This is an efficient, simple group exercise I’ve taken part in a few times to get further clarification on a project or to get feedback from your team (or from people who know nothing about your project).

Step One: Get everyone around the table.

Step Two: Give everyone 3 post-it Notes, 1 red, 1 yellow and 1 green.

Step Three: Taking turns, each person has to explain their project and its objectives (a problematic could come in here) or the bigger stakes of the project.

Step Four: Each person, (starting with the person on the left of the speaker) puts one Post-It Note in front of them.

A Green one, if all is clear and the subject is interesting (or they have some suggestions to improve it.) You are effectively giving them the green light to go ahead!

A Yellow one, if things aren’t clear and they have a question(s).

A Red one, if the subject/problem/stakes really aren’t clear at all and they need more clarification generally.

Step Five: Taking turns, the people with green post-its in front of them can add things to improve the project, or just state that all was clear. Each person who has a yellow or red Post-it in front of them, explains why things aren’t clear or poses questions to make it clearer in their mind.

The person, whose turn it was to present their ideas then has to answer/clarify things, which hopefully, makes it clearer in their own minds.

Once you have been around the table and everyone has their turn, the speaker who put forward their idea, has 5 minutes to re-formulate their idea using the ideas/questions or problems put forward.

The role then moves to the next person.

Ideal numbers 6/8 people per table.

Give me some feedback if you try it yourself. I’d like to know what you thought.