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Exercises/Divergent Ideation/Altitude
Relationship Mapping · Divergent Ideation

Altitude

Now tell people that whenever they notice the conversation going too high (abstract, vague, strategic) or too low (down in the weeds, tactical, operational) they can float their airplane and that will be a signal to the group.

5 to 15 minutesTIME
Medium group (9-25)GROUP SIZE
ActiveENERGY
In person, RemoteSETTING
High cognitive loadCOGNITIVE LOAD
Strengthens Participation Architecture This divergent ideation exercise strengthens Participation Architecture, one of the eight Gathering Effectiveness pillars.

How to run it

  1. . Create a chart like the one shown below.
  2. . When you have reached some consensus on the right altitude level, put a mark on the page to represent the “right” altitude.
  3. . Now tell people that whenever they notice the conversation going too high (abstract, vague, strategic) or too low (down in the weeds, tactical, operational) they can float their airplane and that will be a signal to the group.
  4. The Altitude game was created by Dave Gray
  5. When you have reached some consensus on the right altitude level, put a mark on the page to represent the “right” altitude.
  6. Now tell people that whenever they notice the conversation going too high (abstract, vague, strategic) or too low (down in the weeds, tactical, operational) they can float their airplane and that will be a signal to the group.
Live facilitator

Run this exercise live

The facilitator console stays in this browser. Its QR handoff is a short-lived participant snapshot containing only public exercise instructions, phase, prompt, and timer state.

Prompts to use +

. Create a chart like the one shown below.

. When you have reached some consensus on the right altitude level, put a mark on the page to represent the “right” altitude.

. Now tell people that whenever they notice the conversation going too high (abstract, vague, strategic) or too low (down in the weeds, tactical, operational) they can float their airplane and that will be a signal to the group.

When you have reached some consensus on the right altitude level, put a mark on the page to represent the “right” altitude.

Now tell people that whenever they notice the conversation going too high (abstract, vague, strategic) or too low (down in the weeds, tactical, operational) they can float their airplane and that will be a signal to the group.

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: Altitude. Readiness: Publishable Draft. Core moves: . Create a chart like the one shown below.; . When you have reached some consensus on the right altitude level, put a mark on the page to represent the “right” altitude.; . Now tell people that whenever they notice the conversation going too high (abstract, vague, strategic) or too low (down in the weeds, tactical, operational) they can float their airplane and that will be a signal to the group.; When you have reached some consensus on the right altitude level, put a mark on the page to represent the “right” altitude.. 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 Gamestorming; aggregators are listed as additional observations, not origin proof. (1 source observed, including Gamestorming.)
  • 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.

Pairs well with