☀️🔥 Surface of the Sun
Prepare for a scorching retro! Let’s harness the sun’s energy to ignite our successes, vaporize obstacles, and keep the bright ideas burning. Ready to shine even brighter as a team?
Template Columns
🌅 Spark New Rays
Suggest fiery new experiments or practices that can energize our next sprint.
Base column: Start☀️ Solar Storms to Block
Identify what’s overheating our workflow or causing sunburn—let’s cool those down!
Base column: Stop🌞 Keep the Core Burning
Celebrate the brilliant, sustaining habits that keep our solar team glowing strong.
Base column: ContinueAbout this template
Surface of the Sun is a high-energy retrospective that helps teams ignite new ideas, eliminate workflow obstacles, and celebrate core strengths.
When to use this template
Use this retro when your team needs to break out of routine, address persistent pain points, or infuse energy into processes. It’s ideal after a challenging sprint or when motivation needs a boost.
How to facilitate
Open with a brief introduction, setting the energetic theme and goals for the session
Review the three columns: Spark New Rays for fresh initiatives, Solar Storms to Block for pain points, and Keep the Core Burning for core strengths
Invite the team to add insights and ideas to each column individually and silently for a few minutes
Go through each column as a group, clustering similar items and clarifying any unclear points
Facilitate group discussion, encouraging everyone to prioritize which Sparks to experiment with and which Solar Storms to address next sprint
Celebrate the strengths noted in Keep the Core Burning and discuss how to maintain or amplify them
Summarize agreed actions and experiments, assigning clear owners before closing with a quick team check-in on energy levels
Pro Tips
Use vivid metaphors from the sun theme to make discussion points more memorable and engaging
Encourage everyone to contribute under each column—even shy team members have valuable energy to share
Bring in real examples or stories that illustrate recurring solar storms or powerful core practices for deeper discussion
FAQ
What if our 'Solar Storms' feel too overwhelming to fix?
Focus on a few high-impact obstacles you can address. Break them into smaller experiments to test rather than solving everything at once.
How do we encourage bold 'Spark New Rays' ideas without fear of failure?
Frame this column as a safe space for wild ideas, and consider running small experiments instead of big changes. Highlight previous successes from similar experiments to build confidence.
How do we keep 'the Core Burning' habits from stagnating?
Regularly revisit and reflect on these core strengths. Look for ways to evolve, document, or share them so they stay relevant and effective over time.
At a glance
- Duration
40–50 min
- Team Size
4-10 people
- Columns
3 columns
- Base Format
Start, Stop, Continue
Tags
Ready to get started?
Use this template to run your next retrospective