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: 66a092e8efa80173edf1544911b04c96a0e71ae0d99b4193e74e0d10bf70cc00

# Restart Your Morning

Participants pair up with a warm beverage and share a brief personal story using a focused positive prompt.

**Time:** 8 minutes. Adapted from the source note of under 5 minutes to allow for beverage collection, two-way partner sharing, and brief closure.
**People:** 4 to 24. Pairs (or one trio if an odd number of people participate)

## Choose this exercise

**Purpose:** Shift conversational focus away from routine logistics or stress complaints into a specific, positive exchange.
**Use it when:** Use at the start of an early morning workshop or retreat session where people arrived feeling rushed, tired, or guarded.
**Skip it when:** Skip if the room is mid-task or if providing warm drinks and conversation space creates a logistical disruption.

## Materials and tools

- Warm beverages (tea, coffee, or hot water) and mugs or cups
- Visual display or index card showing the two prompt options

## Before participants arrive

1. Prepare the beverage station before the session begins.
2. Display the prompt options where all participants can read them.

## Say this to open

Good morning. Often when we gather early, our initial chatter sticks to traffic, the weather, or how overloaded our calendars are. We are going to reset our start. Grab a warm drink if you like, pair up with someone, and share a quick story using one of two prompts.

## How to run it

### 1. Introduce prompts and form pairs (2 minutes)

Read the opening script. Point to the two prompt options: Prompt A (Pair with someone you know well: Share the best thing that happened to you in the past year) or Prompt B (Pair with someone you do not know well: Share the story of the best cup of coffee or tea you ever had). Instruct participants to select a beverage if desired and find a partner.

### 2. Partner storytelling turn one (2 minutes)

Signal the start. Partner 1 speaks while Partner 2 listens without interrupting. If a group has three people, divide time so each speaker receives roughly 75 seconds.

### 3. Partner storytelling turn two (2 minutes)

Call time and ring a chime or give a clear spoken prompt. Partners swap roles. Partner 2 speaks while Partner 1 listens.

### 4. Reconvene and transition (2 minutes)

Bring attention back to the full room. Ask two volunteers to share an interesting detail they heard with their partner's permission. Transition directly into the agenda.


## Debrief questions

- What difference did you notice between this conversation and routine hallway chatter?
- How did listening to a specific positive story affect your focus for the session?

**Finished output:** Pairs complete two mutual storytelling turns before entering core agenda work.

## Remote

Ask participants to bring a mug of tea, coffee, or warm water to their desk. Form breakout rooms of two people. Broadcast a 2-minute reminder to switch speakers, then bring everyone back to the main room after 4 minutes.

## Hybrid

In-person attendees pair with each other in the room. Remote attendees pair in one-on-one virtual breakout rooms. Both groups receive the same prompt text via chat and on-screen slides.

## Access and participation choices

- Beverages are completely optional; participants can hold an empty mug, a cold drink, or nothing at all.
- Participants may pass on personal disclosures by choosing Prompt B and talking strictly about a beverage or a café visit.
- Participants who prefer not to speak in pairs may write a 2-minute journal entry on one of the prompts.

## If the session gets stuck

**One partner dominates the entire sharing time.**

Use a visible timer or ring a chime at the two-minute mark and explicitly direct partners to switch who is speaking.

**An odd number of participants leaves one person without a partner.**

Form one trio and give them a 3-minute check-in so each person gets one minute to speak.


## Participant material: Morning Reset Prompts

Choose one prompt with your partner:

Option A (If pairing with someone you know well):
Share a story about the best thing that has happened to you in the past year.

Option B (If pairing with someone you do not know well):
Share the story of the best cup of coffee or tea you have ever had.

## Sources and adaptation

Observed in Relationship Makers Handbook, pages 343-344.

The original source text from Relationship Makers Handbook featured a greeting exercise referencing temperature, neurochemistry claims (cortisol and oxytocin), and an optional handshake. UWT removed the speculative neurochemistry lecturing and physical touch elements. We retained the warm drink framing, the paired story mechanic, and the two prompt options, structuring them into a standard 8-minute run sheet with equitable timing.

Current run sheet: https://unitedwetransform.com/exercises/restart-your-morning/