🐴🏰 Stable Chronicles
Gather 'round the stable as we tend our agile herd—share what we’re saddling up, hitching, or letting gallop free, and forge a smoother ride ahead.
Template Columns
🐎⚔️ Harness New Rides
Identify fresh initiatives to saddle up for the next sprint.
Base column: Start🛑🪓 Dismount Obstacles
Pinpoint practices that hinder our stable’s flow and should be halted.
Base column: Stop🏇💨 Keep the Gallop
Highlight strengths we’ll keep riding forward.
Base column: Continue🔄🛠️ Reinforce the Stalls
Suggest adjustments to improve our stable’s structure.
Base column: ChangeAbout this template
A themed retrospective that lets teams identify new work, stop hindrances, keep what works, and adjust processes for smoother delivery.
When to use this template
Best for sprint reviews when the team needs a balanced view of new ideas, blockers, strengths, and process tweaks.
How to facilitate
Set the stage by explaining the Stable Chronicles metaphor and the four columns
Ask participants to silently write observations for each column on virtual sticky notes
Collect and group similar notes in the Harness New Rides column, discussing each proposed initiative
Review Dismount Obstacles items, vote on the most critical blockers to address
Highlight Keep the Gallop entries, celebrating the strengths the team will continue
For Reinforce the Stalls, brainstorm concrete adjustments and assign owners for follow‑up actions
Pro Tips
Use a timer for each column to keep energy high and ensure equal focus
Encourage the use of emojis or icons on sticky notes to keep the stable theme lively
Turn the top‑voted obstacles into a single improvement story for the next sprint backlog
FAQ
What if the team runs out of ideas for new initiatives?
Prompt participants to think about upcoming stakeholder requests, technical debt, or experiments they’ve wanted to try; even small tweaks count as new rides.
How do we handle dominant voices during the discussion?
Use round‑robin sharing or a silent voting tool so every voice is heard before anyone speaks again.
Can we combine the 'Change' and 'Continue' columns?
If the team prefers fewer columns, merge them into a single 'Adjust & Keep' column, but keep the distinction during discussion to avoid losing nuance.
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At a glance
- Duration
45–60 min
- Team Size
4-12 people
- Columns
4 columns
- Base Format
Start, Stop, Continue, Change
Tags
Ready to get started?
Use this template to run your next retrospective