“In my team, it feels like we rarely stop and reflect together. And when we do stop, it becomes rushed or long-winded!”

In my role as a team developer, I often meet people who struggle to find time for shared reflection in their team and to use that time in a meaningful way. Since this is a common problem, I have put together some tips that will hopefully inspire you.

First, it’s important to be clear about why we should reflect together. In the early 1900s, an evaluation was conducted on two logging teams in North America. The teams were the same size and their workdays were the same length. One team only took a 22-minute lunch break and had felled 87 trees by the end of the day. The other team, however, took a 45-minute lunch break and an additional 10-minute break every hour. When the day was over, this team had felled 112 trees! What did they do during their breaks? They rested, talked, and sharpened their axes!

That’s how reflection works. It is precisely when we stop and reflect that we achieve the best results together. One study shows that reflection time is most needed when the workload is highest [1]. Because then, simply working harder doesn’t work. It’s more about finding alignment, working on the right things, and in the right way.

So, what can we do in practice? Researchers say that there is no single method that is optimal in all situations [2]. Therefore, it is good to have different methods on hand, depending on the team’s needs. Here are three methods that I have in my toolbox. You will need a whiteboard, Post-its, and pens. (My favorite pen for Post-its can be found here.)

Tip 1. The Boat

Draw a sailboat with an anchor, wind blowing in the sail, some rocks sticking up above the water, and an island where the boat is heading. The island represents the purpose/goal. The rocks represent the risks you may encounter during the journey. The wind represents everything that helps you reach your goal. The anchor represents everything that slows you down. Let everyone in the team write on Post-its and place them next to each symbol. Then, have a joint review and note what needs to be done going forward.

Tip 2. The Activity Circle

Draw a large circle on a whiteboard (traditional or virtual) and divide the circle into five equal parts. Then, write in the following words, one for each part.

Start – Activities you want to bring up and initiate

More – Activities you are currently doing, but that you have not fully utilized

Continue – Activities that are working well and that you want to keep

Less – Activities that contribute to your work but require a lot of energy

Stop – Activities that do not create value, or even hinder you Let everyone write their reflections in the different parts. Have a joint discussion afterward and decide how you want to proceed.

Tip 3. The Timeline

Draw a line and set time frames as in the figure below. Start by looking back at the last 6 months. What has been good, i.e., positive experiences that have benefited us? What has been difficult, not worked well, or what you are disappointed with? Now, have each person in the team put up their Post-its. Things that have been positive go above the line. Things that have been negative go below the line. Next step: Do this for the next six months. What do we want to celebrate? What are our concerns?

In conclusion

I hope these methods can inspire more reflection in your team. For those who want more methods, I have some book tips. First, I want to recommend the book “Solve Problems Together: Leading Meetings That Matter” by Marcus Degerman. It’s full of valuable methods, tips, and techniques for anyone who wants to create an engaging meeting culture. Then I can recommend the book “Learning Active Reviewing: A Practical Guide for Trainers and Facilitators” by Roger Greenaway. It’s a goldmine of practical advice for anyone who leads group discussions and learning processes.

– Johan Rinman

[1] Schippers, M. C., West, M. A., & Dawson, J. F. (2015). Team Reflexivity and Innovation: The Moderating Role of Team Context. Journal of Management, 41(3), 769–788. 

[2] Przybyłek, A. & Kotecka, D. (2017). Making agile retrospectives more awesome. Proceedings of the Federated Conference on Computer Science and Information Systems, 1211–1216.