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Exercises/Divergent Ideation/Thirty Circles - Kickstarting Creativity
Circle Dialogue ยท Divergent Ideation

Thirty Circles - Kickstarting Creativity

Thirty Circles - Kickstarting Creativity is a circle dialogue exercise for divergent ideation: it helps participants open up more possible ideas before choosing a direction.

5 to 15 minutesTIME
Small group (4-8)GROUP SIZE
BalancedENERGY
In personSETTING
High cognitive loadCOGNITIVE LOAD
Strengthens Participation Architecture This divergent ideation exercise strengthens Participation Architecture, one of the eight Gathering Effectiveness pillars.

How to run it

  1. Give each participant one 30 Circles sheet of paper see example and something to draw with
  2. Ask them to turn as many of the blank circles as possible into recognizable objects in three minutes
  3. Ask how many people filled in ten, 15, 20, or
  4. Process Give each participant one 30 Circles sheet of paper see example and something to draw with..
Live facilitator

Run this exercise live

The facilitator console stays in this browser. Its QR handoff is a short-lived participant snapshot containing only public exercise instructions, phase, prompt, and timer state.

Prompts to use +

Give each participant one 30 Circles sheet of paper see example and something to draw with

Ask them to turn as many of the blank circles as possible into recognizable objects in three minutes

Ask how many people filled in ten, 15, 20, or

Process Give each participant one 30 Circles sheet of paper see example and something to draw with..

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: Thirty Circles - Kickstarting Creativity. Readiness: Publishable Draft. Core moves: Give each participant one 30 Circles sheet of paper see example and something to draw with; Ask them to turn as many of the blank circles as possible into recognizable objects in three minutes; Ask how many people filled in ten, 15, 20, or; Process Give each participant one 30 Circles sheet of paper see example and something to draw with... 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 Relationship Makers Handbook; aggregators are listed as additional observations, not origin proof. (1 source observed, including Relationship Makers Handbook.)
  • 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.

Pairs well with