It’s true that people can’t hide but it’s also down to you to create an atmosphere where people don’t want to hide. They should feel comfortable to share.
We found that my numbering it we were less reliant on the words to start the conversation which can be difficult. A number gets the conversation going as you say.
One, we used weather analogies. Instead of rating on a scale of 1-10, you'd choose from things like Sunny, Cloudy, Stormy, etc. We'd use emojis to record these in the team meeting notes. ☀️
In my experience, this one was fun, allowed for creativity, but it was also confusing. One person insisted we translate this into a numerical scale so she could measure it over time (so that sapped all creativity, and ultimately turned it into a numerical rating that sometimes was described by a weather analogy).
At another company, when I tried this with my team, one person got really stuck on telling us the literal weather where they were (we were globally distributed, so they thought I was asking for a weather report).
Due to the confusion, I switched to Red/Yellow/Green. It's not as fun, but it still gives people the option for some latitude (for example, “mostly green, but my allergies are acting up so slightly yellow because of that”).
I have noticed people often have decision fatigue and don't want to commit to a single number or option. This seemed to happen more when using straight numbers, people would frequently spend significant amounts of time contemplating if they were a 7, 7.25 or a 7.5. With red/yellow/green, I would allow some verbal commentary, but forced people to select a single representative color.
The weather analogy is an interesting one but I can see that it could end up being more complicated. Ie snow for one person could be a magical experience - memories of having days off school maybe! For others it means icy pavements and a right pain.
We haven’t had people trying to be overly accurate with their numbers yet although we might have had a 7.5 but a reason did then follow.
Red amber green is an interesting one. I’ve found many people plumb for amber which can make it a little boring.
And on your point about someone who wanted to track it over then. Yes! We nearly went there - we are analysts after all. Glad we didn’t!
“It allowed a team member to make a point with a low score and for a conversation to flow.”
In my experience this one is key. Participation is stimulated—the hiders can’t hide.
Good one Martin.
Thanks Dee.
It’s true that people can’t hide but it’s also down to you to create an atmosphere where people don’t want to hide. They should feel comfortable to share.
We found that my numbering it we were less reliant on the words to start the conversation which can be difficult. A number gets the conversation going as you say.
I have used two variations of this.
One, we used weather analogies. Instead of rating on a scale of 1-10, you'd choose from things like Sunny, Cloudy, Stormy, etc. We'd use emojis to record these in the team meeting notes. ☀️
In my experience, this one was fun, allowed for creativity, but it was also confusing. One person insisted we translate this into a numerical scale so she could measure it over time (so that sapped all creativity, and ultimately turned it into a numerical rating that sometimes was described by a weather analogy).
At another company, when I tried this with my team, one person got really stuck on telling us the literal weather where they were (we were globally distributed, so they thought I was asking for a weather report).
Due to the confusion, I switched to Red/Yellow/Green. It's not as fun, but it still gives people the option for some latitude (for example, “mostly green, but my allergies are acting up so slightly yellow because of that”).
I have noticed people often have decision fatigue and don't want to commit to a single number or option. This seemed to happen more when using straight numbers, people would frequently spend significant amounts of time contemplating if they were a 7, 7.25 or a 7.5. With red/yellow/green, I would allow some verbal commentary, but forced people to select a single representative color.
Hi Brie. Thanks so much for sharing.
The weather analogy is an interesting one but I can see that it could end up being more complicated. Ie snow for one person could be a magical experience - memories of having days off school maybe! For others it means icy pavements and a right pain.
We haven’t had people trying to be overly accurate with their numbers yet although we might have had a 7.5 but a reason did then follow.
Red amber green is an interesting one. I’ve found many people plumb for amber which can make it a little boring.
And on your point about someone who wanted to track it over then. Yes! We nearly went there - we are analysts after all. Glad we didn’t!
Did you ever find out what happened to the pen throwing #10?
You don’t want to know 😂