Who I Am by Lineage

Choose this exercise

Purpose: Share personal ancestry or intellectual influences using a structured lineage sentence.

Use it when: Use at community retreats, reflection sessions, or early team meetings where members want to share background influences beyond current job titles.

Skip it when: Skip when members prefer strict professional boundaries or where family background might trigger distress, estrangement, or unwanted personal exposure.

Group arrangement: Whole group circle for up to 12 people, or subgroups of 4 to 6 people for larger rooms

Timing: UWT planned duration based on the Teampedia entry time band of 5 to 15 minutes

Materials and tools

• Optional scratch paper and pens for participants who want to write names down first
• Timer for facilitator

Before participants arrive

1. Arrange chairs in a circle without tables, or organize small breakout pods of 4 to 6 chairs if the group exceeds 12 people.

Say this to open

We will introduce ourselves through lineage. You can trace your maternal line, your paternal line, or an intellectual lineage of mentors and teachers who shaped you. You go back as many generations or mentors as you wish, and conclude with the phrase 'and others.' You may also pass or share only your own name.

How to run it

1. Introduce the format and options 2 minutes

   Explain the three lineage options: matrilineal ancestry, patrilineal ancestry, or mentor and life influencers. Provide the spoken pattern clearly: 'I am [Name], child/student of [Name], who was child/student of [Name], of others.' Remind everyone that sharing is optional.

2. Silent recall and note-taking 3 minutes

   Give participants quiet time to recall names and decide which path to use. Allow individuals to jot names on scratch paper if helpful.

3. Share lineage statements 7 minutes

   Go around the circle or have participants share in pods of 4 to 6. Each person speaks their lineage statement without cross-talk or commentary. If someone says 'pass,' move immediately to the next person with neutral acknowledgment.

4. Debrief 3 minutes

   Facilitate a short discussion using two selected questions. Take three or four volunteer comments from the room.

Debrief questions

• What did you notice about the different ways people chose to trace their background?
• How does hearing the names of mentors or ancestors change how you see the people in this room?

Finished output: Spoken round of introductions identifying participants' self-selected ancestral or mentor lineages.

Remote

Run in main room or video breakout rooms of 4 to 6. Post the sentence frame in the shared text chat. Call on participants one by one or let them pass in chat.

Hybrid

Seat in-person participants near a central microphone and camera. Alternately call on one room participant and one online participant so turn-taking remains balanced.

Access and participation choices

• Participants can choose biological family, adoptive family, or professional mentors, or simply say 'pass' without giving a reason.
• Participants may post their statement in text chat rather than speaking aloud.

If the session gets stuck

A participant cannot recall names beyond their parents or feels uncomfortable discussing biological family.

Remind the group that the mentor and influencer option is fully valid, or that naming just one person followed by 'and others' meets the exercise structure.

A participant begins telling extended stories about each ancestor, taking too much time.

Gently interrupt and ask them to finish the naming chain so everyone has equal time to share.

Terms used here

• Matrilineal: Tracing descent through the female line, such as mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother.