🧙♂️🍄 Gnome Garden Gathering
Step into our enchanted gnome garden! Let's dig up what grew well, weed out the troubles, and break any stubborn stones to help our agile project flourish like magical mushrooms.
Template Columns
🌼 Blooming Blossoms
Share the achievements and positive moments that made our garden thrive.
Base column: Glad🍂 Wilted Leaves
Reveal what felt gloomy, faded, or could be improved in our enchanted work patches.
Base column: Sad🪨 Stubborn Stones
Vent your frustrations and call out obstacles that blocked our garden’s path.
Base column: MadAbout this template
The Gnome Garden Gathering retrospective invites your team to review achievements, surface challenges, and address obstacles using playful gardening metaphors to encourage open and creative reflection.
When to use this template
Use this retrospective when your team needs a positive, approachable environment to discuss highs, lows, and blockers—especially after challenging sprints or when morale could use a boost.
How to facilitate
Set the scene by welcoming everyone to the enchanted gnome garden and explaining the meaning of each column.
Ask team members to add notes describing successes and positive outcomes to the Blooming Blossoms column.
Invite everyone to share improvements or disappointments in the Wilted Leaves column, prompting honest reflection.
Encourage team members to identify persistent obstacles or blockers in the Stubborn Stones column—these are issues needing deeper attention.
Review all contributions together, grouping related items and clarifying as needed.
Facilitate a team discussion to prioritize issues from Wilted Leaves and Stubborn Stones for improvement actions.
Collaboratively decide on clear action steps to nurture your Agile 'garden' and assign owners where appropriate.
Wrap up by celebrating notable Blooming Blossoms and closing with gratitude or a light-hearted gnome-themed encouragement.
Pro Tips
Lean into the playfulness of the theme to lower barriers—metaphors can help team members share more candidly.
Focus team energy on moving Stubborn Stones together, not just naming them—ask how you can make real progress.
During review, look for roots of Wilted Leaves; sometimes they're connected to hidden stones.
Encourage equal participation using silent brainstorming before group discussion to gather diverse input.
FAQ
What if the team struggles to use the gardening metaphors?
Briefly explain each metaphor and offer real examples. If some prefer plain language, welcome that too—the goal is candid discussion.
How do we avoid focusing only on negatives?
Begin with Blooming Blossoms to set a constructive tone and intentionally highlight even small positives before exploring challenges.
What if Stubborn Stones remain unsolved after several retros?
Escalate persistent issues beyond the team if needed, and consider experimenting with new solutions. Track ownership and revisit progress regularly.
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At a glance
- Duration
40–55 min
- Team Size
3-10 people
- Columns
3 columns
- Base Format
Glad, Sad, Mad
Tags
Ready to get started?
Use this template to run your next retrospective