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Liberating Structures Design Cards

A quick reference for liberators ready to design great meetings and workshops

by
EK
Elise Keith
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Liberating Structures Design Cards illustration

This deck puts the key information about every Liberating Structure in your hands. The cards are organized into five color suits, so you can quickly find the right one for your group and experience level.

The structures, illustrations, and icons used in this session are part of the Liberating Structures Fieldbook (2026). We believe in open-source social innovation. This material is adapted from the original work by Keith McCandless and Nancy White and is licensed for your further use and adaptation under ++Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0++.
Learn more at liberatingstructures.com

Go-To Interactions

Get a group talking, thinking, or moving together. Plug in your own question or challenge.

1-2-4-AllEngage everyone simultaneously in generating questions, ideas, suggestions
15 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Impromptu NetworkingRapidly share challenges & expectations while building new connections
20 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Troika ConsultingGet practical and imaginative help from colleagues immediately
30 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Conversation CafeEngage everyone in making sense of profound challenges
55 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Shift & ShareSpread good ideas and make informal connections with innovators
20+ min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Options PlaceWithout a preset agenda, distribute control of meeting content and process to participants
40+ min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Drawing TogetherReveal insights and paths forward through nonverbal expression
80 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Mad Tea / Calm TeaGrasp a bigger, richer, funner context for taking a next step
10-20 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Spiral JournalCalmly prepare and sharpen observations for the work ahead
20 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Folding SpectrogramRecognize genuine differences and similarities on the way to deciding
15 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Go-To Interactions

Get a group talking, thinking, or moving together. Plug in your own question or challenge.

Build Understanding

Surface what's going on and explore other perspectives. Help the group know more before deciding.

Appreciative InterviewsDiscover & build on the root causes of success
1 hour
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Wise CrowdsTap the wisdom of the whole group in rapid cycles
20 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Nine WhysMake the purpose of your work together clear
30 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Celebrity InterviewReconnect the experience of leaders and experts with people closest to the challenge at hand
40 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
User Experience FishbowlShare know-how gained from experience with a larger community
55 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Wicked QuestionsArticulate the paradoxical challenges that a group must confront to succeed
30 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Discovery and Action Dialogue (DAD)Discover, invent, and unleash local solutions to chronic problems
55 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Social Network WebbingMap informal connections and decide how to strengthen the network to achieve a purpose
55 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Agreement and CertaintyMap challenges and match them to your solutions
50 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Generative Relationships STARReveal relationship patterns that create surprising value or dysfunctions
25 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Simple EthnographyObserve and record actual behaviors of users in the field
2.5 hrs
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Principles Walk AroundHold a mirror up to your professed values and daily habits
25 min
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Network Relationship PatternsIdentify and shape more productive work patterns
25 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Build Understanding

Surface what's going on and explore other perspectives. Help the group know more before deciding.

Move Work Forward

Commit to something: an action, a rule, a design, a next step. Pick up where Building Understanding leaves off.

Creative Destruction (TRIZ)Stop counterproductive behaviors to make space for innovation
50 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
15% SolutionsDiscover & focus on what each person has the freedom and resources to do now
30 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
What, So What, Now What? (W3)Together, look back on progress to date and decide what adjustments are needed
30 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
25/10 CrowdsourcingRapidly generate and sift a group's most powerful actionable ideas
35 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Design StoryboardsDefine the step-by-step elements for bringing meetings to productive endpoints
50 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Min SpecsSpecify only the absolute must-dos and must-not-dos for achieving a purpose
45 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Improv PrototypingDevelop effective solutions to chronic challenges while having serious fun
30 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
What I Need From You (WINFY)Surface needs and work across functions and disciplines
75 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Integrated AutonomyMove from either-or to robust both-and operational solutions
70 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Move Work Forward

Commit to something: an action, a rule, a design, a next step. Pick up where Building Understanding leaves off.

See the Big Picture

Step back and see the larger systems, cycles, and longer time horizons. Higher setup cost, longer run times.

Ecocycle PlanningAnalyze the full portfolio of activities & relationships to make progress
95 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Critical UncertaintiesDevelop strategies for operating in a range of plausible yet unpredictable futures
90 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
PanarchyUnderstand how embedded systems interact, spread innovation, and transform
2+ hours
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Purpose to Practice (P2P)Design the five essential elements for a resilient and enduring initiative
2 hrs
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Future~PresentNotice tactics in the present that shape a more attractive future
25 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Strategy Knotworking (SKW)Answer six questions together to develop strategy everyone owns
6 + hours
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
See the Big Picture

Step back and see the larger systems, cycles, and longer time horizons. Higher setup cost, longer run times.

Take Care of Each Other

Invite the group to exchange feedback and make space for emotions.

Heard, Seen, Respected (HSR)Practice deeper listening and empathy with colleagues
30 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Helping HeuristicsOffer, request, and receive more precise forms of help
20 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Positive GossipStart turning around a destructive pattern of negative gossip
15 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Grief WalkingTap into social support after a loss or through a transition
35 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Talking With PixiesIdentify beliefs and assumptions that may limit your progress
30 min
liberatingstructures.com CC-by-SA 4.0.
Take Care of Each Other

Invite the group to exchange feedback and make space for emotions.

Deck created by

Elise Keith
Member