Works with Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, or your own local model: paste this prompt and your AI will co-facilitate this exercise with you.

Help me prepare and run the exercise below. First ask for my participant count, time, setting, access needs and intended result. Check these against the stated limits. Use the supplied rules and materials. Explain any proposed changes before using them, and label them as adaptations. Do not invent source claims or require personal disclosure. Give me one step at a time when I say start. I manage the people, physical activity and clock; do not claim to observe the room. Ask me what happened before choosing a next step.

Reference revision: 3ad364f0d3b6ad4697846b24c1a782fe41b0d80105529d28417b029717ad45c1

# Collaborative Data Portrait

Participants encode their habits, preferences, and background into abstract geometric symbols using a shared visual key. They assemble their completed cards into a collective grid to analyze group patterns.

**Time:** 35 minutes. Source recommends 30 to 45 minutes. 35 minutes provides balanced drawing, small-group analysis, and whole-group synthesis.
**People:** 4 to 24. Individual drawing, then small groups of 3 to 4, concluding in a full-room gallery observation

## Choose this exercise

**Purpose:** Map individual diversity and shared tendencies visually across a group without requiring spoken self-disclosure.
**Use it when:** Use during team launches, cohort orientations, or cross-functional kickoffs to reveal group composition and working styles.
**Skip it when:** Skip when participants cannot comfortably share basic preference data, or when the team urgently needs to resolve an active dispute.

## Materials and tools

- One printed Data Portrait Worksheet per person
- One printed Visual Code Key per person or large central projection
- Colored markers or pencils at every table (at least blue, green, yellow, red, and black)
- Low-tack wall tape or push pins for assembling the wall display
- Timer

## Before participants arrive

1. Print one Data Portrait Worksheet and one Visual Code Key per person.
2. Distribute colored markers evenly across all tables.
3. Clear a central wall, whiteboard, or cork board where all cards can hang side by side in a grid.

## Say this to open

Today we will create a collaborative portrait of our group using visual data rather than facial drawings. Each person receives a structured worksheet and a shared visual code key. On your card, you will draw simple geometric shapes and colors that represent your habits, background, and preferences. For example, if you prefer working in teams, you will draw a solid blue circle in the center circle. Drawing skill does not matter. You may omit any category you prefer not to share.

## How to run it

### 1. Explain visual code and distribute sheets (5 minutes)

Distribute the worksheets and code keys. Say the opening script. Demonstrate one neutral example on a flipchart: show how choosing 'balanced teamwork and independent work' places an empty yellow circle in the Center Base region. Emphasize that anyone may leave sections blank or skip questions without explanation.

### 2. Draw individual data portraits (10 minutes)

Participants work independently and silently. They read each item on the key and draw the designated shape, line, or color into the labeled section of their worksheet. Walk the room to clarify symbols. Give a two-minute warning before time expires.

### 3. Compare in small groups (8 minutes)

Group participants into clusters of 3 or 4. If numbers do not divide evenly (such as 13 or 14), form groups of 3 and 4, or a group of 5 if needed, so no one works alone. Have them compare cards side by side. Ask them to find two common patterns and two clear contrasts across their drawings without judging differences.

### 4. Mount collective grid (5 minutes)

Call time. Have one person from each table collect their table's completed sheets, walk to the display board, and tape them edge to edge in rows to form a single large grid. Mounting by table runner keeps movement brisk and prevents bottlenecks. Everyone stands back to view the whole mosaic.

### 5. Debrief group patterns (7 minutes)

Facilitate a short gallery debrief while everyone faces the combined mosaic. Take two to three voluntary comments per question. Conclude on time.


## Debrief questions

- Looking across the whole wall, which shapes or colors appear most frequently?
- Where do you see the widest variety across our group?
- How does seeing our group encoded as visual data change your perception of our collective habits?

**Finished output:** A composite gallery wall of standardized data glyph cards showing the group's collective traits and diversity.

