Library of facilitation techniques

The ET acronym stands for “Effective Trainer”. We use this activity in our train-the-trainer sessions.

Participants work individually, with a partner, and in teams to prepare a list of suitable techniques for providing effective training. Eventually, each participant selects a technique that he or she wants to use immediately.

Things can get tough sometimes, it will happen, we are human. Life is full of contrast, good/bad, light/dark, happy/sad, with/without - so we need some processes/tools/methods for facilitating ourselves to a better place. Also, when things are on the up & up, it’s still useful to curate your own toolbox to build up yourself and to support others.

People introduce each other and take the other person's name. Continue until you meet your own name and the you sit down.

A classic improv game designed to encourage creative thinking, develop improvisation skills, and energize a group - great to break the ice and generate laughter with minimal set-up!

This a simple icebreaker activity energising participants, also suitable for debriefing learning points towards spontaneity and teamwork. The activity involves participants standing in a circle and throwing imaginary ball(s) to each other in increasing pace.

This is a simple drama game in which participants take turns asking each other “What are you doing?” and acting out the various responses. Though simple, it engages the imagination and gently challenges participants out of their comfort zone by having them mime a range of different actions.

warm-up activity from Rachel Davis via AJ&Smart

Use Craig Raine's poem A Martian Sends a Postcard Home to spur creative thinking and encourage perspective shifting in a group. After a warm-up, you can then use this martian perspective to describe your product or service and gain new insights and ideas.

Consensus is a fast social-negotiation game that turns group decision-making into a spectator sport. Each round puts one opinionated question on every phone with four options and a pot of points — but an option only passes on a strict majority, and if the room can't agree, nobody scores. Every player is secretly paid to steer the group toward a different option, so the room has to actually talk, bargain and build coalitions to score at all.

Try on a relentlessly positive, can-do attitude before tackling the big stuff. The proverb goes "If life gives you lemons, make lemonade." Practice the art of positive thinking to unlock creative ideas. Use this as a warm-up before brainstorming or to energize your team meetings.

Robo Word Finder sits your team around a giant letter board where little robots walk the tiles, hunting hidden words together. Everyone draws from a single shared pool of letter picks, so nobody can sweep the board alone — someone spots a word, someone walks it, and the team decides together whether it's worth the picks. Quick to teach and easy to drop in, it's a short, collaborative break for a remote team, with boards in nine languages.