Check-ins are an approach to encourage each person in a meeting to speak to their peers. One by one, group members respond to a selected question or prompt. Prompts are chosen to elicit who participants are, how they feel or what they think about an almost limitless range of work-related and personal concerns. Leaders use check-ins deliberately to further a group’s development and ultimately, to enable it to perform at the highest level.

What

The check-in is a simple, deceptively powerful tool for collaboration that encourages each person in a group to speak. Check-ins prime the behaviors that make collaboration possible.

Why

Check-ins urge groups toward higher performance. On the way, they help people sharpen their focus, create greater psychological safety, build stronger relationships, and increase commitment to their work.

When

If your group has to accomplish anything—regardless of whether it meets regularly or gathers for a single meeting, whether members know one another well or just met—check-ins can help.

How

Selecting appropriate check-in questions is both science and art. Your job is to select a question that both explicitly and implicitly urges your group in the direction it needs to travel.

Christine
Madison, WI, United States
Something I do for fun is beading.
Rike
Saigon, Vietnam
One of my favorite books is Americanah.
Kathleen
Pottsville, PA, United States
I like where I live because it’s close to major cities, yet we have the intimacy and small communities of the area.
Claudia
Vienna, Austria
One of my favorite books is Die Omama im Apfelbaum (The Granny in the Apple Tree).
Sohini
Gurgaon, India
Something I do for fun is traveling and tourism.
Clara
Vienna, Austria
On TV I like to watch “krimis” (crime shows).
Jane
TUNBRIDGE WELLS, United Kingdom
Something I do for fun is run.
Anne
Overijse, Belgium
An expression I like is “what’s the difference that will make the difference?”
Faiza
Dhaka, Bangladesh
On TV I like to watch Sherlock.
Emma
Oxford, United Kingdom
Something I do for fun is run!
Mary
LINCOLN, NE, United States
I take comfort in food.
Leah
Saint Paul, MN, United States
An expression I like is “I miss your face.”
Lani
Auckland, New Zealand
An expression I like is “Be yourself, everyone else is taken” from Oscar Wilde.
Leila
London, United Kingdom
I take comfort in eating good food.
Blanca
Madrid, Spain
One of my favorite books is Viaje alrededor de mi habitación (A Journey Around my Room).
Karina
Fort Collins, CO, United States
Something I do for fun is watercolor paint.
Matthias
Mettingen, Germany
I like where I live because “es schräg ist” (“it is weird”).
Arsenia
New York, NY, United States
When I grew up I wanted to be a nun.
Theresa
Fort Lupton, CO, United States
Something I do for fun is run.
Rebecca
Ottawa, Canada
Something that gives me hope is my kids.
Susan
Amman, Jordan
One of my favorite books is Can’t We Talk About Something More Pleasant by Roz Chast (about aging parents).
Henk
Antwerp, Belgium
One of my heroes is Frank Sinatra.
Ola
Berlin, Germany
Something I do for fun is running.
Alex
San Salvador, El Salvador
One of my guilty pleasures is romance novels.
Idil
Istanbul, Turkey
When I grew up I wanted to be a doctor.
Bill
Spokane Valley, WA, United States
One of my favorite books is Braiding Sweetgrass.
Patrizia
Vienna, Austria
An expression I like is “energy flows where attention goes.”
Felix
Vienna, Austria
Something that gives me hope is “am ende wird alles gut; und wenn’s nicht gut ist, ist’s noch nciht das ende (“everything will be ok in the end; if it’s not ok, it’s not the end”).”
Jennifer
Philadelphia, PA, United States
The music I love the most right now is show tunes.
Tanya
Calgary, Canada
I like where I live because of the kindness and compassion of friends, family and neighbors.

Your Check-Ins

Richard Cohen
GREAT POND RESOLUTIONS
We all want to get things done in our meetings. Check-ins encourage people to build the kind of relationships that enable them to get things done better: more efficiently, more effectively, and more enjoyably.