Strengths Game

Choose this exercise

Purpose: Identify individual workplace strengths and self-selected growth areas using structured card sorting and peer discussion.

Use it when: Use during team formation, role transitions, or personal development planning when teammates need concrete vocabulary to discuss work styles.

Skip it when: Skip when team trust is low, during active interpersonal conflict, or when participants fear naming a growth area could harm their standing.

Group arrangement: Tables of 3 to 5 participants working in parallel

Timing: Adapted from the 60-minute source to a focused 45-minute workshop session for up to 16 participants in parallel tables.

Materials and tools

• One 40-card Strength and Trait Deck per table of 3 to 5 people
• One discard tray or paper plate per table
• Notepads and pens for each participant
• Timer for facilitator
• Online whiteboard platform with private participant frames and digital cards (for remote or hybrid sessions)

Before participants arrive

1. Print and cut one Strength and Trait Deck for every table of 3 to 5 people.
2. Shuffle each deck and place it face down in the center of each table with an empty discard tray.
3. Provide each seat with a pen and notepad.

Say this to open

Welcome. In this exercise, we will sort trait cards to map out how we each prefer to work. You will hold a hand of cards, draw new ones, and set aside traits that fit you least. On your first turn, you may swap up to two cards if your initial hand feels completely off. You stay in control of what you keep and what you share. Let us begin by dealing five cards to each person face down.

How to run it

1. Deal and Review Hands 5 minutes

   Deal 5 cards face down to each person. Participants review their cards privately. Explain the sequence: on your turn, you draw 1 card, evaluate your 6 cards, and discard 1 card face down into the tray. Note the first-turn exception: on your very first turn only, you may swap up to 2 cards directly with the draw deck before making your normal draw and discard.

2. Draw and Discard Rounds 12 minutes

   Take turns clockwise around each table. On each turn, draw 1 card, review your 6 cards, and place 1 card face down into the discard tray. Continue until every participant completes 3 turns. For tables of 5, the draw deck will empty exactly at the final turn. At the end of round 3, every participant holds exactly 5 cards.

3. Select Core Strengths and Growth Trait 8 minutes

   Participants pick 2 cards from their 5-card hand that best reflect their core strengths and write them on their notepad. Next, spread all cards from the discard tray face up in the center of the table. Each person chooses 1 card representing an area for personal growth, or writes their own custom trait on their notepad.

4. Small Group Reflection 12 minutes

   Form pairs at each table; form one triad if the table has 3 or 5 people. For pairs, each person takes up to 4 minutes to share their 2 strengths and 1 growth card with workplace examples, totaling 8 minutes. For triads, give 4 minutes per speaker, calling time cues at 4 and 8 minutes, totaling 12 minutes. Notes remain private unless shared voluntarily.

5. Debrief and Application 8 minutes

   Bring the full room together. Facilitate a brief group discussion using the debrief questions. Invite 3 to 4 volunteers across different tables to share reflections on complementary traits, surprises, or workplace team patterns. Conclude at the 8-minute mark.

Debrief questions

• What made it easy or hard to choose which traits to discard during the draw rounds?
• Looking at the strengths across your table, where do your natural ways of working complement one another?
• How can teammates actively support each other on the growth traits that surfaced today?

Finished output: Each participant records their two top self-selected workplace strengths and one chosen area for growth on personal notes, with optional team visibility.

Remote

Pre-load the 40 trait terms as digital cards onto an online whiteboard before the session. Build private frames for each participant and a central draw pile of face-down cards. Participants pull cards to their area, move unwanted cards to a central discard zone, and reveal their selected 2 strengths and 1 growth card during breakout pairings.

Hybrid

Remote participants join a dedicated video breakout using the digital whiteboard, while in-person participants work at physical tables. In Step 4, in-person participants pair with table neighbors (or form one triad if the table count is 3 or 5), and remote participants pair in 2-person video breakout rooms (or a triad if there is an odd count). Reconnect the full group on the main room audio channel for the final 8-minute debrief, inviting balanced shares from both rooms.

Access and participation choices

• Participants may select cards quietly and pass during partner sharing without explanation.
• Large-print card decks or digital text lists can replace standard physical cards for visual accessibility.
• Participants may write custom traits on blank cards if the supplied cards do not reflect their cultural background or role.

If the session gets stuck

A participant dislikes all 5 cards dealt to them at the start.

Remind them to use the first-turn rule allowing them to exchange up to two cards directly with the deck.

Someone feels uncomfortable identifying or sharing a personal weakness.

Clarify that the growth card is strictly a self-chosen development goal, not an evaluation. Participants may also keep it private and share only their strengths.

Terms used here

• Draw Deck: The face-down deck of trait cards placed in the center of each table.
• Discard Tray: The central tray or pile where players place trait cards they decide not to keep.
• First-Turn Swap: A rule permitting a player to swap up to two cards from their opening hand with the draw deck on their first turn before standard actions.