Values Cards

How to Play

Setup

1. Time and group: Plan 30–45 minutes. Works best with 6–24 participants. Form small groups of 3–4 for sharing.
2. Materials: A set of 50–100 values cards (e.g., Integrity, Creativity, Autonomy, Stability, Learning, Family, Recognition). Provide a concise definition on each card if possible. For virtual sessions, use a shared digital board or slide deck with movable cards.
3. Space: Arrange tables for small groups, or breakout rooms online. Provide timers and note sheets or a shared doc for insights.
4. Framing: Explain the purpose: to surface what drives each person and translate that into better collaboration and leadership.

How to Play

1. Introduce (2 minutes): Share that there are no right or wrong values; differences are useful signals for how to work well together.
2. Individual selection (5–7 minutes):
   • First shortlist 12–15 cards that feel important.
   • Narrow to your top 5 by making forced choices. If stuck, ask which value you would protect if circumstances forced a trade-off.
   • Optionally allow one wildcard value participants can write in if missing.
3. Rank and reflect (2 minutes): Order your five from 1 (most central) to 5 and jot a sentence that defines what each means to you plus one real example at work.
4. Small-group sharing (15–20 minutes): In groups of 3–4, each person gets 3–4 minutes to share:
   • Your top five (and why), one concrete work example, where this value helps you, and when it conflicted with another value or a team need.
   • Listeners ask one clarifying question each, not advice.
5. Alignment mapping (5–8 minutes): As a group, note overlaps and unique values. Identify one or two ways to support each person (e.g., clarify decision rights for someone who values autonomy, define milestones for someone who values structure).
6. Whole-group debrief (5–8 minutes): Share patterns, potential friction points, and two norms or actions the team will try (e.g., demo-first to honor innovation and stability together).

Rules

1. Confidentiality: Stories stay in the room unless explicit permission is given.
2. Equal airtime: Use a timer; rotate who goes first.
3. Respect differences: No debating or ranking values as better or worse.
4. Be concrete: Use specific examples, not abstractions.
5. Listen actively: Paraphrase, ask clarifying questions, avoid fixing or judging.
6. Virtual etiquette: Keep mics muted when not speaking, use reactions for acknowledgment, and use the digital board to move or mark your cards.

Tips

• Curate a balanced list that includes personal, interpersonal, and performance-oriented values. Add brief definitions to reduce ambiguity.
• Encourage participants to define values in their own words to avoid buzzword traps.
• For larger groups, appoint a timekeeper per breakout.
• Make the board accessible: large fonts, high contrast, and simple categories.
• Close with next steps so insights convert to behaviors (e.g., update working agreements or 1:1 preferences).

Variations

• Team Charter Add-on: Turn shared values into two or three explicit norms and one do-not-do.
• Manager and direct report: Run in pairs to align on motivation, feedback style, and decision autonomy.
• Project lens: Pick top five for this specific project, then compare with your life-as-a-whole list.
• Speed round: If short on time, share top three plus one example in 2 minutes each.
• Anonymous aggregation: Collect top values on sticky dots or a poll to create a team word cloud and discuss implications.