Use the activity below to hone decision-making skills within your group. 

Start by forming groups of five to eight participants. If they don't already know each other, have the members introduce themselves and select a group leader and recorder.

1. The group leader gives the participants a written statement of the problem. The problem statement should be open-ended such as:

§           The most important concerns in (topic area)
§           facing this organization are . . .
§           The main purpose of this organization is . . .
§           The best way to increase jobs in this community is to . . .
§           We can’t get new people to join our organization because . . .

2. The leader should avoid any detailed clarification of the problem, such as providing specific examples.

3. Participants silently write down their ideas on index cards without discussion with others (five to ten minutes).

4. Share ideas: Within each group, proceed around the table with each person in turn sharing one idea from his/her list. No discussion other than clarification is permitted. The recorder writes the idea on a large piece of paper for everyone in the group to see. Continue reading ideas around the table until all ideas have been recorded on the paper.

5. Discuss: After all the ideas have been recorded, encourage each group to discuss the ideas on the paper, comparing, clarifying, and defending their statements.

6. Choose: Each group needs to choose three to five top priority ideas. Groups are free to devise their own means for coming to a consensus on the top priorities. Members may also want to “vote". The entire group needs to select its top five priorities and the votes should be tallied. This should bring a sense of closure to the group process.