Hopes and Fears is one of the simplest yet most impactful exercises I use when facilitating. Its power lies in its simplicity, fostering empathy and a shared sense of excitement around a project, goal, or task.

🌟 Sharing Hopes
When team members collectively voice their hopes, it becomes clear that each person has a role in achieving them. This encourages accountability and alignment while fostering a spirit of collaboration. Seeing everyone’s hopes laid out helps dissolve assumptions about alignment—or lack thereof—and creates a shared vision.

🌑 Acknowledging Fears
Sharing fears is equally essential. Unspoken fears can quietly drive behaviors and hinder conscious decision-making. By speaking fears out loud and seeing them written down, we strip them of much of their power. While this doesn’t prevent fears from resurfacing, it makes them easier to navigate. A known fear is far less disruptive than a silent one.

📋 The Process
Invite everyone to share their hopes and fears aloud.
Record them visibly on flipchart paper for everyone to see.
Ensure there’s enough time and space for every voice to be heard.
Often, team members discover that their hopes and fears are shared, creating a sense of connection and reducing feelings of isolation.

✨ The Outcome
This simple exercise can transform team dynamics, build trust, and set the foundation for open, honest collaboration. One client we have used this process with their client to begin a complex meeting and the response was, “that was the most humane way to start a meeting.”
Why not try it at your next team meeting? I’d love to hear how it goes!