframing dyslexia, disconnecting from everything, and 25 years of adventures that taught me more than any classroom. "Lessons From My Best Friend, Otto" is about saying goodbye. I recently had to let Otto go, and writing about what he taught me was one of the harder things I've done on this site.

What the Woods Taught Me About Building a Team : Ben Hoffman traces how two weeks at a leadership camp at age twelve, then years running those programs, shaped his understanding of grit and team trust.
The Wellness Resources I Actually Use (And Trust) : Ben Hoffman shares what he genuinely uses: Life Force Academy, Breathe With Sandy on YouTube, Travis Elliot, and Highland Yoga in Atlanta.
How I Learned to Use Technology to Take Care of My Body (Without Letting It Take Over) : After years of biohacking then going low-tech, Ben Hoffman found middle ground: health tracking via a Garmin without surrendering his presence to the data.
Why I Never Stop Traveling and Exploring the World : Twenty-five years into cityHUNT, Ben Hoffman credits constant travel as the creative fuel that keeps him designing better team adventures worldwide.
Lessons From My Best Friend, Otto : Ben Hoffman pays tribute to Otto, his best friend for nearly thirteen years, and the lessons in unconditional love and community presence Otto gave to all.
How I Turned My Dyslexia into a Superpower : Ben Hoffman was not diagnosed with dyslexia until college. He shares how struggling shaped his problem-solving instincts and entrepreneurial thinking.
Top 10 Life Discoveries from 25 Years of Adventure : Ben Hoffman shares ten lessons from building cityHUNT: redefining winning, treating connection as medicine, and why the bronze medalist is often happier.
Disconnecting : After years seeking remote wilderness, Ben Hoffman found a 400,000-acre national forest in Alabama 100 miles away. It changed how he thinks about nature.
Bold Journey Interview: Inner Peace and Building Connection : Ben Hoffman talked with Bold Journey about morning rituals, his 2019 Costa Rica awakening, and how cityHUNT grew from childhood play into mindful work.
Lessons from the Ecuadorian Amazon Jungle : Ben Hoffman visited Basilio, an elder of the Siek'o'pai in Remolino, Ecuador. Watching their collective way of life reinforced his beliefs about teamwork.
My Lifelong Dance with Burnout : Ben Hoffman traces his burnout pattern from high school theatre through navigating cityHUNT during COVID and divorce, and what it finally took to respond.
Voyage Baltimore: Conversations with Ben Hoffman : Ben Hoffman talked with Voyage Baltimore about how cityHUNT grew from a NYU dorm room scavenger hunt into a team-building company in 250-plus cities.
Solitude vs. Loneliness: Lessons from My Awakening : Ben Hoffman spent most of his life afraid of being alone. A 2019 yoga festival in Costa Rica, attended by accident, became the catalyst that changed him.
Finding Balance: How Ancient Wisdom Transformed My Life and Business : After a 2019 Costa Rica awakening, Ben Hoffman traveled to India and Ecuador and found how ancient wisdom traditions transformed his life and his work.
The Warrior Sanctuary: Making Ancient Wisdom Accessible to All : Ben Hoffman serves on the board of The Warrior Sanctuary, which opened an indigenous retreat center in Mindo, Ecuador named after his late father Igal.
From cityHUNT to Soul Searching: My Entrepreneurial Journey : Ben Hoffman traces cityHUNT from a NYU project with Polaroid cameras through 25 years of growth, always prioritizing user experience over outside funding.
RADIOKISMET with Christopher Plant : Ben Hoffman joined Christopher Plant on RADIOKISMET Live to talk cityHUNT, their decade-long friendship, and his journey learning to breathe through life.