## Remote

Set up a shared digital canvas (such as Miro or Mural) with identical blank card frames and a shape bank. Participants duplicate shapes and adjust color fills inside their personal frame during the drawing step. For small-group comparison, send participants to breakout rooms of 3 or 4 for 8 minutes. Return to the main canvas and zoom out to view the full card grid for debrief.

## Hybrid

Provide remote participants with a digital board frame. Have in-person participants draw on paper cards, then take a quick smartphone photo and upload it to the digital board before mounting the paper card on the room wall. Share the digital board screen on the room display so both remote and in-room participants view the exact same unified mosaic.

## Access and participation choices

- Participants may skip any data question or leave any box blank without explanation.
- For participants with color-vision differences, write the color name inside or next to each drawn shape on the card.

## If the session gets stuck

**A participant worries about lack of artistic skill.**

Clarify that this exercise uses basic diagramming shapes such as circles, straight lines, and dots. Technical drawing skill is not evaluated.

**Mounting cards at the wall causes a crowd bottleneck.**

Appoint one representative per table to carry and mount all cards for their table in one quick pass.


## Terms used here

- Data Portrait: An abstract visual representation of an individual made by encoding personal attributes into standardized geometric shapes and colors.
- Visual Code Key: A reference chart mapping personal habits and background answers directly to specific symbols, line styles, and colors.

## Participant material: Data Portrait Worksheet

COLLABORATIVE DATA PORTRAIT WORKSHEET

Instructions: Draw your coded symbols inside each designated area below. Refer to the Visual Code Key for shapes and colors. You may leave any section blank if you prefer not to share.

+--------------------------------------------------------------+
| TOP LEFT: Learning Style                                     |
| [ Draw lines here: fanned lines, double curve, or zigzag ]   |
|                                                              |
|                                  TOP RIGHT: Time Management  |
|                                  [ Draw arc, parallel lines, |
|                                    or dashed line here ]     |
|                                                              |
|                      CENTER: Work Style                      |
|                      (   Large Circle Zone   )               |
|                      [ Draw blue, yellow, or                 |
|                        red circle here ]                     |
|                                                              |
| BORDER / SURROUNDING: Commute Mode                           |
| [ Place 3 colored dots in empty margin space around center ] |
|                                                              |
| BOTTOM BASE: Communication Style                             |
| [ Draw horizontal base line: dashed, wavy, or solid straight]|
+--------------------------------------------------------------+

## Participant material: Visual Code Key

VISUAL CODE KEY

Match your answers to the corresponding symbols and draw them on your worksheet:

1. CENTER ZONE: Work Style Preference
- Prefer teamwork: Solid blue circle
- Balanced teamwork and independent work: Empty yellow circle with outline
- Prefer independent work: Red circle with an inner dot

2. BOTTOM BASE: Communication Style
- Direct dialogue and discussion: Blue dashed horizontal line
- Reflective, written-first: Green wavy horizontal line
- Action-focused, concise: Black straight horizontal line

3. TOP LEFT: Preferred Learning Style
- Visual and written: Three fanned diagonal lines
- Listening and debating: Double curved line
- Hands-on practice: Ascending zigzag line

4. BORDER MARGIN: Commute / Mobility Mode
- Walk or bicycle regularly: 3 green dots
- Public transit: 3 blue dots
- Personal vehicle / drive: 3 red dots

5. TOP RIGHT: Time Management
- Plan in advance: Three ascending parallel lines
- Adapt spontaneously as needed: Green curved arc
- Work best near deadlines: Descending dashed line

Optional Participation: You may leave any category unrepresented if you choose not to disclose that information.

## Sources and adaptation

Observed in the Participatory Methods online library (2025). Original individual authorship is not established in the supplied evidence.

Retained the defining mechanic of encoding personal habits into standardized geometric glyphs from the Participatory Methods archive. Added a concrete printable card template with designated zones, refined group handling for odd numbers, streamlined the mounting phase using table runners to avoid crowd congestion, and structured the session to 35 minutes.

[Participatory Methods](https://participatorymethods.com/activities/collaborative-data-portrait/)

Current run sheet: https://unitedwetransform.com/exercises/collaborative-data-portrait/