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: dbef13f31ee1e39187f5901b816a9a8030c6ff5c7bc28d3e67288711807157f6

# Start With Why Workshop

Participants reflect on personal motivations using Simon Sinek's Golden Circle framework, share drivers in small groups, and write a collective team purpose manifesto.

**Time:** 90 minutes. 90 minutes matches the WorkshopBank source listing.
**People:** 4 to 20. Solo reflection, pairs or trios, then subgroups of 4 to 5 merging into a whole-room synthesis

## Choose this exercise

**Purpose:** Draft individual and collective purpose statements that connect personal motivations to everyday team decisions.
**Use it when:** Use during team launches, annual planning retreats, or strategy kickoffs when a group needs to clarify shared intent and ground upcoming priorities in clear rationale.
**Skip it when:** Skip when the team faces an immediate tactical crisis requiring operational triage, or where management has already mandated rigid top-down objectives without room for group synthesis.

## Materials and tools

- 1 Golden Circle worksheet per participant
- 1 pad of sticky notes per participant
- 1 fine-point marker per participant
- 3 to 5 flipchart paper pads and stands
- 1 roll of wall-safe masking tape

## Before participants arrive

1. Draw the Golden Circle model (three concentric circles labeled Why at center, How in middle, What on outer ring) on a front whiteboard or flipchart.
2. Distribute one worksheet, a pen, and a pad of sticky notes to each chair.
3. Set up breakout tables or wall spaces for subgroups of 4 to 5 people.

## Say this to open

Welcome. Today we examine what drives our work using Simon Sinek's Golden Circle model: Why, How, and What. Most groups describe what they do first, but clear teams know their core reason before selecting actions. Over the next 90 minutes, you will write a personal purpose statement, exchange your perspectives in small groups, and combine those insights into a single team manifesto. You will decide how much personal detail you share.

## How to run it

### 1. Introduce the Golden Circle (15 minutes)

Explain the Golden Circle on the front chart: What is the service, How is the method, and Why is the core purpose. Example: What: We track safety data. How: By auditing incident reports closely. Why: So workers return home safe. Have attendees spend 5 minutes noting an inspiring organization and what makes its purpose clear. Ask 2 or 3 volunteers to read one example aloud.

### 2. Draft Personal Why Statements (25 minutes)

Direct participants to complete section 1 of the Golden Circle Worksheet for 10 minutes. Prompt them to describe a fulfilling workplace moment, their exact contribution, and who benefited. For the next 15 minutes, instruct each person to draft a statement using the format: 'To [contribution] so that [impact].' People may focus purely on technical tasks rather than personal stories.

### 3. Build Team Manifestos in Subgroups (30 minutes)

Split into groups of 4 or 5. Spare participants make groups of 3. Give 15 minutes for each person to read their statement or identify shared themes in 3-minute turns without debate. For the remaining 15 minutes, each subgroup groups sticky notes by theme on flipchart paper. Each group writes one draft statement: 'As a team, we [core contribution] so that [broader impact].'

### 4. Synthesize a Unified Manifesto and Close (20 minutes)

Post all subgroup charts at the front. Allow 5 minutes of silent review. Lead a 10-minute synthesis: group common phrases on one master poster until the room agrees on a single Team Why sentence. In the last 5 minutes, ask each person to write one immediate operational task on a sticky note that supports this purpose over the coming month.


## Debrief questions

- Which words in our final team statement feel most concrete for everyday decision-making?
- How can this agreed purpose help resolve disagreements about competing operational priorities?

**Finished output:** A posted, agreed-upon single-sentence team manifesto statement accompanied by personal action commitments.

## Remote

Run via video conference using a shared digital whiteboard. In step 1, screen-share the Golden Circle diagram. In step 2, participants complete digital sticky notes individually while muted. In step 3, send participants to breakout rooms of 4 to 5 with designated whiteboard frames to draft their group manifesto. In step 4, bring all attendees back to the main room, display all drafts side-by-side, and use digital dot voting to highlight shared terms before writing the final text.

## Hybrid

In-person groups post physical flipcharts; remote members submit drafts directly to a shared virtual board mirrored on the room screen. Pair remote participants with an in-person room ambassador who reads remote stickies aloud during whole-room synthesis so both groups share visibility equally.

## Access and participation choices

- Participants may focus their reflection on external customer service or team operations instead of personal life stories.
- Individuals may choose to contribute written notes to the subgroup chart rather than speak aloud during group readouts.
- Provide high-contrast digital copies of worksheets prior to the session for screen-reader access.

## If the session gets stuck

**Participants write generic marketing slogans or corporate jargon like 'deliver world-class excellence' rather than actionable motives.**

Prompt them to replace buzzwords with concrete verbs: ask 'Who specifically benefits, and what observable change happens for them when your work succeeds?'

**One dominant participant dictates the wording of the subgroup manifesto.**

Intervene and enforce a silent affinity clustering round: have everyone write their ideas on sticky notes first, post them, and group common ideas before drafting sentences.


## Terms used here

- Golden Circle: A framework structuring motivation into three layers: Why (core purpose), How (process or values), and What (products or tactical actions).
- Team Manifesto: A brief written declaration stating a group's collective purpose and intended impact.

## Participant material: Golden Circle Worksheet

START WITH WHY WORKSHEET

Part 1: Personal Reflection
1. Reflect on a specific peak experience at work when you felt satisfied and energized by your contribution.
Notes:

2. What specific action were you taking? (The Contribution)
Notes:

3. Who benefited, and what changed for them? (The Impact)
Notes:

Part 2: Personal Why Draft
Complete the prompt below:
'To [insert your specific contribution] so that [insert the tangible impact on others].'

Part 3: Team Alignment
When listening to peers, list 2 to 3 common themes or values that appear across their statements:
Theme A:
Theme B:
Theme C:

## Sources and adaptation

Observed in WorkshopBank, which attributes the underlying concept to Simon Sinek's book 'Start With Why'.

Retained the core 90-minute structure, 4-20 participant target, and 4-step sequence (Golden Circle concept, Personal Why reflection, Team Why breakout manifestos, and whole-room synthesis close) from WorkshopBank's outline based on Simon Sinek's Golden Circle. UWT added explicit time partitions, facilitation scripts, specific group size mechanics, debrief questions, access choices, and printable worksheet templates.

[WorkshopBank](https://workshopbank.com/workshops/start-with-why-workshop)

Current run sheet: https://unitedwetransform.com/exercises/start-with-why-workshop-workshop-workshopbank/