Download now: The Review Rope: Mouth and Cross

The Review Rope: Print handouts and you are ready

This rope can be printed and presented on your next team meeting. Each A4 sheet is at the same time a dialogue card and a slice of a rope. The rope is endless. Leaders guide is included.

Valuable views
You have reached a point in your meeting where insight from everyone on your team is valuable. Your topic might be teamwork, service or motivation.

Imagine a mouth
Now you can introduce the The Rope Review, an A4 sheet with 4 speech bubbles and 29 cm of rope. Ask your participants to enter the floor. On the floor you place the two end pieces as if they were the corners of the mouth. Make sure that the mouth is so large that your participants can place their part of the rope in between. 

To what extent ...?
Now you introduce the question that is relevant to the agenda: 'To what extent do we want ...?' Ask them to pair up and discuss the topic inspired by the 4 speech bubbles (one new partner for each bubble).

First speech bubble: What do you think about the issue?
Second speech bubble: What would you like to whisper about the issue?
Third speech bubble: What would you like to say out loud about the issue?
Fourth speech bubble: What amazes you about the issue?

When you sense that your participants have discussed the issue for a fair amount of time they are ready to add a proportion.

Describe both ends
It is your job to illustrate the ends of  the rope. You do not have to enter the ends as 1 to 2 million. or 'happy' and 'hateful'. A scale from 1 to 10 and a scale from 'happy' to 'dissatisfied' will do. Describe your ends with care.

Place your part of the rope yourself
Ask your participants to place their ropes and themselves with their point of view. Now you can ask them to turn to the nearest colleague and implement an adjustment conversation to clarify what makes you stand there.

Now your participants dealt with the agenda item, talked with 3 different colleagues and have placed their rebstump and talked with the closest.

Ventilate views
Now it may be interesting to hear input from your participants. Ask a few selected participants about their reasons for standing where they stand. Listen to identical and divergent views. Also ask selected participants what it takes to choose another location on the rope.

What could be the next step?
Now we have all ventilated our views. What could be the next step? Discuss this in pairs, in trios or in plenary. Brainstorm together and form your plan of action.

Have fun with your reviewing!

Inspired by: Dr. Roger Greenaway