# Common Ground Challenge

Small groups converse to discover five non-obvious shared traits, habits, or experiences. Each team records their list and shares one unique finding with the room.

**Time:** 10 minutes. Matches the 10-minute source duration.
**People:** 6 to 24. Small groups of 3 to 4 participants

## Choose this exercise

**Purpose:** Identify five specific, non-obvious commonalities shared across all members of a subgroup.
**Use it when:** Use at the start of a session or workshop where small teams need to start talking comfortably without discussing work tasks.
**Skip it when:** Skip when team members already know one another very well or when the group has fewer than six participants.

## Materials and tools

- One sheet of scratch paper and pen per small group in person, or one shared digital note document per breakout room.

## Before participants arrive

1. Arrange seating into clusters of 3 or 4.
2. Prepare writing materials or distribute a shared document link for note-taking.

## Say this to open

In your groups, work together to discover exactly five things that every single person in your group shares in common. Steer clear of obvious facts like working for the same company, living in this city, or having human hands. Go for non-obvious habits, travel, or odd experiences. Write down your five commonalities once you agree on them.

## How to run it

### 1. Form groups and explain rules (2 minutes)

Direct participants into groups of 3 or 4. Deliver the opening script. State the ground rules: exclude obvious traits such as employer, clothing colors, or presence in the room. Provide one neutral example: 'Every person here has broken a bone' or 'Every person here prefers tea over coffee.'

### 2. Interview and identify commonalities (5 minutes)

Groups talk in parallel. Each member suggests traits, habits, tastes, or past experiences. When a statement applies to every group member, a volunteer records it on their scratch paper or shared document. The round ends when groups hit five items or time expires.

### 3. Share highlights with the full room (2 minutes)

Call attention back to the room. Ask each small group to share exactly one of their most surprising commonalities aloud. Limit shares to 20 seconds per group so all groups present within the time limit.

### 4. Debrief and transition (1 minutes)

Ask one debrief question to the room. Invite two quick volunteer responses, then transition to the main agenda.


## Debrief questions

- Which inquiry or topic surfaced common ground most quickly?
- Did your group uncover any unexpected differences while searching for commonalities?

**Finished output:** A written list of five non-obvious shared commonalities per subgroup, with one shared aloud to the room.

## Remote

Create breakout rooms with 3 to 4 participants. Post the challenge instructions in the main room and broadcast them to breakouts. Have one person in each room record the five items in the shared meeting chat or an online document. Return to the main room and have a designated spokesperson paste their favorite item into the main chat or read it aloud.

## Hybrid

Form distinct remote breakout rooms and distinct in-person clusters to avoid audio feedback. Ensure each group records their items digitally so both in-person and remote participants can view the list. During the final sharing step, alternate between an in-person cluster and a remote room.

## Access and participation choices

- Participants may decline to answer personal prompts and suggest alternative topics such as everyday routines, favorite foods, or media.
- Participants may act as the group scribe instead of offering personal facts.

## If the session gets stuck

**A group gets stuck using obvious facts like 'we all wear shoes' or 'we are in this meeting.'**

Remind the group that facts must be non-obvious personal experiences, skills, or preferences. Suggest testing categories like childhood pets, music tastes, or cooking.

**One participant dominates the conversation with narrow topics.**

Intervene gently and suggest taking turns around the circle, letting each person name one candidate category at a time.


## Terms used here

- Non-obvious commonality: A shared trait, habit, or life experience that cannot be confirmed simply by looking at someone or knowing their job title.

## Sources and adaptation

Observed on Icebreaker-Games.org under the title Common Ground Challenge.

Retained the core mechanic from Icebreaker-Games.org of small groups racing to find five uncommon things in common within 10 minutes. UWT added explicit group size constraints (trios and quads to keep discovery achievable within 5 minutes), clear turn rules, neutral examples, access options, and a structured debrief.

[Icebreaker-Games.org](https://icebreaker-games.org/common-ground-challenge)

Current run sheet: https://unitedwetransform.com/exercises/common-ground-challenge-team-bonding-game-2026/