🌶️👻 Ghost Pepper Heat-Up
Spice up your sprint! Let’s turn up the heat as we reflect on what made us sweat, what went down smooth, and how to keep our workflow flavorful yet manageable.
Template Columns
🔥 Sizzling Successes
Share the spicy moments that brought tasty results to our project.
Base column: What Went Well🥵 Blazing Burnouts
Reveal the scorching challenges that made us sweat and stumble this sprint.
Base column: What Went Wrong🌱 Milder Moves
Suggest ways to turn the heat down next time and improve our sprint recipe.
Base column: What We Want to ImproveAbout this template
The Ghost Pepper Heat-Up retrospective uses spicy themes to help teams celebrate successes, surface real challenges, and co-create actionable improvements for future sprints. This fun, energetic format encourages honest conversation and continuous improvement.
When to use this template
Use this retrospective at the end of a challenging or high-intensity sprint, especially when the team needs an engaging way to reflect and re-balance. It's effective when motivation is wavering or after a period of heavy workload.
How to facilitate
Welcome everyone, introduce the spicy theme, and explain the meaning behind each column to set the mood.
Invite the team to silently add their thoughts to each column: Sizzling Successes, Blazing Burnouts, and Milder Moves.
Group similar stickies together and ask the team to briefly explain or clarify their input if needed.
Facilitate a discussion on Sizzling Successes to acknowledge wins, then move to Blazing Burnouts to unpack challenges, concluding with Milder Moves for improvement ideas.
Collaboratively select the top improvement actions from the Milder Moves column and assign owners if appropriate.
Close by recapping key takeaways, celebrating progress, and inviting any final reflections or appreciations.
Pro Tips
Encourage humor and playfulness to keep the energy high even when discussing tough topics.
Have the team vote on which Blazing Burnout felt hottest to prioritize your improvement efforts.
If time allows, invite each person to share their 'spiciest' moment of the sprint as an icebreaker.
Don't rush the Milder Moves discussion—focus on actionable, sustainable changes against burnout.
FAQ
What if team members feel uncomfortable with the heat-related theme?
Remind everyone it's a fun metaphor. Adjust language if needed for inclusivity, focusing on the core goals of open, constructive feedback.
How can we avoid only focusing on negative experiences?
Balance the time given for Sizzling Successes and Blazing Burnouts, and ensure every voice is heard in both columns.
How do we translate Milder Moves into real change?
Discuss and agree on a small set of clear, prioritized actions, assign owners, and review outcomes in your next retrospective.
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At a glance
- Duration
45–60 min
- Team Size
4-10 people
- Columns
3 columns
- Base Format
What Went Well, What Went Wrong, What We Want to Improve
Tags
Ready to get started?
Use this template to run your next retrospective