Speed Boat

Choose this exercise

Purpose: Map and categorize perceived obstacles, friction points, or disliked features that slow progress toward a specific goal.

Use it when: Use during product reviews, retrospectives, or kickoff diagnostics when a team needs to uncover hidden friction points and blind spots.

Skip it when: Skip when the immediate need is solution generation, action planning, or when the team requires positive morale building rather than problem diagnosis.

Group arrangement: Individual note writing, followed by working groups of 3 to 6 participants per board. For totals that do not divide evenly into 4 to 6, form groups of 3 or 7, or assign an extra person as timekeeper or clustering support.

Timing: Matches the 30-minute duration recorded in Gamestorming source documentation.

Materials and tools

• 1 flipchart pad or large whiteboard per subgroup of 3 to 6 participants
• 1 pad of 3x3 inch sticky notes per participant
• 1 dark fine-tip felt pen per participant
• Dry-erase or flipchart markers for board setup

Before participants arrive

1. Before the session begins, divide the room into stations for subgroups of 3 to 6 people.
2. On each chart or board, draw a simple outline of a boat on water with lines extending downward to represent anchors.
3. Write the product, service, or goal name across the boat.
4. Write the central question above the boat (for example: What is standing in the way of progress toward this goal?).

Say this to open

Welcome. Today we will map what is holding our project back using the metaphor of a speedboat. The boat is our project aiming forward, and the anchors represent friction, bottlenecks, or features that slow it down. Your job right now is strictly descriptive: name the anchors. Write each obstacle on its own sticky note. Do not jump into fixing them yet; our goal today is to map what holds us back clearly.

How to run it

1. Introduce prompt and silent reflection 4 minutes

   Deliver the opening script. Point out the question written above the boat. Give participants 2 minutes of quiet individual reflection to consider current roadblocks, defects, or process friction.

2. Write anchors individually 6 minutes

   Participants write one clear obstacle per sticky note using their fine-tip felt pens. Participants may write multiple notes. For example, write 'deployment pipeline fails on staging builds' rather than 'slow releases'. Optionally, have them jot a rough estimate on the note for how much faster work would move without that anchor (such as plus 5 mph or plus 20 percent).

3. Post and cluster at subgroup boards 10 minutes

   Participants step up to their assigned board in subgroups of 3 to 6 people. Each person posts their notes along the anchor lines. Subgroups group similar notes together into thematic clusters. Each subgroup selects one volunteer to summarize their top two clusters to the whole room.

4. Review themes and debrief 10 minutes

   Hear two short sentences from each subgroup volunteer describing their top two clusters. The facilitator highlights common patterns across boards. Ask two debrief questions to the room, taking 3 or 4 brief observations total. Remind the group that solution design takes place in a separate dedicated session.

Debrief questions

• Which anchor cluster represents the heaviest drag across our boards right now?
• What surprises or unexpected patterns stand out among these obstacles?
• Which of these anchors are within our team's direct control to resolve?

Finished output: A categorized visual map of perceived obstacles and friction points grouped by theme, ready for later prioritization.

Remote

Use a shared digital whiteboard with pre-drawn boat and anchor templates. Assign breakout boards for groups of 3 to 6. Participants create virtual sticky notes individually, paste them along the anchor lines, cluster related items, and return to the main room for theme review.

Hybrid

All participants use a shared digital whiteboard for consistency, running on individual laptops. In-person participants work together at physical tables while viewing and placing digital cards on the shared board alongside remote participants. A shared room display shows the digital board for whole-room debriefing.

Access and participation choices

• Participants may pass without explanation or choose not to post sticky notes if they have no current obstacles to share.
• Participants may submit notes anonymously through the facilitator if preferred.

If the session gets stuck

Participants immediately propose fixes and debate how to solve the issues.

Gently interrupt and remind the group that problem-solving belongs in a subsequent session. Redirect their attention to describing the obstacle clearly.

Sticky notes contain vague generalities like 'bad communication'.

Ask the writer for a neutral concrete example, such as 'specifications change after sprint planning has closed'.

Terms used here

• Anchor: A metaphor for any impediment, delay, or disliked feature that slows forward movement toward a goal.