☕🍩 Morning Brew & Sun
Gather around the sunrise table, sip coffee, bite donuts, and reflect on our sprint—celebrating sweet wins, addressing bitter bites, and brewing improvements for a brighter tomorrow.
Template Columns
☀️🍩 Sweet Successes
Celebrate the delightful wins that brightened our sprint like a fresh donut with coffee.
Base column: What Went Well☕️⚡️ Bitter Bites
Identify the sour spots that left a bitter aftertaste in our work.
Base column: What Went Wrong🌅🚀 Rise & Refine
Plan how to brew better processes for the next sunrise.
Base column: What We Want to ImproveAbout this template
A light‑hearted sprint retrospective that uses coffee and donuts as metaphors to celebrate wins, surface challenges, and plan improvements.
When to use this template
Best for teams that want a quick, energizing check‑in at the start of the day or after a sprint, especially when morale needs a boost.
How to facilitate
Gather the team on a video call or physical table, share a virtual coffee background and display the three columns on the board
Ask each participant to write one Sweet Success on a sticky in the first column, focusing on outcomes that felt rewarding
Next, have everyone add a Bitter Bite to the second column, describing any obstacle or disappointment that left a sour feeling
Group similar items, then move to the Rise & Refine column where the team brainstorms concrete actions to improve the next sprint
Vote on the top two actions, assign owners, and close with a quick round of gratitude or a virtual toast
Pro Tips
Limit each person to three items per column to keep the board manageable and encourage prioritisation
Use a timer for each column (e.g., 8 minutes) to maintain momentum and avoid over‑discussion
Start the session with a 30‑second “coffee chat” where members share a personal highlight, building a relaxed atmosphere
FAQ
What if the team runs out of time?
Prioritise the Sweet Successes and Bitter Bites, then focus only on the highest‑voted items in Rise & Refine; capture additional ideas in a follow‑up document.
How do we handle strong negative emotions in the Bitter Bites column?
Acknowledge the feeling, keep comments factual, and shift quickly to solution‑focused discussion in the next column.
Can this be used for a non‑sprint retrospective?
Yes, the format works for any time‑boxed period such as a month, a project phase, or a one‑off event; just adjust the language of the prompts.
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At a glance
- Duration
45–60 min
- Team Size
4-12 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