Users Experience Fishbowl
Questions submitted to the inner circle are answered, and back-and-forth interaction between inner and outer circles goes on as needed until all the questions are answered.
How to run it
- Inner circle conversation goes on until it ends on its own. 10 to 25 min.
- Satellite groups in outer circle formulate observations and questions. 4 min.
- Questions submitted to the inner circle are answered, and back-and-forth interaction between inner and outer circles goes on as needed until all the questions are answered. 10 to 25 min.
- Debrief using W³ (What? So What? Now What?)
- Get down-to-earth field experience and all the questions and answers about new endeavors out on the table for everyone to understand at the same time
- Make space for every participant’s imagination and experience to show up
- Build skills in listening, storytelling, pattern-finding, questioning, and observing
- Debrief using W³ (What? So What? Now What?) and ask, “What seems possible now?” 10 to 15 min.
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.
What participants need now
Materials:
This is a participant-safe snapshot, not a response form. It sends nothing back to the facilitator.
Prompts to use +
Debrief using W³ (What? So What? Now What?)
Build skills in listening, storytelling, pattern-finding, questioning, and observing
Debrief using W³ (What? So What? Now What?) and ask, “What seems possible now?” 10 to 15 min.
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: Users Experience Fishbowl. Readiness: Publishable Draft. Core moves: Debrief using W³ (What? So What? Now What?); Build skills in listening, storytelling, pattern-finding, questioning, and observing; Debrief using W³ (What? So What? Now What?) and ask, “What seems possible now?” 10 to 15 min.. 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 Liberating Structures; aggregators are listed as additional observations, not origin proof. (1 source observed, including Liberating Structures.)
- 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.