Meetings
Start, stop, continue retro template
A three-column retrospective for deciding which habits to add, drop and keep.
What it is
Start, stop, continue is a retrospective with three columns. The team lists what it should start doing, what it should stop doing and what works well enough to keep. Every note describes a habit, so the result turns into changes without much rewording.
When to use it
- When the team wants a quick retro that ends in concrete changes
- After a quarter or a campaign, to review habits rather than single events
- To collect feedback on a process, a tool or a meeting format
How to run it
- 01
Set the period
Write what you are reviewing in the title, like a quarter or a project, so everyone pictures the same stretch of time.
- 02
Write notes alone
Give everyone seven minutes to add notes to all three columns. Start each note with a verb, like "Brief design earlier".
- 03
Discuss Stop first
Dropping a habit frees the time a new one needs. Agree on what to stop before you add anything to Start.
- 04
Pick one change per column
Circle one note in Start and one in Stop and give each an owner. Check them at the next retro.
Opens a new board from this prompt:
"Start, stop, continue retro for a four-person customer support team after a busy holiday season"
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