SECRET COACHES
SECRET COACHES is a relationship mapping exercise that helps participants build useful connections and understand how people, roles, or ideas relate.
How to run it
- Search thiagi.com Freebies Training Games SECRET COACHES SECRET COACHES Copyright © 1997, Sivasailam Thiagarajan.
- Here's a neat activity to ensure that everyone shares the responsibility for maintenance functions during a team meeting.
- When participants arrive, they write their names on individual index cards.
- At the start of the meeting, someone collects these cards, turns them upside down, shuffles them, and passes them around.
- For example, if your protégé, John, is withdrawn, you may encourage him by saying, "What do you think of Mary's idea, John?" On the other hand, if John dominates the discussion, you may ask Mary, "What do you think of John's idea, Mary?" Set aside 5 minutes at the end of the meeting.
- Ask participants to identify their secret coaches.
- For example, if your protégé, John, is withdrawn, you may encourage him by saying, "What do you think of Mary's idea, John?" On the other hand, if John dominates the discussion, you may ask Mary, "W
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Prompts to use +
Here's a neat activity to ensure that everyone shares the responsibility for maintenance functions during a team meeting.
When participants arrive, they write their names on individual index cards.
At the start of the meeting, someone collects these cards, turns them upside down, shuffles them, and passes them around.
For example, if your protégé, John, is withdrawn, you may encourage him by saying, "What do you think of Mary's idea, John?" On the other hand, if John dominates the discussion, you may ask Mary, "What do you think of John's idea, Mary?" Set aside 5 minutes at the end of the meeting.
Ask participants to identify their secret coaches.
For example, if your protégé, John, is withdrawn, you may encourage him by saying, "What do you think of Mary's idea, John?" On the other hand, if John dominates the discussion, you may ask Mary, "W
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: SECRET COACHES. Readiness: Publishable Draft. Core moves: Here's a neat activity to ensure that everyone shares the responsibility for maintenance functions during a team meeting.; When participants arrive, they write their names on individual index cards.; At the start of the meeting, someone collects these cards, turns them upside down, shuffles them, and passes them around.; For example, if your protégé, John, is withdrawn, you may encourage him by saying, "What do you think of Mary's idea, John?" On the other hand, if John dominates the discussion, you may ask Mary, "What do you think of John's idea, Mary?" Set aside 5 minutes at the end of the meeting.. 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 The Thiagi Group; aggregators are listed as additional observations, not origin proof. (1 source observed, including The Thiagi Group.)
- 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.