Two Truths and a Lie

Choose this exercise

Purpose: Exchange low-stakes personal facts to help participants learn basic background details about peers.

Use it when: Use during onboarding, early team formation, or at the start of a multi-day workshop to practice listening and introduce colleagues.

Skip it when: Skip when group members already work together closely or when participants strongly prefer not to share personal background.

Group arrangement: Individual drafting, then parallel subgroups of 3 to 5 people.

Timing: 15 minutes suggested by UWT to fit up to 24 participants across parallel small groups.

Materials and tools

• One index card or scrap sheet of paper per participant
• One pen or pencil per participant
• One countdown timer visible to the facilitator
• One chime or bell for timing signals
• Digital chat or shared meeting room for remote delivery
• Dedicated table microphones (hybrid setup only if remote and in-person mingle at shared tables)

Before participants arrive

1. Arrange chairs into clusters of 3 to 5 people.
2. Place index cards and pens at each seat.
3. Write the example prompt on a flipchart or slide: '1. I played clarinet in middle school. 2. I have visited Japan twice. 3. I have run an official half-marathon.'

Say this to open

Take an index card and write down three statements about yourself. Two must be true, and one must be a believable lie. Keep them professional and appropriate for work. We will break into small tables where everyone guesses the lie.

How to run it

1. Draft three statements 3 minutes

   Participants work independently to write down two facts and one plausible false statement about their hobbies, travel, or work history. Remind everyone that lies should sound plausible rather than absurd. Neutral example: 1. I played clarinet in middle school. 2. I have visited Japan twice. 3. I have run an official half-marathon.

2. Read statements and deliberate 4 minutes

   Form groups of 3 to 5 people. Select the first speaker. The speaker reads all three statements aloud once in any order without indicating which is false. Group members ask up to two brief clarifying questions about the statements.

3. Vote and reveal 5 minutes

   On a count of three, listeners hold up 1, 2, or 3 fingers to vote for the statement they think is false. The speaker announces the lie and shares a one-sentence backstory about one of the true facts. Rotate clockwise until everyone in the small group has presented or the timer sounds.

4. Regroup and debrief 3 minutes

   Bring the full room back together. Invite two or three volunteers to share a surprising fact they learned about a teammate.

Debrief questions

• Which statements were the hardest to identify as lies, and why?
• What is one unexpected fact you learned about someone at your table?
• How did specific details change whether a statement felt believable?

Finished output: Each participant produces a card with three statements and reveals one personal fact to their subgroup.

Remote

Split the meeting into breakout rooms of 3 to 5 people. Each speaker pastes their three numbered statements into the breakout chat or reads them on camera. Listeners type their vote (1, 2, or 3) into the chat on the count of three before the speaker reveals the answer.

Hybrid

Keep remote attendees in their own dedicated breakout rooms with virtual chat. In-person tables use verbal turns and finger voting. Do not mix remote and in-person participants within the same small circle unless each cluster has dedicated table microphones.

Access and participation choices

• Participants may focus entirely on professional skills or simple daily habits rather than personal life.
• Anyone may choose to act as timekeeper or voter for their subgroup without presenting their own card.

If the session gets stuck

A participant cannot think of three statements on the spot.

Provide prompt categories such as favorite foods, past commute habits, or first jobs to spark simple ideas.

One person takes too long explaining the story behind their truth.

Enforce a strict 60-second limit per presenter and ring a chime when it is time to move to the next person.

Terms used here

• Adjacent lie: A false statement created by slightly tweaking the details of a true experience to make it plausible.