2 Embracing Contradictions
2 Embracing Contradictions is a workspace ritual exercise for reflection and learning: it helps participants reflect on experience and turn observations into learning.
How to run it
- Organize participants into pairs or small groups (3-5 ppl).
- Share the Contradiction Template as a hand out or invite participants to draw this chart on a piece of paper.
- Before beginning this activity, play the following clip from the movie Catch 22 as an introduction to contradictions.
- Begin by introducing the learning goals of this activity.
- & Shannon Wheatley Hartman Contradictions can be helpful.
- They can help us to see complexity and develop flexibility of thought.
- Most issues (and people) contain contradictions.
Run this exercise live
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What participants need now
Materials:
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Prompts to use +
Organize participants into pairs or small groups (3-5 ppl).
Share the Contradiction Template as a hand out or invite participants to draw this chart on a piece of paper.
Before beginning this activity, play the following clip from the movie Catch 22 as an introduction to contradictions.
Begin by introducing the learning goals of this activity.
Run this with your AI assistant +
Works with Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, or your own local model: paste this prompt and your AI will co-facilitate this exercise with you.
Adapt this exercise for my exact room. Exercise: 2 Embracing Contradictions. Readiness: Publishable Draft. Core moves: Organize participants into pairs or small groups (3-5 ppl).; Share the Contradiction Template as a hand out or invite participants to draw this chart on a piece of paper.; Before beginning this activity, play the following clip from the movie Catch 22 as an introduction to contradictions.; Begin by introducing the learning goals of this activity.. Return a concise facilitator script with timing, wording, safety notes, and remote/in-person adjustments.
Origin unverified
- Where we observed it: The strongest current observations come from Collaborative Discussion Project; aggregators are listed as additional observations, not origin proof. (1 source observed, including Collaborative Discussion Project.)
- What that means: we track where an exercise has been observed in public sources. We do not claim to know who created it, or how popular it is.
- No efficacy claims: appearing in this library is not a claim that the exercise is proven effective. Facilitator judgment and context decide whether it works for a given room.
- Corrections: if you have evidence of an earlier or more accurate source, read our methodology and trust boundary and tell us.